The new Game of Thrones spin-off is a “buddy comedy” – smaller in scale but bigger in heart, says showrunner Ira Parker
Add A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms to your watchlist On a grassy hillside, a young hero with a sword on his hip stares out to his destiny. Fame, glory, honour – and gold. Familiar music, the award-winning Game of Thrones theme, swells majestically as young Duncan takes a step towards history… Cut to the same man, terrified, emptying his bowels behind a tree. Because A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms – which began last week on Sky Atlantic – isn’t quite the grand epic we have come to expect from the world of Game of Thrones, even if it is set in the same fictional land of Westeros. “I joke sometimes that we’re just Game of Thrones without all the stuff,” laughs showrunner Ira Parker. “My goal is to make this stand on its own so that, even if none of the other shows had happened, you could still watch episode one and you could follow that journey.” Airing from 2011 to 2019, Game of Thrones – adapted from George RR Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire novels – was fantasy drama on an epic scale and one of the biggest TV successes this century. When the inevitable spin-off, House of the Dragon, came in 2022, it was in the form of a prequel set centuries earlier, when an even grander conflict was brewing between the noble houses of Westeros. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is a humbler prospect. It’s set about 90 years after House of the Dragon and 90 years before Game of Thrones and eschews its predecessors’ huge casts and continent-spanning action. Instead, it follows penniless knight Ser Duncan the Tall (aka Dunk, played by Peter Claffey) and his bald-headed squire Egg (played by Dexter Sol Ansell), who turn up at a tournament hoping to win money. “It’s a buddy comedy,” suggests Parker. “It’s a ‘lone wolf and cub’ story. It’s an adventure series.” Not that there aren’t still sky-high expectations. This first series is adapted from The Hedge Knight, a novella written by Martin in 1998, and over the years (and two literary sequels), dynamic duo Dunk and Egg have attracted an affectionate fanbase. “My favourite part of the books and the original TV show is the odd-couple pairings,” Parker says. For those who’ve watched Game of Thrones, he likens Dunk and Egg to the characters played by Gwendoline Christie and Daniel Portman: “It’s like Brienne and Pod: the TV show.” But it’s taken a while to bring that simple idea to screen. Parker, 41, was working as a writer on House of the Dragon when he first heard whispers that Martin’s other Westeros-set books could become a TV show. After he was given the job, it took even longer to work out how to do it. “That was a pre-pandemic writers’ room,” he says. “That feels like a lifetime ago. I had no children and a tiny little apartment in West Hollywood. Now I’m living in Belfast and my third child is due in a couple of days.” A key difficulty was finding a convincing Dunk and Egg, described in the books as a nearly seven-foot-tall man-mountain and a tiny bald boy respectively. Not quite central casting. “We scoured the world for the tallest people we could possibly find that had any sort of acting experience,” Parker says. “It’s hard – Hollywood doesn’t like tall actors. But we got really lucky because Peter Claffey and Dexter Sol Ansell are the only two people on planet Earth who could have done this, and they both agreed.” In 29-year-old Claffey, he says, they struck gold. Not only is he tall – 6ft 5in – with a TV CV that includes Sharon Horgan’s Bad Sisters, but he’s also an ex-professional rugby player, which makes him convincing as rough-and-ready Dunk. “There are things that Peter does so easily that we would have to get a stunt guy to do,” Parker marvels. “This big, heavy sack that he just casually throws up on the ramparts, and goes over… “And Dexter is the best child actor on planet Earth. It feels unfair to call him a child actor. He’s professional. He can riff. He takes notes.” As we speak, Parker is on set with them filming season two, already commissioned for next year. Beyond that, Martin only published one further novella starring the duo, but famously, Game of Thrones skipped ahead of Martin’s unfinished book series. Could this do the same? “George has a document of everything that happens for 13, 14, 15 of these novellas,” Parker says. “He just has to write them. The nice thing is, we know what the ending is. We would never be left making anything up. We would just have a looser road map than what we have right now. The show’s a reflection of the novellas, of the underlying source on which they are based. We take it back to the books. We drop you into a new location every season. We tell you a story and we wrap it up. And we have a bit of fun. So if you’re a fan of the books, hopefully you’ll like this show.” In any case, he says, he has already satisfied the only viewer