Poldark star Aidan Turner touches down in Dublin

IRISH INDEPENDENT
April 5, 2017

Aidan Turner has returned to Dublin for a rare night out at home, as Poldark fans are in a spin over the show's earlier return to our screens.

The heart-throb was snapped tonight at The Gate theatre with new director of the theatre Selina Cartmell at the opening night of Noel Coward's Private Lives.

He appeared tonight at the theatre dressed down in jeans and a beanie hat for the show, which is at the beginning of a three month run.

"The earlier filming schedule on this series means that we can bring the much anticipated third series back sooner for fans to Sunday nights in June," a BBC spokeswoman said.

http://www.independent.ie/style/celebrity/celebrity-news/poldark-star-aidan-turner-touches-down-in-dublin-35597779.html

Henry Cavill Gushes About His Favorite Traveling Companion — His Dog

US
By Ali Booth

Even Superman needs a sidekick! Henry Cavill, who plays Clark Kent in DC’s two most recent film adaptations of the classic comic, as well as the upcoming Justice League, took to Instagram on Monday, April 3, to share a post in honor of his lovable dog, Kal.

“These past few days have been very busy with travel to new destinations for my next job. What seemed like an impossible task was made into less of a mission by my constant companion,” he captioned the collage of photos of Kal, which he hashtagged, “#TheTravelingBear.”

http://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/henry-cavills-dog-is-his-favorite-traveling-companion-w474777

Pride and Prejudice (1995) episode 3 of 6

Pride and Prejudice - Episode 2 of 6 (1995) Colin Firth

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Kenneth Branagh is starring in and directing the adaptation of Agatha Christie's classic tale "Murder on the Orient Express"

THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER
by Rebecca Ford

Kenneth Branagh's star-studded adaptation of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express pulled into Las Vegas with the first footage at CinemaCon Thursday.

Branagh directs and stars in the Fox film, which also features Penelope Cruz, Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer, Leslie Odom Jr., Daisy Ridley, Michael Pena and Judi Dench among the cast.

The story centers on a murder onboard the famous train and introduces Belgian detective Hercule Poirot (Branagh), who must solve the case while being surrounded by duplicitous passengers.

Branagh, sending in a video from Malta where he’s filming the project, said “we’ve assembled an amazing group” of his cast. “This is not only a who dunnit and how dunnit, it’s crucially a why dunnit,” he said

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/murder-orient-express-cinemacon-trailer-showcases-star-studded-cast-989954

Almost 10 years after its finale, Ray Stevenson revealed what the original Rome ending and final Titus Pullo scene was supposed to be.

DEN OF GEEK
David Crow
March 17, 2017

Before there was Spartacus or The Tudors, Vikings or The Borgias—before Game of Thrones—there was Rome. As the first salvo of a legion of period epics and historic fictions on premium cable, Rome was one of the most ambitious gambles ever ventured by HBO with a first season cost that was upwards of $100 million due to pricy sets (the biggest in the world), principal photography in Italy, and the usage of old fashioned 35mm cameras.

The series proudly attempted to tell a sort of an “Upstairs, Downstairs” drama between Rome’s patrician class and its plebian underbelly, making it something of a semi-prequel to I, Claudius as we witnessed the rise and fall of Gaius Julius Caesar (Ciaran Hinds), and then the many years of warfare between the various parties in the wake of his death—including a young Octavian (first Max Pirkis, then Simon Woods)—as well as Rome’s transition from republic to empire.

It was a grand effort… perhaps too much so. Indeed, the popular cult series only ran for two seasons, abruptly ending 10 years ago in 2007. While there was some second-guessing and regret after the ratings for Rome season 2 increased, the die was already cast and that season concluded the story with Octavian becoming Augustus, the first Emperor of Rome, and his quiet plebian right-hand, Titus Pullo (Ray Stevenson), taking on the responsibilities of raising a son since his best mate Lucius Vorenus (Kevin McKidd) lies presumably in the grave.

