Ordinary Lies
TX: Tuesday 17 March 2015 (TBC) BBC One 6 x 60min
For further information:
Katy Ardagh: 020 7292 7358 / [email protected] Ruth Bray: 020 7292 8348 / [email protected] Amy Shacklady: 020 7292 7373 / [email protected]
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Contents
Press Release 3
Cast List 4
Cast Interviews
Danny Brocklehurst Series creator and writer 5 Jason Manford Plays Marty McLean 7 Jo Joyner Plays Beth Corbin 9 Sally Lindsay Plays Kathy Kavanagh 11
Episode 1 Synopsis 13
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Ordinary Lies
How well do you really know the people who work around you?
From RED Production Company, creators of hit series Happy Valley and Last Tango In Halifax, comes highly-anticipated new primetime drama, Ordinary Lies, penned by BAFTA and International Emmy award-winning writer, Danny Brocklehurst (Accused, Shameless).
We all tell little white lies everyday be it for self-protection, success or for love. But what happens when a spur-of-the-moment mistruth snowballs and begins to take over? Is it possible get away with it, or will the lie inevitably come undone to devastating effect?
Set in a car showroom, Ordinary Lies is a compelling drama about how a simple lie can spiral out of control. With drama, tragedy, warmth and humour, each episode focuses on one of the colleagues and friends of JS Motors. From party-loving receptionists, Tracy (Michelle Keegan) and Viv (Cherelle Skeet) and ambitious company boss, Mike (Max Beesley) to enigmatic salesman, Pete (Mackenzie Crook) and mothering PA, Kathy (Sally Lindsay), each new and individual story questions just how well we know the people we work with.
The first episode of the six-part series tells the story of family man and salesman, Marty McLean (Jason Manford) who tells the drastic lie that wife, Katrina, has tragically died when confronted with the possibility of losing his job. His colleagues are filled with shock and sympathy for Marty, but as they rally round to help the apparently grieving widower, his lie quickly unravels.
News of Marty’s loss brings back painful memories for Head of Admin, Beth (Jo Joyner), who is struggling to keep her family together after the disappearance of her husband Dave the year before. After receiving mysterious silent phone calls and unsure if Dave is alive or dead, she confides in Mike. With Mike’s marriage to Alison (Belinda Stewart-Wilson) hanging in the balance though, the chemistry between him and Beth is difficult to ignore.
Meanwhile, it’s soon clear that Marty, Beth and Mike are not the only colleagues harbouring secrets. Despite her love of gossip, Kathy would be horrified if her colleagues knew the truth about her own private life, whilst mistakes in hypochondriac Pete’s past are on the verge of resurfacing and confident ladies man and mechanic, Rick (Shazad Latif), gets himself into hot water after the breakdown of his marriage.
The six-part series is written by Danny Brocklehurst, produced by Tom Sherry (Scott & Bailey) and directed by John McKay (Life on Mars) and Juliet May (Call the Midwife). Executive producers are Nicola Shindler for RED Production Company and Polly Hill for BBC. Ordinary Lies was commissioned for BBC One by Charlotte Moore and Ben Stephenson.
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Cast List
Main Cast
Ziggy Fisayo Akinade
Mike Hill Max Beesley
Fat Jason George Bukhari
Grace Wells Rebecca Callard
Pete Mackenzie Crook
Dave Corbin Shaun Dooley
Beth Corbin Jo Joyner
Tracy Shawcross Michelle Keegan
Rick Shazad Latif
Kathy Kavanagh Sally Lindsay
Marty McLean Jason Manford
Amelie Lauren McQueen
Jez Kris Mochrie
Emma Cat Simmons
Vivienne Baxter Cherrelle Skeete
Alison Hill Belinda Stewart-Wilson
Marianne Morton Manjinder Virk
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Danny Brocklehurst, Writer & Creator Ordinary Lies
How did you develop the idea for Ordinary Lies? The idea of writing a series about the secret lives of people who work together had been something I had been thinking about for some time. I love writing about secrets, lies, duplicity, but I also love writing about ordinary people, so I married the two ideas together. You only have to pick up a copy of a local newspaper to see that every single day people are doing things they shouldn’t – some big, some small. I wanted to create a drama series that allowed us to tell some of these stories.
