David Tennant has revealed that his wife Georgia played an important part in him accepting a role in Jilly Cooper’s 1980s bonkbuster Rivals.
The former Doctor Who star, 53, has taken on the role of Lord Tony Baddingham, one of the main villains in the new Disney+ series.
He said that Georgia, who is a huge Jilly Cooper fan, was thrilled when the first script arrived as she insisted it was something he ‘had to be involved in’.
‘She said, ‘This series is going to be huge. This is going to be exactly what the country needs, exactly what the needs,’ David told The Mirror.
‘She knew the books from her teenage years, as I understand, and knew that this was going to make sensational television.’
David Tennant has revealed that his wife Georgia played an important part in him accepting a role in Jilly Cooper’s 1980s bonkbuster Rivals
The former Doctor Who star, 53, has taken on the role of Lord Tony Baddingham, one of the main villains in the new Disney+ series.
David was delighted when Georgia, who he tied the knot with in 2011, eventually got to watch the episodes and immediately loved them.
‘Her reaction was so positive and so joyous,’ he said. ‘I know when she’s being genuine.’
The racy eight-part series follows the cutthroat world of independent television in 1986.
Led by David, Aidan Turner and Alex Hassell, it boasts an impressively star-studded cast which also includes Emily Atack and Rufus Jones.
Following the casting announcement executive producer and Rivals author Jilly commented: ‘I’m utterly enchanted to be able to announce our all-star line-up for Rivals’.
‘Featuring some of the best acting talent that the British Isles has to offer, I couldn’t have dreamed of a better ensemble cast’.
Before adding: ‘I cannot wait to be on set and see them bring the characters I love so much to life.
The racy eight-part series is based on Jilly Cooper’s raunchy 1988 novel, and follows the cutthroat world of independent television in 1986
The show will focus on the tense rivalry between Rupert and Tony as well as the drama, excess, and shocking antics of the power-grabbing social elite of 1980s England (pictured L-R Alex Hassell, Danny Dyer, Jilly Cooper, David Tennant, Aidan Turner)
Also starring the show is Victoria Smurfit, Catriona Chandler, Claire Rushbrook, Emily Atack, Luke Pasqualino and Danny Dyer
‘The minute we met with Alex we knew he’d perfectly embody my all-time hero, the iconic, racy, ruthless, and devastatingly handsome, Rupert Campbell-Black. Viewers are in for a treat!’
According to Disney+, Rivals is a ‘joyously mischievous rollercoaster ride, steamy in its love stories and packed with larger-than-life characters.’
The streaming service continues that it brings a ‘2020s lens to the 1980s’, offering a ‘raw exploration of a complicated moment in British history when class, race, sex, wealth, and sexual liberation meant that, for the very privileged few, there were no limits to what they could achieve’.
Rivals is being produced by Happy Prince, which is part of ITV Studios, and will air globally on Disney+, on Hulu in the US and on Star+ in Latin America.
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