“Bruno [Heller] once did outline a story that he was going to start the whole series with,” Stevenson said. “An 88-year-old Pullo going down to the riverside by Vorenus’ tomb, or sarcophagus, pouring wine on it, taking a sword out while sitting there on the banks, looking at the glistening river, and committing suicide.

“And as he has his face hit the sand on the banks, a fish jumped out of the water, and the silver light on the fish caught the sword, which brought us right into that first battle with Lucius Vorenus and [Titus Pullo] where he breaks ranks.”


http://www.denofgeek.com/us/tv/rome/252090/hbos-rome-ending-was-originally-very-different

Poldark series three to air on BBC1 in June (Aidan Turner)

RADIO TIMES
By Ben Dowell
Monday 3 April 2017 at 6:30PM

The next series of Aidan Turner drama Poldark will start on BBC1 in June, RadioTimes.com can exclusively reveal.

A BBC spokeswoman confirmed the news: “The earlier filming schedule on this series means that we can bring the much anticipated third series back sooner for fans to Sunday nights in June.”

The second series aired in the autumn against ITV drama Victoria but senior BBC sources were insistent that the decision for series 3 was not about avoiding a clash with rival show but about giving viewers a "summer treat".

Other sources also point to the fact that the first series of Poldark aired in the spring, with production sources noting that it would fill what can sometimes be a barren time for drama lovers.

Filming for series 3 started in September, a little earlier than series two started filming, as the team sought to get some better weather than the rather gloomy and wintry recent run of episodes.

However fans of both dramas and Mammoth Screen - which makes both Poldark and Victoria - will be happy that the Cornish period drama avoids a likely clash with the second series of the rival ITV drama starring Jenna Coleman which is expected to air in the autumn again.

The scheduling clash split the audience last autumn with both shows averaging just over 6 million viewers. Series 1 of Poldark averaged more than 8m viewers per episode and a move to earlier in the year has long been on the cards as RadioTimes.com revealed last September.

Earlier this year, Poldark star Eleanor Tomlinson said that the decision to schedule the drama against ITV period show Victoria last autumn was a “real shame”.

Speaking at the Radio Times Covers Party, the actress, who plays Ross Poldark's wife Demelza, insisted that the audience shouldn’t have had to choose between the Cornish period drama and ITV's series.

“I think it’s a real shame that they came out at the same time. It doesn’t make any sense to me!” she said in the interview (below). “I think it did split the audience. At the end we were equal and that’s really good. I think Poldark pulled through.”



http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2017-04-03/poldark-series-three-to-air-on-bbc1-in-june

Filming starts on Doc Martin Series 8 (Martin Clunes)

British Comedy Guide
Tuesday 21st March 2017, 9:18am

Filming is underway on Series 8 of hit ITV comedy drama Doc Martin.

ITV has confirmed that filming has just begun on location in Port Isaac, the picturesque Cornish village which doubles as the fictional sleepy Portwenn.

All the regular members of the cast are returning to the popular series, as crews begin filming eight new episodes.

Martin Clunes reprises his role as Dr Martin Ellingham, the GP with a brusque bedside manner and a phobia of blood; with Caroline Catz playing his wife and local school headmistress, Louisa Ellingham.

After having therapy to save their marriage in the last series, they face the challenge of living happily together with their baby James Henry.

Martin Clunes says: "I'm thrilled to be back on the beautiful North Cornish coast to shoot Series 8 of Doc Martin. The Doc is as obstinate as ever, but he is trying his best to be a better husband and father."

Also returning to the series is Dame Eileen Atkins who plays the central character's formidable Aunt Ruth, a woman who is beginning to doubt the wisdom of going into business with Bert Large and his son Al.

Ian McNeice is back to play Bert Large, with Joe Absolom as Al. Bert is desperate to make his home distilled whisky a success, but there's a shortage of customers willing to buy. Meanwhile guests are not exactly flocking to Al's bed and breakfast, and he fears he will have to close the doors for good.

