Ray Knight Casting – 10 Quality Productions We’ve Been Associated With In 2019… And A Few More For Good Measure.
Here at Ray Knight Casting we go the extra mile to provide a first-class service and as a result we’re privileged to be associated with quality productions which regularly feature on our screens.
At the time of writing this blog post we’re hurtling increasingly fast towards Christmas and as is traditional, it’s a time when we look back with fondness at just some of the major quality productions we’ve been associated with over the past 12 months… and a few more for good measure.
1) Manhunt
As expected, 2019 began with a quality production entitled, “Manhunt”, with Martin Clunes in a role you might not associate with him, but a great role and performance, nonetheless.
This three-part drama was based on the investigation into the death of French student Amélie Delagrange and followed the real-life story of how serial killer Levi Bellfield was caught by the Metropolitan Police.
In March 2019, the show was revived for a second series to premiere in 2020. One to no doubt look out for.
2) Call The Midwife
Whenever we feature Call The Midwife in any of our social media posts 
we’re always pleasantly surprised at the number of comments, shares and likes that this evergreen production attracts.
Who can forget the episode praised for bringing awareness of the cleft lip condition?
Likewise, who can forget the measles trials episodes?
We could go on, however as mentioned, Call The Midwife is a perennial firm family favourite and rightly deserves a special episode this coming Christmas Day on BBC1 at 7:00pm
3) Hatton Garden
Hatton Garden, the drama was based on the infamous heist in 2015. It was initially cancelled twice in 24 months due to legal reasons and Hatton Garden was finally released on ITV on Monday, May 20 after a two-year-long delay; it was worth the wait.
Hatton Garden was based on the real-life Hatton Garden robbery in April 2015 and depicted how four elderly men ransacked an underground safety deposit facility in London’s Hatton Garden.
It’s still unknown as to what the total value of what they stole was, but some estimate the total value could be up to around £200,000,000.
As for the value of this series? Priceless!
4) Cleaning Up
On the subject of financial related crime, this leads us on nicely to “Cleaning 
Up” with Sheridan Smith playing Sam, a separated mother and office cleaner who succumbs to insider trading in order to pay off her ever-increasing debts.
The premise might sound simple, however after watching all 6 episodes it’s clear that it was going to be a lot more involved than that.
It was great to see Sheridan Smith back on our screens and “Cleaning Up” was a great vehicle for her return.
5) Fleabag
For those of you who may have been living under a very dark and soundproofed rock for the last couple of years and who may have missed out totally on the whole “Fleabag” thing… let’s just say that Fleabag has been very successful to say the least.
If you didn’t see it, then you have no excuse not to catch up with the trials and tribulations of Fleabag, created by and played exquisitely by Phoebe Waller-Bridge over at https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/p070npjv/fleabag
Adapted from Waller-Bridge’s 2013 Edinburgh Festival Fringe one-woman play of the same name, Fleabag not only breaks the fourth wall in television, but also engages us the viewers as we take Fleabag to our hearts while she trips and stumbles through life in the only way that she can.
Without giving too much away, the BBC describes Fleabag as, “A hilarious, poignant window into the mind of a dry-witted, angry, grief-riddled woman.”
6) Gameface
Gameface was created by, written by and starred Roisin Conaty. The pilot 
aired on Channel 4 on 23 April 2014 and the second started broadcasting on Channel 4 on 17 July 2019.
The show follows Marcella’s (Conaty) life as she attempts to find acting work and takes life coaching classes.
Trudging through a variety of short-term jobs which Marcella dislikes, she’s also looking for love since having broken up with her boyfriend of 12 years. Together with Marcella’s life coach and driving instructor characters, Gameface was another highlight on our screens in 2019.
7) Afterlife
Do we really need to add anything more than the word “Afterlife”?
Afterlife, created, executive produced, directed by, and starring Ricky Gervais, has been described as a black comedy-drama, however we all know it was much more than that. It premiered on 8 March 2019, on Netflix and has been honoured with various accolades.
Afterlife follows Tony (Gervais), whose life is shattered by the death of his wife from cancer. He contemplates suicide, however, instead decides to live long enough to punish the world for the death of his wife by doing and saying whatever he wants; regarding this as a “superpower”. Surprisingly, his intentions are undermined once everybody around him tries to help him become a better person.
Afterlife also features Roisin Conaty. (See above for Gameface).
8) The Capture
Exploring the dark world of deepfakes, cyber security and the intelligence 
services, The Capture was a six-part thriller that gripped viewers with its view of our ‘post-truth era’.
The Capture made us ask, “…can we really believe what we see…?”
Without giving away spoilers, we follow DI Rachel Carey (Holliday Grainger) as she’s drafted in to investigate Shaun Emery (cleared of murder in Afghanistan) as new footage of him in London isn’t all that it seems.
With more twists and turns than a bucket of hyperactive eels, The Capture gripped viewers who couldn’t get enough of this quality BBC series.
9) Defending The Guilty
This second series was a welcome return of the legal sitcom; a subject that doesn’t sound as if it should work, but it did.
Katherine Parkinson, BAFTA award winner (The IT Crowd, Humans) played a more than slightly cynical barrister in this comedy about a cutthroat team of lawyers.
Based on the acclaimed tell-all book, “Defending The Guilty: Truth And Lies In The Criminal Courtroom” by Alex McBride, Defending The Guilty was a gem among the comedy output on the BBC and the next series (to be shot in 2020) will be more than welcome.
10) Gold Digger
Currently still running on the BBC at the time of writing, the BBC describes 
Gold Digger as, “…A wealthy woman falls in love with a younger man. Her children worry he’s a gold digger. At the heart of the story is a fractured family trying to recover from a violent past.”
Julia Ormond takes the reins in this series as she looks back on her marriage to Ted (Alex Jennings) and feeling let down by her children, she embarks on a relationship with Benjamin (Ben Barnes), however her children have their suspicions as to what Benjamin’s intentions really are.
With the final episode still to come, once again we’re gripped by a quality BBC drama which we’re privileged to have been involved in.
It’s certainly been a great year as far as productions have been concerned,
however let’s not forget any of the mainstay productions which regularly feature our supporting artists such as EastEnders and Holby City.
We here at Ray Knight Casting would like to take this opportunity to thank all our supporting artists and the production companies with whom we’ve worked with this year and we look forward to booking the outstanding members of our loyal high quality workforce on many more great productions in the year to come.
Well that’s it for this post and as usual feel free to leave your comments.
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© Ray Knight Casting – 2019
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