Our Friends In The North [DVD] [1996]

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The real-life public figures drawn on here include Labour council leader T. Dan Smith, architect and freemason John Poulson, Home Secretary Reginald Maudling, Newcastle businessman Sir John Hall, and ex-Chief Constable Frank Williamson. The first episode of Our Friends in the North gained 5.1 million viewers on its original transmission. [51] In terms of viewing figures, the series was BBC2's most successful weekly drama until 2001. [52] Reception [ edit ] Critical response [ edit ] The floating nightclub Tuxedo Princess beneath the Tyne Bridge in Newcastle, pictured in 2005. Both of these locations feature prominently in Our Friends in the North. a b Thompson, Ben (25 February 1996). "The Interview: Mark Strong talks to Ben Thompson". The Independent. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022 . Retrieved 1 September 2013.

Our Friends in the North DVD review | Cine Outsider Our Friends in the North DVD review | Cine Outsider

Our Friends in the North, broadcast on BBC2 in 1996, was hailed as a landmark show that combined gritty politics with personal relationships. “I’ve always said it’s just a posh soap opera – but it’s a posh soap opera with something to say,” Flannery, who was born in Jarrow, south Tyneside, once said. A critically acclaimed and award-winning television drama series about politics, corruption and class in the north-east of England has been given a new modern-day ending in a BBC Radio 4 adaptation.In its original form the story went up only to the 1979 general election and the coming to power of the new Conservative government under Margaret Thatcher. [11] The play also contained a significant number of scenes set in Rhodesia, chronicling UDI, the oil embargo and the emergence of armed resistance to white supremacy. [12] This plot strand was dropped from the televised version, although the title Our Friends in the North, a reference to how staff at BP in South Africa referred to the Rhodesian government of Ian Smith, remained. [13] Television – Drama Serial in 1997". British Academy of Film and Television Arts . Retrieved 2 September 2013.

Our Friends in the North adds 25 years with a new chapter for Our Friends in the North adds 25 years with a new chapter for

The stage version of Our Friends in the North was seen by BBC television drama producer Michael Wearing in Newcastle in 1982, and he was immediately keen on producing a television adaptation. [16] At that time, Wearing was based at the BBC English Regions Drama Department at BBC Pebble Mill in Birmingham, which had a specific remit for making "regional drama". [17] Wearing initially approached Flannery to adapt his play into a four-part television serial for BBC2, with each episode being 50 minutes long and the Rhodesian strand dropped for practical reasons. [18] [19] A change of executives meant that the project was not produced, although Wearing persisted in trying to get it commissioned. Flannery extended the serial to six episodes, [18] one for each United Kingdom general election from 1964 to 1979. [20] However, by this point in the mid-1980s, Michael Grade was Director of Programmes for BBC Television, and he had no interest in the project. [21] Selected items are only available for delivery via the Royal Mail 48® service and other items are available for delivery using this service for a charge.Daniel Craig was auditioned late for the role of Geordie. At the audition he performed the Geordie accent very poorly but won the part, which came to be regarded as his breakthrough role. [7] [6] Mark Strong worked on the Geordie accent by studying episodes of the 1980s comedy series Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, which featured lead characters from Newcastle. [40] Strong later claimed that Christopher Eccleston took a dislike to him and outside of their scenes together the pair did not speak while the series was filming. [40] Our Friends in the North is a British television drama serial produced by the BBC. It was originally broadcast in nine episodes on BBC2 in early 1996. Written by Peter Flannery, it tells the story of four friends from Newcastle upon Tyne over a period of 31 years, from 1964 to 1995. The story makes reference to certain political and social events which occurred during the era portrayed, some specific to Newcastle and others which affected Britain as a whole. These include general elections, police and local government corruption, the UK miners' strike (1984–85), and the Great Storm of 1987. These are rich, beautifully drawn characters. Almost without exception, they can tug on your heartstrings and then repulse you within the space of a couple of scenes. Compare this with The Crown – which, in its less inspired moments, feels like a whistle-stop tour of old headlines – and the quality of the writing is immediately apparent.

BBC Radio 4 - Our Friends in the North BBC Radio 4 - Our Friends in the North

A few weeks ago, I found myself comparing BBC Two’s Industry to a show that came before it. Not Succession. Or This Life (actually, I compared it to that, too). Instead, I compared it to Our Friends in the North.a b "The Devil's Whore mixes fact with fiction". Shields Gazette. 14 November 2008 . Retrieved 2 September 2013. I wanted to do Our Friends in the South for the BBC, which would have been a kind of prequel to Our Friends in the North, but it was never taken up, so it remained an idea only, with no actual play. a b c d e Eccleston, Christopher (2002). Interview with Christopher Eccleston (DVD). BMG. BMG DVD 74321.