Filming commences in Northern Ireland on third series of critically acclaimed drama Marcella starring Anna Friel
Date Posted: March 27, 2019
Hugo Speer and Amanda Burton join the cast of the hugely successful series
Innovative and gripping ITV crime drama Marcella, from leading UK independent content production company Buccaneer Media, returns to production this month. With funding from Northern Ireland Screen, filming will take place entirely on location in Belfast during spring and summer of 2019.
Created by internationally renowned screenwriter and novelist Hans Rosenfeldt (The Bridge) and Nicola Larder; Marcella stars Emmy® award winning Anna Friel (Broken, American Odyssey) in the title role. Also set to join the cast this series are Hugo Speer (The Musketeers, Britannia, The Full Monty) and Amanda Burton (Waterloo Road, Silent Witness) whilst Ray Panthaki (Colette, One Crazy Thing) returns to the series as Rav Sangha.
Following on from the dramatic conclusion of the previous series, the new eight-parter sees Marcella in Belfast as an undercover detective. She has taken on a new identity, Keira, and has infiltrated the infamous Maguire crime family but as she investigates their activities, questions come to the fore about how much she’s embraced the Keira personality and left Marcella behind.
In true Marcella style, the series has interweaving storylines with strands focusing upon the Maguires’ criminal operations. As she inhabits the character of Keira, Marcella’s quest for the truth puts her in danger and others in harm’s way. Her undercover role makes her take risks, but will her old life eventually catch up with her?
Actor and executive producer Anna Friel commented: “I’m absolutely delighted to be taking on the role of Marcella again and am very grateful to ITV and Netflix for giving me the chance to delve into her unsettled world once more. Everyone has been so supportive of the show and I am loving being so widely welcomed by the great city of Belfast. I can’t wait for the viewers to see what this series has in store.”
An array of new cast members are welcomed to the series including Amanda Burton (Waterloo Road, Silent Witness) who takes on the role of Katherine, the matriarch of the Maguire family; Aaron McCusker (Bohemian Rhapsody, Fortitude, Shameless) plays her son, Finn Maguire; whilst Hugo Speer (The Musketeers, Britannia, The Full Monty), who made a brief appearance in the final scenes of series two, reprises his role as Frank Young, Marcella’s undercover handler. Kelly Gough (The Fall, Broadchurch) also joins the cast, taking the role of Stacey, Katherine’s daughter; Martin McCann (Death & Nightingales, The Frankenstein Chronicles) plays Stacey’s husband, with Eugene O’Hare (The Fall, Death & Nightingales) as local police officer Eddie. Michael Colgan (X Company, My Mother and Other Strangers) plays Rory Maguire, whilst Paul Kennedy (Death & Nightingales, No Offence) plays Lawrence, Marcella’s initial contact within the crime family and Glen Wallace (River City, The Secret) is Matt, a past acquaintance.
Richard Williams, Chief Executive of Northern Ireland Screen, said; “We are delighted to welcome Buccaneer Media to Northern Ireland to film Marcella and we wish them every success in producing what I know will be a fantastic series. With such a talented team in place supported by our fantastic local crew I have no doubt the end product will delight and entertain audiences both at home and abroad.”
Marcella will be executive produced by Rosenfeldt, Buccaneer Media’s founder Tony Wood who created the joint venture production company in partnership with global entertainment company, Cineflix Media; and Anna Friel. Elliott Swift (script editor Marcella and Inspector George Gently) is producing the series. The first four episodes will be directed by Gilles Bannier (Tin Star, The Tunnel) with Ashley Pearce (Broken, Endeavour) directing the following four.
Hans Rosenfeldt has written the first two episodes and storylined episodes three to eight. The writers of these episodes are David Allison (Bedlam, The Case), Rachel Flowerday (Father Brown, The Moonstone) Mike Walden (The Frankenstein Chronicle), Matthew Thomas (The Chameleon, Valentine’s Kiss) and Tim Loane (Das Boot, Versailles).
Cineflix Rights has exclusive worldwide distribution rights to the series.
