Extending from 1914 to 1920, the
first series of epic new series
The Village written by
Peter Moffat comes to BBC One Sunday 31st March at 9pm.
The series stars
John Simm and
Maxine Peake as
impoverished, alcoholic Peak District farmer John Middleton and his
wife, Grace.
13-year-old newcomer
Bill Jones, a member of the Nottingham-based
Television Workshop, stars as young Bert Middleton, whose long life is central to the anticipated on-going serial. Bert is growing up in extreme poverty on a family farm in Derbyshire. He is twelve years old at the
start of the series, and his days are filled with school, his friends, working in the fields
with his father and secret swimming lessons with his brother Joe, whom he adores. Young Bert, like his brother, falls in love with new arrival Martha Lane the moment she arrives in the village. He is very confused as he watches the behaviour of his hero elder brother and the girl of his dreams...
22 year old
Nico Mirallegro (represented by
The Rights House), recently seen starring in E4's acclaimed
My Mad Fat Diary, plays Bert's brother Joe. At the start of the series he is nineteen years old, a strong, handsome young man. He is torn in half by his love for his mother and his little brother, and his yearning to escape the tyranny of his father. He takes a job at the Allingham’s house to bring some money in, and falls in love with Martha Lane.
Alfie Stewart, a regular on CBBC's
Sadie J, (represented by
Independent Talent) takes over as the teenage Bert Middleton from episode six.
Augustus Prew (represented by
The Rights House), shortly to be seen in
Kick Ass 2, plays George Allingham, the youngest son of the Allingham family,
thoughtful,delicate and halfway to being a poet, he is also smitten by Martha but quickly works out that Joe Middleton is his rival for her affections.
Irish actress
Charlie Murphy (represented by
Lisa Richards Agency) stars as Martha Lane, the strong-willed and opinionated daughter of the new Methodist minister. She wants to help the community and open their eyes to the changes that are taking place in the
outside world. John Middleton (John Simm), in particular, is a soul she wants to save, mainly because she wants to be close to Joe. Murphy, who studied at the Gaiety School of Acting for two years, has
been a recurring character in Stuart Carolan’s ‘Love/Hate’ since season
one aired in 2010. She has had roles in Irish dramas ‘The Clinic’, and
‘Single-Handed’, as well as landing a guest role on Channel 4 series
‘Misfits’ this year.
The large cast also includes:
David Ryall plays Old Bert Middleton, Juliet Stevenson plays Clem Allingham, Kit Jackson plays Lord
Allingham, Augustus Prew plays George Allingham, Emily Beecham plays Caro Allingham, Matt Stokoe plays
Gerard Eyre, Charlie Murphy plays Martha Lane, and Stephen Walters plays
Crispin Ingham.
The six part series was filmed on location in the Peak District.
