He’s set to play a ruthless Neo-Nazi in the 1960s.
So it was no surprise that Rory Kinnear received a nasty battering from newcomer Aggi O’Casey as they filmed scenes for BBC’s newest drama Ridley Road in Manchester on Tuesday.
The actor will play the leader of a Neo-Nazi organisation Colin Jordan, who was infiltrated by a young Jewish woman, but things take a dramatic turn when he discovers her real identity.
Big hit! Rory Kinnear received a nasty battering from newcomer Aggi O’Casey as they filmed scenes for BBC’s newest drama Ridley Road in Manchester on Tuesday
In character as Jordan, Rory was seen violently pulling Aggi’s character down the street while she called out for help.
The young actress, who plays Vivian Epstein, desperately tried to escape his grip, grabbing a suitcase to hit him over the head.
Vivian managed to escape by running down the road trying to hail a police car, but Jordan’s men are in hot pursuit.
Dark: The actor will play the leader of a Neo-Nazi organisation Colin Jordan, who was infiltrated by a young Jewish woman
Has he found out? In character as Jordan, Rory was seen violently pulling Aggi’s character down the street while she called out for help
HELP! The young actress, who plays Vivian Epstein, desperately tried to escape his grip, grabbing a suitcase to hit him over the head
Take that! After giving him a nasty whack Aggi makes a run for it, desperately trying to escape his grip
Ridley Road is based on the novel of the same name by Jo Bloom and tells the story of Vivien Epstein, a young hairdresser who moves to London after her father dies.
It will focus on Vivian’s infiltration of the Neo-Nazi organisation known as National Socialist Movement after learning her boyfriend Jack (played by Tom Varey) has been seriously injured.
It was inspired by the so-called 62 Group, a group of Jewish men who stood up against rising Neo-Nazism in post-war Britain, and Vivian joins forces with the group to try and uncover the truth.
Jordan was the real-life leader of the NSM a significant voice in the British far-right, believing in an ideal known as pan-Aryan Universal Nazism.
In the mid-1960s NSM supporters carried out 34 arsons against Jewish buildings in London, with one such attack in Stamford Hill uncovered by the 62 Group leading to multiple arrests.
Dark: Ridley Road is based on the novel of the same name by Jo Bloom and tells the story of Vivien Epstein, who infiltrates the fascist organisation after her boyfriend is injured
In later life Jordan offered support to a small Nazi British People’s party, and he died in 2009.
Ridley Road boasts a star-studded cast including Tamzin Outhwaite, Tracy-Ann Oberman and Eddie Marsan, and is set to air on BBC in 2021.
Actor Rory is best known for his role as The Creature in the Showtime series Penny Dreadful and is also set to star in the much-delayed No Time To Die.
Terrifying: Jordan was the real-life leader of the NSM a significant voice in the British far-right, believing in an ideal known as pan-Aryan Universal Nazism
Ridley Road has been written and adapted for television by Sarah Solemani who said of the show: ‘Britain’s relationship with fascism is closer and more alive than we like to think. Luckily, so is our rich heritage of fighting it.
‘Jo Bloom’s gripping book revealed a darker side of sixties London and the staggering contribution the Jewish community made in the battle against racism.
‘I am thrilled to be working with RED and the BBC to bring this little-known slice of British history to the screen.’
Exciting: Ridley Road boasts a star-studded cast including Tamzin Outhwaite, Tracy-Ann Oberman and Eddie Marsan, and is set to air on BBC in 2021
Piers Wenger, Controller of BBC Drama, added: ‘Sarah’s brilliant scripts tell a unique story of doomed love and undercover espionage against a backdrop of a fascist uprising in 1960s London.
‘This story couldn’t feel more timely and we are hugely indebted Sarah for bringing this story to life in her own style.’
Of her breakout role Aggi said: ‘[Writer] Sarah Solemani has blown me away with the detail, sensitivity, and complexity with which she has written Vivien. I can’t wait to bring this vital and little-known story to life.’
Screen star: Actor Rory is best known for his role as The Creature in the Showtime series Penny Dreadful and is also set to star in the much-delayed No Time To Die
Safety first! The cast were all seen donning protective face masks during breaks between scenes