Survivors series two – features press day

BBC Drama Publicity held the first major press promotion for series two of Survivors in central London today (22 October 2009). Feature writers for both print and online publications were invited to interview Survivors cast members and key creative and production staff. Material from the day will not be published until closer to the transmission date for episode one of series two – a date that has not yet been confirmed by the BBC.

Scotland on Sunday suggests Survivors could be rescheduled

The Scotland on Sunday newspaper (10 May 2009) reports that series two of Survivors could be delayed or rescheduled by the BBC – becoming the “latest victim of swine flu”.

It suggests that the BBC could rethink the timing of the transmission of series two if the real-world context of a swine flu pandemic rendered the drama “a little too close to reality”.

A BBC spokesperson told the paper: “We can confirm a second series of Survivors was commissioned last year. We are monitoring developments with regard to swine flu and no transmission date has been set.”

Former BBC controller discusses Survivors’ H1N1 topicality

On Radio Four’s Front Row arts and culture review programme (4 May 2009), former BBC controller (and current ITV Director of Television) Peter Fincham discusses the challenge of commissioning and scheduling popular television drama that has strong contemporary relevance – including Survivors.

Asked by presenter Mark Lawson if he would have commissioned Survivors given the current unsettling context of the spectre of Swine Flu, he replies: “One side of you would say, ‘I’m rather nervous about this’; another side would say ‘Goodness me, isn’t this prescient of us? Haven’t we managed to get the zeitgeist exactly right?’. So it would be a difficult decision…”.

The interview, which features in the closing five minutes of the programme, is available on the BBC iPlayer.

Guardian muses on Survivors swine-flu insights

Writing in a Guardian Unlimited blog on Monday 27 April, Jonathan Wright muses (in a less-than-entirely serious way) on the question: What can Survivors teach us about living through swine flu?.

His bullet-point advice is as follows:

• Don’t trust politicians to sort things out
• Do give up social networking
• Don’t try to live the urban life
• Do remember that remorseless murderers will survive
• Don’t hang out with Freema Agyeman
• Do be glad this didn’t happen in the 1970s
• Don’t try to cut yourself off

Survivors series two begins filming in Birmingham in May

A blog on the Conventry Telegraph (13 March 2009) reports that filming on the second series of the new Survivors will begin in May, at urban and rural locations in around Birmingham. Series one of Survivors, in contrast, was recorded at locations in and around Manchester and London.

The Geek Files blog text in full is as follows:

Survivors sci-fi series to film in Birmingham

SURVIVORS, BBC One’s post-apocalyptic sci-fi adventure series, will begin filming a second series on location in Birmingham from May, it was announced today.

The new six-part series created by Adrian Hodges (Ruby In The Smoke, Shadow In The North, Charles II and Primeval) will broadcast on BBC One. It’s a remake of the original 70s TV series by Daleks creator Terry Nation and depicts the adventures of a group of people in the aftermath of a virus that has wiped out most of the human race.

Cast include: Robyn Addison (The Street; Casualty); Nikki Amuka-Bird (No.1 Ladies’ Detective Agency; Five Days); Max Beesley (Hotel Babylon); Julie Graham (William And Mary; Bonekickers); Paterson Joseph (Jekyll; The Beach; Peep Show); Phillip Rhys (24; Nip Tuck; Flatland); Zoe Tapper (Twenty Thousand Streets Under The Sky; The Last Van Helsing); and young newcomer Chahak Patel.

All six episodes will be filmed in Birmingham. The first two episodes will be filmed in city locations, much of the latter episodes will be more suburban/rural. The BBC hopes to recruit local people as extras.

Nicolas Brown, director of BBC Drama Production, said: “We are very pleased to be shooting this series out of Birmingham. We are looking forward to working with everyone there to get the maximum impact on screen for this all-important second outing.”

BBC Press Office confirms Survivors recommissioned

In a press release issued on 22 December, the BBC Press Office confirms that a second series of Survivors has been commissioned.

In the release, Ben Stephenson, Controller, BBC Drama Commissioning is quoted as saying:

“I am delighted Survivors will be returning in 2009 with Adrian Hodges at the helm – it’s been a thrilling and emotional journey, and I look forward to more twists and turns in series two.”

The press release is accompanied by a revised version of the original group-shot of the series characters, which adds in Sarah and removes Samantha Willis (Nikki Amuka-Bird) and the now-deceased Jenny Collins (Freema Ageyman) and David Grant (Shaun Dingwall) – effectively showing the full ensemble of Abby’s community.

Survivors actors in the press

In the 14 December issue of The Sunday Times, Survivors actor Phillip Rhys (Al) discusses some of his favourite family and solo holidays growing up; while in the January 2009 issue of Arena magazine (cover below) features a photo-shoot and brief interview with Zoë Tapper (Anya). The web version of the shoot features more photos than the print version, but the magazine interview features a brief reference to Survivors not included online.

Survivors fifth episode nets 5m viewers

The Media Guardian reports (17 December) that the fifth (and penultimate) episode of Survivors netted 5m viewers and a 22% audience share – its best result for three weeks.

Elsewhere Broadcast magazine indicates that, although the viewing figures are (predictably enough) down on that secured by the opening 90-minute pilot, Survivors “is still performing above the channel’s slot average for the year so far of 4.8m (20.5%)”.

Survivors – BBC commissions series two

The Guardian media section (of 19 December 2008) has confirmed that the BBC has commissioned a second series of Survivors, and that a further set of six episodes will go into production early next year for transmission later in 2009.