Did you have any key inspirations for any of the stories? They are all modern morality tales. Every single episode, without being preachy, is a story about an aspect of modern life – whether it be debt, grief, internet sex or young girls wanting a quick route to cash and designer clothes. I wanted to write a series that was really contemporary.
What challenges did you face whilst writing the series? The challenge for me is always making sure the stories are good enough. One episode I completely scrapped and wrote again from page one. I wanted every episode to be a powerful, funny, engaging watch. And if it isn’t on the page – it won’t be on the screen.
Why did you choose to set the series in a car showroom in Warrington? Well, the show could have been set in almost any workplace in almost any part of the country, that’s the point. I almost set it in a nondescript office like so many of us work in, but when we discussed it further we felt that the workplace should have a personality. And a car showroom has a brilliant range of characters and a natural hierarchy. But this isn’t a show about selling cars, it’s a show about people – and we wanted a workplace that offered us the opportunity to meet interesting characters.
How did you research the particular areas you delve into in the series? The research was done hand in hand with the story lining. I always decide which story I want to tell then research it to make sure I am offering a credible drama. The missing person story is about as true to real life as you can get – I looked into it long and hard and wrote accordingly. How does Ordinary Lies compare to previous series you’ve written? If you look at my previous work, like The Driver, Exile, Talk to Me, they are all about hidden lives and this series continues that trend. The more obvious comparisons are Clocking Off, Sorted and The Street, in that they were big bold stories about ordinary people. However, Ordinary Lies has a distinct angle, it’s a show about how no-one really knows one another: work colleagues, friends, even lovers – there are always some secrets, always some lies…
Ordinary Lies is about everyday people that we can all relate to. Why do you think that’s so important in a TV series? For me, there is too much murder on television. I get it, people like crime, but I wanted this show to find its drama in life. I wanted to write a show that was about the very human way we all make mistakes, the way we all spin too many plates, choose the wrong path, even try to do the right thing, but it somehow
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goes wrong… I also wanted it to be a funny, warm show. There is a lot of love in this drama, and I hope viewers will respond to that.
The series has a fantastic cast – did you have actors in mind when writing, or did the casting come later? I never really write with actors in mind. But as we started to assemble our cast I did some rewriting to suit the actors. I have worked with Max Beesley before so when he became Mike Hill, I rewrote slightly to suit his style and the same with Sally Lindsay. It’s a great cast. I’m thrilled to have them.
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Jason Manford plays Marty McLean
Can you tell us a bit about Ordinary Lies? The series is brilliant. Danny Brocklehurst is a top writer having done The Driver, Shameless and Clocking Off. The Production Company is brilliant; it’s Red Production Company who did Happy Valley and Last Tango In Halifax so it’s got a great pedigree to start with. And then to be on it with Mackenzie Crook, Max Beesley and the likes of Michelle Keegan, it’s a great cast! The stories are really fun; Ordinary Lies delves into those big lies that you tell that spiral out of control.
Tell us about your character, Marty? Marty is about to get sacked, so he does the most ridiculous thing by panicking and telling his boss that his wife has died, which he totally makes up. It’s a big lie to tell, but there’s a slight relief after he tells it and he starts to enjoy it, which is a bit sick! The lie obviously unravels and you see the decline into the madness of the situation that he’s forced himself into. It was great to do; there are loads of funny bits in it but there are also some very heart-warming moments as well.
It’s one of your first acting roles in TV drama. How did you find it? It was great – Marty is the bloke who thinks he’s funny in the office. It’s true there is always that guy and if I hadn’t been a comedian, I probably would have ended up being that guy! So it’s a bit like Sliding Doors really – this could have been me!
Had you worked with Danny Brocklehurst before? No, I had a bit part in Shameless years ago but never worked with him to this extent. I know him as we’re both Manchester based and everyone in Manchester who works on the television knows each other, but I’d wanted to work with him for a while, so it was a real privilege to be able to work with him on a script like this.
