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/

Joe Absolom: ‘I’m skint, but Death in Paradise was worth it!”

WHAT'S ON TV
10:05am, Monday, 9 February 2015



Joe Absolom reveals he’s broke after working on Death in Paradise, but doesn’t regret taking a guest role in BBC1’s Caribbean murder mystery.

In a laughter-filled chat with What’s on TV the laidback Doc Martin and EastEnders’ star explains why he likes being a jobbing actor and is enjoying fatherhood. He also spills the beans on the return of Doc Martin and tells-all about former co-star Kevin Costner’s close encounter with a bee!

You guest star in Death in Paradise as volleyball coach Aiden Parker. Was it a tough job to say yes to?
“I know, I know… tough sell! I was supposed to be going on a family holiday to France to visit my mum and dad when I got the call from my agent telling me I’d been offered a part in Death in Paradise, and could I go to Guadeloupe instead?”

How did your family react when you told them?
“They’d been really excited about France and looked so sad when they heard I was off to the Caribbean for two weeks. So my girlfriend and I decided we’d make it work and take all three kids too. My parents were gutted and a bit jealous. And it turned out it rained in France when we were supposed to be there! We’re absolutely skint now of course, but we don’t want any sympathy. It was a good way to spend money and we all had a fantastic time.”

How nice is it to be offered a role and not have to audition?
“It doesn’t usually happen. It’s only happened once before with Midsomer Murders. Auditioning underlines my little foibles! I can go into the audition room and even though I’ve rehearsed something and felt good about it at home, suddenly I think things like ‘I don’t like this chair’. But I like being a jobbing actor, it's interesting and good fun. Yet the reality is sometimes you only do one or two jobs a year.”

Is that enough?
“No! Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn’t. The fact we went to Guadeloupe as a family – that’s an amazing experience. Listening to stories and meeting really interesting characters - our family photos with all the Death in Paradise cast and crew are fantastic.”

Were your children impressed by you?
“No, they were impressed by the pool! My little boy learned to swim. For Liz and me it was the best holiday we ever had, even though I had to work nearly every day. It’s a beautiful place with a beautiful atmosphere. Kris Marshall and Danny John-Jules’ kids were there too, and everyone got on fantastically.”

Did you have to do any special preparation for the role of volleyball coach Aiden?
“They told me to get a tan because I was so pasty and the character is supposed to have lived on the Island for 10 years!”

Does this mean Death in Paradise now rivals Doc Martin as the best job in television?
“Doc Martin really is a great job. We film in Cornwall and it’s really good fun with lots of very nice people. But that’s now been usurped by Death in Paradise. They flew me to the Caribbean – and when you’re not working you can sit around a hotel pool!”

What’s next for you?
“The new series of Doc Martin starts filming in Cornwall in March. I might have to get a proper job while I’m waiting for that – these kids keep growing!”

READ MORE HERE: http://www.whatsontv.co.uk/tv-news/news/joe-absolom-i-m-skint-but-death-in-paradise-was-worth-it

Doc Martin: ‘Departure’ – Series 6 Episode 8 (SPOILERS)

THE INDEPENDENT
By Lina Talbot
Last updated: Tuesday, 22 October 2013 at 10:42 am



Spoiler alert: This review assumes you have already watched Episode 8 of the current series.


Despite the title to this episode, viewers can be relieved that nothing hints at a real-life departure from the Doc Martin cast. Apart from Claire Bloom as the wicked grandmother, that is… Martin finally summons the strength to have ‘that talk’ his mother has been waiting for, and sees straight through her scheming. She did make a basic medical error in her dishonest account of his father’s passing, after all.

Writer Jack Lothian delivers a gripping finale to the current series, even weaving in new suspense with an unexpected medical condition for Louisa. Something has to stop her flying away, since the exchanges between her and Martin are as futile as ever. But her departure for the airport triggers some sensation in Martin Clunes’ obdurate doctor who, possibly confusing emotion for illness, strides off to seek advice from Ruth. She is apparently now the village go-to person for all manner of problems.

Down at the Large’s, the story continues of Al’s quest for his own source of income and, with it, independence from his ‘know it better’ father. Ian McNeice manages to make Bert endearing even while he rains unreasonable demands on his son. Later he proposes “BAR” (Bert, Al and Ruth) as the name for Al’s business, then claims to be just winding Al up. Not always been the case, eh Bert?

But the awkward Al, played for sympathy by Joe Absolom, must scamper down a grassy bank in scooter helmet, suit and tie, to pitch his business idea to Eileen Atkins’ implacable Ruth. Has Alan Sugar tried that on his protégés? As the camera sweeps along the overgrown lakeside, Al suggests a barbecue with the freshly caught fish – and I’m sold. The lake may not be the largest, but I’m prepared to believe.