Meanwhile wedding bells are ringing for unlucky-in-love PC Joe Penhale, played by John Marquez. In the last series he popped the question to the Doc's nanny Janice Bone, played by Robyn Addison, and is now looking forward to marital bliss. Will the course of true love run smoothly at last for Portwenn's police officer?


https://www.comedy.co.uk/tv/news/2506/doc_martin_series_8/

Playing Gemma On 'The Missing' Has Been Keeley Hawes' "Biggest Journey" As An Actor

BUSTLE
ByCAITLIN FLYNN19 hours ago

If you're anything like me, you've been devouring every single episode of The Missing on STARZ — and counting down the minutes until the series finale airs on Sunday, April 2. At long last, we'll get the answers to our burning questions... right? Personally, I lack the emotional strength to handle a finale filled with loose ends. Luckily, we don't need to worry — in an interview with Bustle, Keeley Hawes, who stars as Gemma on The Missing, promises that the Webster family's story will be "resolved really beautifully."

Until The Missing, Hawes avoided TV shows and films that focused on missing children. As a mother of three, she says the idea "hit too close to home." But when she received the scripts, Hawes didn't know what the show was about — so she immediately dove in and was instantly riveted by the plot. "I literally read it like you would read a brilliant book that you cannot put down," she recalls. "Of course on one level it is about a missing child, it’s about an abduction, and all those horrible things that make you think of your own children. But it’s also a thriller and whodunnit, and it has so many other levels. And it’s really beautifully and delicately done as well."



Still, Hawes says there was really no way to mentally prepare herself for the role of Gemma. "The preparation was all in the writing, and learning the backstories of the characters and their relationships," she says. The plot shifts between 2003, 2014, and present day, as the Webster family is taken on the most horrifying emotional roller coaster you can imagine. Hawes describes it as one of the biggest journeys she's ever taken as an actor.

https://www.bustle.com/p/playing-gemma-on-the-missing-has-been-keeley-hawes-biggest-journey-as-actor-48445

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, 1995, EPISODE ONE

The Night Manager seasons 2: Tom Hiddleston, Hugh Laurie and Olivia Colman reportedly 'bac

INDEPENDENT
Jack Shepherd

Fans of Tom Hiddleston’s extended James Bond audition - AKA The Night Manager - have been pining for a sequel ever since the BBC show finished airing last year.

Earlier this month, director Susanne Bier confirmed a second series is "slowly being developed,” saying:  "We all very much want to do a season two, but the thing we absolutely do not want is to do something that does not live up to the level of season one. That would be a really bad idea.”

New reports claim Hiddleston - along with co-stars Hugh Laurie and Olivia Colman - have signed up for another series, an insider telling The Daily Express they producers are “just working on the story, and then it’s down to availability.”

http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/the-night-manager-seasons-2-tom-hiddleston-hugh-laurie-olivia-colman-return-back-a7651681.html

Can Dan Stevens Really Sing? There’s Nothing Beastly About The Actor’s Voice

BUSTLE
SHARE
ByJOHNNY BRAYSON

Anyone who was concerned that the live action Beauty and the Beast movie would be a flop can stop worrying. The film notched the sixth-highest opening weekend of all-time by taking in over $174 in its first frame, and it's on pace to easily be Disney's most successful live action reboot yet. The film's success owes a lot to its impressive cast, especially Dan Stevens and Emma Watson, who sing and dance their way through the spectacle. But how much of it was real and how much was movie magic? Can Dan Stevens really sing?

Despite his face as the Beast being computer generated and performed through motion capture, that really is Stevens' voice you hear belting out the movie's famous tunes. The actor apparently had done a bit of singing in his youth, but it had been a long time since he had actually sung when the time came to train his voice for the film. "Singing was a relatively new thing to me," the 34-year-old told People. "I’d sung at school and when I was younger, but in my 20s I [hadn’t] sung as extensively so reengaging my voice, retraining the voice, was a big challenge." Check out Stevens in action below, singing alongside Watson (who also sang for real) in a scene from the film.



https://www.bustle.com/p/can-dan-stevens-really-sing-theres-nothing-beastly-about-the-actors-voice-45990