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What was the atmosphere like on set – was there anyone you particularly bonded with? I was really good friends with Sally Lindsay anyway. I think I asked her out when I was 17 actually and she was about 23 and obviously it never happened! I was very confident! I’ve known her a long time though and she’s brilliant. I’ve worked with Max (Beesley) a couple of times before and Mackenzie (Crook) and I are a similar age. Rebecca Callard plays a larger role in my episode and she was great to work with, along with Michelle Keegan, who was brilliant as well.
What do you think is so appealing about Ordinary Lies? The enjoyment of watching this show is that you can see how a horrendous lie can end up. I think the audience will be shouting at the screen saying “what are you doing?!” What’s interesting about the script is that some of the lies are totally the person’s own fault, whilst some are lies that the characters had no option but to tell. There are a lot of sympathetic characters in there and although my character is a bit of an idiot, you do feel a bit sorry for him.
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Jo Joyner plays Beth Corbin
Tell us about your character, Beth? Beth is a good, honest, hard working local girl. She's done well for herself and is Head of Admin at JS Motors. She is a mother to two girls and a wife to her husband, Dave, who was part of the sales team at the same place. However, when we meet her she has been holding fort and keeping the family going alone for over a year since her husband disappeared totally unexpectedly. Dave left to go to the shops one day and never returned.
Did you do any research into ‘missing persons’ for the role? Did you speak to anyone who’d been through a similar experience to Beth? I didn't meet with anyone in person to discuss the subject matter, but I did read many stories and listen to an incredible documentary on the radio that was specifically from the angle of wives and children whose fathers or husbands suffer from mental illness and are prone to disappear. For the majority of the show, Beth is in this awful place of limbo whereby she doesn't know if Dave has been killed, died in a tragic accident or has indeed abandoned them due to some kind of breakdown. Danny Brocklehurst's writing is so rich and truthful that despite all the research, just returning to the text offered a wealth of an emotional journey, from anger, fear, sadness, guilt and hope.
Had you ever worked with Danny Brocklehurst before? Were you a fan of his work? I worked on Clocking off and other shows that Danny has been involved with, but not necessarily with his words in particular. I'm a huge admirer of his work and indeed of the shows that Red Production Company produce. When I auditioned for this drama, the writing was so compelling that it really was one of those jobs that you really wanted to work on but that you knew you were equally looking forward to watching. Each story is really clever and intriguing. Danny's dialogue is so easy to learn because it's so utterly believable, natural. This show has some fantastic characters, secrets and stories with a great cast that I'm proud to be a part of.
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What was the atmosphere like on set – was there anyone you particularly bonded with? It was a complete joy to work on the show. We had a lot of laughs and the cast was so varied and supportive that the whole job had a real ensemble feel. I had a lot of work with the fantastic Max Beesley, so we all had a lot of fun. But we were in a hotel weekly for nearly 5 months so I got to meet and get to know some brilliant actors. As you can imagine, with Jason Manford and Sally Lindsay on set, we were often crying with laughter!
The series is all about lies – what’s the biggest lie you’ve ever told? I'm not very good at lying – it makes me feel very panicky and it's the only big rule we ever had growing up, you would always be in worse trouble for lying than if you'd 'fessed up! I once told my parents that I hadn't hit my brother in a row when I was 6. My mum took him next door and majorly told him off for lying. My dad was in the other room with me and kind of smirked at me. I felt wracked with guilt because my brother was getting this telling off and my dad seemed to find it funny. I vowed I'd never lie again. I later found out that my mum and brother were giggling behind the door and pretending to be told off so that I'd think twice about lying, hence my dad trying not to laugh at my huge guilt-ridden eyes! Complex, but it worked!
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Sally Lindsay plays Kathy Kavanagh
Tell us about Ordinary Lies. Ordinary Lies is a drama set in Warrington in a car showroom called JS Motors, about a group of people that work there including the mechanics, salesmen, PA, Head of Admin and company boss. It’s about their lives and how they all work together, but they’ve all got their own individual secret or lie that they are harbouring and therein lies the drama.