Ruth and Al’s two encounters are my favourite of several heartfelt one-on-one scenes this week. I trust there will be more such odd couple moments in the next series.

Comic sketches include a running gag with the New York cops outfit chosen by Penhale (Joe Marquez) as his fancy dress for Bert’s party – of course. This culminates at the airport where, surprise surprise, he cannot convince the official that he actually is a policeman. Best comedy line comes from Martin, objecting to the travel agent down the phone: “No I won’t hold!”

Ruth gives Morwenna (Jessica Ransom) cause to pause, as she lets slip her perception that Morwenna and Al are “involved”. Nope, they’re still getting there… Morwenna then engages in a wonderfully straight exchange with her pal, that Ruth working in psychiatry is not the same as being psychic.

The big climax commences with Martin peering at Louisa’s CT scan, which reveals an arteriovenous malformation. This is an unstable link between blood vessels at different pressures. Yes, these can bleed and do need treatment, but there’s no rush for emergency surgery, especially in early autumn when experienced surgeons may be on holiday and the new intake not yet up to scratch – clearly the case in Truro. And just because you have an AVM doesn’t mean your headache following a row with your husband comes from a bleed.9


READ MORE HERE:http://blogs.independent.co.uk/2013/10/21/doc-martin-doc-martin-%E2%80%93-%E2%80%98departure%E2%80%99-%E2%80%93-series-6-episode-8/

MARTIN CLUNES: So Where Is 'Doc Martin' Season Six? (TV TALK)

by Drew Mackie
on February 28, 2013 4:03 PM

Yes, we're going Bodmin once again. At 8 p.m. tonight, KCET is restarting the cycle of "Doc Martin" seasons -- or series, if you want to be British about it, and if you're a "Doc Martin" fan, then you probably do. And while the first episode of "Doc Martin" is a great piece of TV and the perfect setup for the adventures of the crankpot title character, many longtime fans may be curious to know what's up with the show's sixth season. We were too. Here's what we found:

For now, it looks like the new season is expected to air on Britain's ITV in the fall of 2013. The site Tellyspotting guesses that this could put new "Doc Martin" episodes on American TVs around January 2014. But that's just a guess. In March of last year, APT released a statement saying that the sixth season of "Doc Martin" would air in the U.S. in 2013.

The new season hasn't been filmed yet, but filming will likely start in spring.

The new season will reportedly feature Martin Clunes and Caroline Catz as Martin and Louisa, as well as Eileen Atkins as Ruth, Ian McNeice as Bert, Joe Absolom as Al, John Marquez as PC Penhale and Jessica Ransom as Morwenna, the receptionist who succeeded Pauline (Kathleen Parkinson).

Doc Martin Online reports that eight episodes have been commissioned. It also states that the sixth season will most likely be the last.

READ MORE: http://www.kcet.org/shows/tvtalk/tv-news/doc-martin-season-six.html

Doc Martin Arrives In Time For Mother's Day

Submitted by Jason Palmer on Thu, 03/15/2012 - 23:15

Make an appointment with Doc Martin this Mother’s Day, as Momentum Pictures releases the fifth series of ITV’s highest-rating comedy-drama on DVD. Sharply scripted and filled with an array of wonderfully crafted characters, Doc Martin continues to go from strength to strength with each and every series.

Martin Clunes reprises the role of the curmudgeonly Dr Martin Ellingham whose truculent and tactless manner upsets the convivial community of the picture postcard village of Portwenn.

Series 5 sees the doc struggling to cope with being a new dad, whilst trying to resume his highflying career as a surgeon which threatens to take him away from the small Cornish village.

Joining Clunes are regular cast members Caroline Catz (Murder in Suburbia, Vice) as Louisa Glasson, Ian McNeice (Rome, Dr Who) and Joe Absolom (Vincent, Eastenders) as Bert and Al Large, and John Marquez returns to his role as the village policeman, with Selina Cadell as pharmacist Mrs Tishell.

Dame Eileen Atkins (Upstairs Downstairs) joins the regular cast as the doctor’s Aunt Ruth, along with Louise Jameson (EastEnders, Dr Who) as Louisa’s mother Eleanor, Jessica Ransom (Armstrong and Miller Show) as the new surgery receptionist, Morwenna Newcross, and a prestigious line up of guest stars including Julie Graham (Survivors), Peter Vaughan (Lark Rise to Candleford), Joanna Scanlan (Getting On, The Thick of It), Robert Daws, Miriam Margolyes, John Duttine and Anne Reid.


READ MORE:  http://www.entertainment-focus.com/news/doc-martin-arrives-in-time-for-mothers-day