More Details on the New Cast Members of Being Human (UK) Series 4; Sinead Keenan Confirms Her Exit
Steve Barton
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BBC3
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00hqlc4
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More details are emerging with regard to the changes being made in Series 4 of BBC3’s “Being Human”, and along with a new cast photo, we have character profiles, comments from the three leads, and a breakdown of the writers for the eight upcoming episodes. In addition Sinead Keenan (Nina)’s departure has finally been confirmed.
Before we get to the new goods, here’s what Sinead posted on her Twitter feed:
It is with a very heavy heart&a little relief that I can now tell you that I will not b appearing in S4 of Being Human. I cannot tell u…
..how difficut it was to make the decision to leave. I’ve had 3 wonderful years on BH, some of the best I’ve had in my acting career…
…I was asked not 2 say anything about my departure by the Powers That Be, which I dutifully adhered 2 4 mths, hence my sporadic tweeting..
…but now the presspack has been released it seems the story is out. I want to thank u all sooo much 4 ur wonderful support over the…
…3 seasons. I hope u all continue 2 enjoy BH&that we’ll meet again very soon on some other great TV adventure. Big love from YOUR fan, S x
She concludes with: Also, for those of you asking… I believe my departure happens offscreen. I haven’t filmed anything for Series 4 xxxxx
And now on with the new Series 4 character profiles:
Annie (Lenora Crichlow)
Annie has been a ghost since her fiancé killed her back in 2007, but since then she’s seen more of life than ever before. She’s defied death’s door, been to Purgatory and back, discovered her lover (Mitchell) was responsible for the murder of twenty innocent people, and watched as he was killed by best friend George. In this series Annie is more than ever the matriarch of Honolulu Heights, left holding the baby with the fate of the world in her hands.
Lenora offers the following on returning to play Annie this series and on Annie’s destiny…
I was so excited to be back! So much has changed in the show it was really exciting, and I didn’t know what to expect. In this series we go back to more of the original comedy, relationship side of “Being Human”, which I have always enjoyed playing in the past. It’s a much more domestic side of the show, but it also promises all the drama and gore of the underworld as well.
I missed Aidan and Sinead a lot, but the essence of “Being Human”, the love, enthusiasm and integrity of the show, is still there. We still have the same crew and production team behind it, but a different dynamic now we have had some changes in cast. Episode One is high, high drama. Think huge tears, and huge shocks, but it is also very exciting. It will have you on the edge of your seat!
Annie realises her destiny this series, and this is a powerful role in itself, rather than it being new tricks she can perform – which there are a few that she discovers this series. She starts to realise her destiny as a ghost – it is bigger than her, but it’s also empowering to know what she has been put here to do.
Tom (Michael Socha)
Werewolf Tom has spent his life on a mission: to kill vampires. In Series 3 Tom discovered that not only was his father, McNair, not his real dad, but he was the one who gave him the werewolf curse. Since McNair’s death Tom has stayed in Barry and is welcomed into Honolulu Heights. Putting his nomadic life and his mission to kill all vampires (mostly!) behind him, Tom has to learn to live like a human, love like a human, and fight like a human. But will he succeed?
Michael offers the following on becoming a lead role this series and describes his transformation process…
When they first told me I was going to be a lead role in this series, I couldn’t believe it! It was hard work, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. This is my first big lead role, and I absolutely love playing Tom…we’re both energetic and both absolute hate vampires. I’ve also never had the opportunity to play anything but a human, so now I’m a werewolf I feel I’ve been let loose. I can scream my head off whenever I like!
At the end of transformation I am absolutely shattered, but I just love it. It’s a release. To prepare I do a bit of running about – I have to get myself a bit worked up – I’m nearly transforming before they say action. I hype myself up and work myself into a bit of frenzy, and then I’m ready. And when you get the wolf mask on your face, you can’t help but be the wolf. There are stages to becoming the werewolf – you have the nails put in, then the contact lenses to change your eyes, and there is a stage where there are veins and teeth. Then you have the full four hours in prosthetics which is for the full mask which you can move around in, it feels like real skin, and they put hair all on your face and your eyebrows. They also use something called a flocking gun which gets really little hairs on you so it looks natural and real – and the last stage is a full werewolf, which sadly isn’t me, as they have ‘professionals’ come in to play the giant werewolf!
Hal (Damien Molony)
Hal has been a vampire for over 500 years, and the temptation for blood and carnage still rules his every waking thought. Since meeting best friends Leo (a werewolf) and Pearl (a ghost) in 1955, Hal has managed to stay off the blood by sticking to a rigid structure and keeping away from all people. Coming to Honolulu Heights is a huge disruption for Hal. And he doesn’t cope well with disruption. At first Hal – the stand-offish, posh vampire – and Tom – the common, feral werewolf – find themselves at loggerheads, but once a mutual respect is gained, we see this odd couple become close.
Damien offers the following on how he got the part and what’s in store for Hal…
I got the part when the casting director came to my drama centre showcase last February and she brought me in to read for the part of Hal. I was doing a play up in Leeds at the time so I was back and forth on the train the entire time. I met Michael at the recall and they put us together, up against a wall, to see what the two of us looked like together, and I didn’t realise how short Michael was at the time! It took me back! I got a call from my agent three days later just before I was about to go on stage and she told me they had offered me the part!
I moved down to Cardiff the following week, and that was it for the next six months. Costume fittings, rehearsals, I was completely thrown into the deep end, but it was the most amazing job I have ever done.
When Hal arrives in Barry, he faces a massive test. He hasn’t drunk blood for a long time, but before that he was a legendary figure amongst the vampires. Even a more dangerous character than Mitchell, perhaps even more than Herrick. But he’s stayed dry for decades through a very strict regime of denial and routine and security, but when we meet him, all that is starting to get eroded and this puts him – and everyone else – in a really perilous position.
Another test for Hal, a test on his mental strength, is his relationship with the opposite sex. Like a lot of vampires, sex and bloodlust are inextricably linked. It’s like sex is a gateway drug, I suppose, and so for the last 50 years he’s been avoiding any kind of intimacy. But now, in this new house, with these new people, all his discipline and abstinence starts to crumble as he’s faced with all the temptations of the modern world.
Below is the writer breakdown for the eight episodes of Series 4:
1. “Eve of the War” – Toby Whithouse
2. “Being Human 1955” – Lisa McGee
3. “The Graveyard Shift” – Jamie Mathieson
4. “A Spectre Calls” – Tom Grieves
5. “Hold the Front Page” – Tom Grieves
6. “Puppy Love” – John Jackson
7. “Making History” – Toby Whithouse
8. “The War Child” – Toby Whithouse
“Being Human” returns later this month; for more be sure to visit “Being Human” on BBC3.
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