Tell us about your character, Kathy? My character is called Kathy and she’s just approaching 40. She’s very happily married to Ralph and they have two grown-up children as they married pretty young. They’ve got a lovely house and she’s happy with her life. She’s worked at JS Motor’s since she was 17, so she doesn’t know anything else, but absolutely loves it. She’s in charge of everything and knows everybody’s business and is the office gossip! She knows where the skeletons are buried and her boss Mike, played by Max Beesley, literally can’t function without her.
We know every character has a lie – what is Kathy’s story? Kathy is a very moral person; she’s always done the right things in life. She’s very happy in her life, but decides there’s something missing and therein the lie occurs. When she’s harbouring this lie, she sees something quite horrific that she shouldn’t which affects her greatly and the moral is what should she do about it? She feels she has to do the right thing, but there’s the dilemma.
Is Kathy someone that audiences will be able to relate to? Kathy is very relatable on a human level; Ordinary Lies celebrates the normality of the British public, which is the beauty of it. We all have regular lives but sometimes things happen that make them irregular. I think the more normal Kathy is, the more brilliant the story is, as you don’t see it coming.
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Kathy is a big dog lover. Was it fun working with the dogs? Working with dogs proved to be a slight problem as I have a dog allergy! When I got the part I was told that I’d be working with a dog quite a lot so I got allergy tablets. It wasn’t a small dog either - it was like a grown man in a dog outfit, it was huge! We used to joke that he unzipped his costume and had a fag at lunchtime!
This drama is written by the fantastic Danny Brocklehurst – have you worked with him before? I haven’t worked with Danny before, but I have known Danny for years as we’re both from Manchester and live round the corner from each other. It’s such a privilege to be chosen to tell this story of his, as it’s a cracker. He manages to bring out that banter which is so hard to write but very easy for people in the workplace to do and relate to.
Had you ever worked with any of the other cast members before? No, I hadn’t worked with any of them before, but I seemed to have such a lot in common with a lot of the cast. Michelle (Keegan) was on Coronation Street like me and Jo (Joyner) has twins like me, Max (Beesley) is a drummer and my husband has known him for years as he’s a drummer too. I’ve known Jason (Manford) since he was 17, I remember him doing stand-up but that was a long, long time ago. So I’ve known all these people but we’ve never actually physically worked together. Juliet May who I did my episode with was phenomenal – I’d work with her again tomorrow if I could – and she’s got twins! There were five people who had twins on set!
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Episode 1 Synopsis Tuesday 17 March, 9pm, BBC One (TBC)
Highly-anticipated new primetime drama, Ordinary Lies, penned by BAFTA and Emmy Award-winning writer, Danny Brocklehurst, premieres this Spring on BBC One with a stellar ensemble cast.
Set in a car showroom, Ordinary Lies is a compelling drama about how a simple lie can spiral out of control. With drama, tragedy, warmth and humour, each episode focuses on one of the colleagues and friends of JS Motors. From party-loving receptionists, Tracy (Keegan) and Viv (Skeete), to enigmatic salesman, ‘Paracetemol’ Pete (Crook), each new and individual story questions just how well we know the people we work with.
The first episode of the six-part series tells the story of family man and salesman, Marty McLean (Manford). Stuck in a rut both at home and at work, when Marty receives his final warning for being late from company boss, Mike (Beesley), he knows the pressure is on.
However, when another heavy night of drinking leads to him sleeping through his alarm, Marty fears his number is up. Knowing he is on thin ice, Marty calls work and, in a panicked attempt to save his job, tells the drastic lie that his wife, Katrina (Shanagher), has tragically died.
His colleagues are filled with shock and sympathy for Marty, but as they rally round to help the apparently grieving widower, his lie quickly unravels. The situation is complicated further when Marty forms a close bond with colleague, Grace (Callard).
Meanwhile, news of Marty’s loss brings back painful memories for Head of Admin, Beth Corbin (Joyner), whose husband Dave went missing the year before. After receiving mysterious phone calls, she confides in Mike, but with Mike’s marriage hanging in the balance, the chemistry between him and Beth is difficult to ignore.
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