The story in full:

Survivors gets second series on BBC

The BBC has commissioned a second six-part series of Adrian Hodges’ post-apocalyptic drama Survivors before the first run has finished.

The first series has been a ratings success for the corporation, averaging 5.9 million viewers and a 23% audience share in its Tuesday 9pm timeslot.

Like the original 1970s version, scripted by Daleks creator Terry Nation, the Hodges series was set in the UK after a virus had wiped out at least 90% of the world’s population. The original Survivors series first aired in 1975 and ran for 38 episodes over three series.

The final episode in the current series, which follows the disparate group of survivors trying to build a new life, screens on BBC1 on December 23rd at 9pm.

Hodges, who was also behind Primeval and Charles II, will return to executive produce the second series of six episodes next year.

The cast including Julie Graham, Max Beesley and Phillip Rhys will return, with “further casting to be announced next year” according to a BBC spokeswoman.

Sam Nichols, Guardian Media
19 December 2008
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/dec/19/survivors-bbc

Julie Graham interview – Sunday People

In an article entitled ‘Apocalypse? Wow!’ in the Sunday People (7 December 2008), Jon Wise interviews Survivors actress Julie Graham, who describes her work on the show, along with her attitudes to family, relationships, children and the vagaries of the acting profession.

***SPOILER*** In the article, Graham reveals a plot development in an upcoming episode.

Richard and Judy – Watch TV – Survivors feature

Survivors actors Zoë Tapper and Nikki Amuka-Bird were interviewed on Watch TV’s Richard and Judy’s New Position on Friday 5 December, in a slot which featured clips from episodes one and two of the new series.

Original series actor Lucy Fleming (who played the role of Jenny Richards) was also briefly interviewed, alongside a clip from the series three episode Manhunt (featuring Jenny, Charles [Denis Lill] and Hubert [John Abineri]). Asked for her view on the new series, Fleming said:

I’m really enjoying it. I find it really difficult to judge, actually, because I know the characters a bit and I know the story a bit, but it’s all different. It’s brilliant for the modern generation to do it [like that], to make it real for them. Good luck to them.

Zoë Tapper, Nikki Amuka-Bird (left); Lucy Fleming (right)

Max Beesley interview – TV & Satellite Week

A one page interview with Survivors actor Max Beesley (Tom Price) appears in the new issue of TV & Satellite Week (6-12 December).

Asked about the likelihood of a second series for the show, says Beesley:

I hope so, and I’ll be surprised if there isn’t. The stories are interesting and people are really going to buy into the concept.

Ratings slip again for episode three – to just below average

Broadcast magazine reports that the ratings for the third episode of Survivors were down on the figures for episode two.

Survivors third episode attracted 4.6m viewers (18.2% audience share). The average figure for BBC shows in the 9pm Tuesday slot for the year is 4.8m (20.5%), so episode three came at just under that threshold.

The episode three figure was 1.3m down on episode two (which was itself 1.2m down on the first episode). Together this means that the programme has currently shed more than a quarter of its episode one audience.

More reviews of Survivors episodes one and two

More reviews of (one or both of) the first two episodes of Survivors have been published: Den of Geek – episode one and two site; Quiet Earth – episode one; Quiet Earth – episode two; Digital Spy – episode two; Dreamwatch – Total SciFi – episode one; Dreamwatch – Total SciFi – episode two.

Comment on episode two was also published in Guardian (25 November); and Guardian (28 November).

Paterson Joseph interviewed on BBC News site

A new interview interview with Paterson Joseph (Greg Preston) is available on the BBC News web site, Entertainment section.

BBC YouTube channel Survivors preview

The BBC has added a Survivors preview video to its YouTube Channel.

The clip features an exchange between government minister Samantha Willis (played by Nikki Amuka–Bird) and a colleague, discussing the spread and seriousness of the virus, and ends with an image of the contagion at work in a victim’s bloodstream.

Survivors – press round up…

Recent press coverage includes the following: Digital Spy – Who’s who in Survivors; Wales on Sunday – BBC revisits 70s classic Survivors (17 November 2008); South Wales Echo – Will 1970s hit survive the Dr Who treatment? (17 November 2008); Manchester Evening News – A grim new era for city (19 November 2008); Northern Echo – We will survive (20 November 2008); Daily Mail – Can Seventies sci-fi classic Survivors do a Doctor Who? (21 November 2008); Manchester Evening News – Life back to normal for real-life ’survivors’ (21 November 2008); This is Derbyshire – Modern twist for cult show (22 November 2008); Wales on Sunday – Julie’s a survivor (23 November 2008);

Sunday papers first episode Survivors preview

Sunday’s last-chance preview press coverage of the new series includes: the Birmingham Sunday Mercury – ‘Survivors: Cult classic remade for a new generation’; the Sunday Herald – ‘Survival Instincts’; Sunday Times – The Survivors remake.

What’s On TV web site – Survivors photos and video interviews

The web site of the What’s On TV listing magazine, includes a Survivors section, featuring a gallery of publicity photos and short new video interviews with Julie Graham, Zoe Tapper and Philip Rhys and Chahak Patel, (follow the link under the Latest Video heading to launch the video pop-up).

The interview is also available through the What’s On TV YouTube channel:

Many thanks to Adrian Hulme for alerting me to this content, and for all his continuing help with tracking down Survivors sources in print and on the web.

Broadcast: producer Hugh Warren on filming Survivors

In Broadcast magazine – ‘On location: Survivors’ (19 November 2008), producer Hugh Warren describes the triumphs, challenges and tribulations of bringing the new Survivors to the screen.