who matters: Martin himself. “In this job you don’t try to write for a wide audience, because so many people like so many different things,” he says. “You pick a person, and you write for them. Season one was definitely written for George. The Hedge Knight is very close to him. He’s told me before that book is, he thinks, the best thing that he’s ever written. “He read every first draft of all the episodes. I think they went to him first, even before they went to HBO. And me and him would have conversations. It was rarely contentious. I’ll not say ‘never’…” He's a good egg Dexter Sol Ansell on chess, auditions and a tug-of-war Dexter, what can you tell us about young squire Egg? He’s mysterious and he’s a know-it-all. He’s brave, he’s cheeky and I love playing him. How did you get cast? It was six months of auditioning. I had no idea what I was auditioning for — I had to read another script: [Nicholas Hoult’s lines] in About a Boy. Then we heard it was Game of Thrones and I didn’t know what that was, but all my family knew it was this massive thing. They were like, “You have to get it!’’ In the last audition, I almost went in with a razor and shaved off my own hair. At 11 you’re too young for Game of Thrones, but did you sneakily watch any to prepare? I haven’t watched any, but HBO showed me the new House of the Dragon trailer, which looks pretty cool. How did you get on with Peter Claffey, who plays Dunk? Peter’s absolutely amazing, I’m really inspired by him. On set we play chess. A lot of the cast taught me how to play and now I’m really good. Did you meet Game of Thrones creator George RR Martin? Yes! We were filming a tug-of-war scene and I was dangling off this rope, holding on for my life because I didn’t want to fall in the mud. I went over to him, and he said, “You look and act like you’ve really just jumped out of the books.” That was amazing to hear. How’s filming the next series going? I’ve just done two weeks. It’s an amazing story and I can’t believe it was renewed before [season 1] is out. It feels so good to be back. After roles in Emmerdale, The Hunger Games and The Midwich Cuckoos, what have you learnt from your career so far? I’ve learnt to always be humble and be kind to any single person on set and off, no matter if they’re number one cast, or the person who picks up the horse poo.
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms showrunner: "Season 1 was definitely written for George RR Martin"
The new Game of Thrones spin-off is a “buddy comedy” – smaller in scale but bigger in heart, says showrunner Ira Parker.
This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine. On a grassy hillside, a young hero with a sword on his hip stares out to his destiny. Fame, glory, honour – and gold. Familiar music, the award-winning Game of Thrones theme, swells majestically as young Duncan takes a step towards history… Cut to the same man, terrified, emptying his bowels behind a tree. Because A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms – which begins this week on Sky Atlantic – isn’t quite the grand epic we have come to expect from the world of Game of Thrones, even if it is set in the same fictional land of Westeros. “I joke sometimes that we’re just Game of Thrones without all the stuff,” laughs showrunner Ira Parker. “My goal is to make this stand on its own so that, even if none of the other shows had happened, you could still watch episode one and you could follow that journey.” Airing from 2011 to 2019, Game of Thrones – adapted from George RR Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire novels – was fantasy drama on an epic scale and one of the biggest TV successes this century. When the inevitable spin-off, House of the Dragon, came in 2022, it was in the form of a prequel set centuries earlier, when an even grander conflict was brewing between the noble houses of Westeros. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is a humbler prospect. It’s set about 90 years after House of the Dragon and 90 years before Game of Thrones and eschews its predecessors’ huge casts and continent-spanning action. Instead, it follows penniless knight Ser Duncan the Tall (aka Dunk, played by Peter Claffey) and his bald-headed squire Egg (played by Dexter Sol Ansell), who turn up at a tournament hoping to win money. “It’s a buddy comedy,” suggests Parker. “It’s a ‘lone wolf and cub’ story. It’s an adventure series.” View Green Video on the source website Not that there aren’t still sky-high expectations. This first series is adapted from The Hedge Knight, a novella written by Martin in 1998, and over the years (and two literary sequels), dynamic duo Dunk and Egg have attracted an affectionate fanbase. “My favourite part of the books and the original TV show is the odd-couple pairings,” Parker says. For those who’ve watched Game of Thrones, he likens Dunk and Egg to the characters played by Gwendoline Christie and Daniel Portman: “It’s like Brienne and Pod: the TV show.” But it’s taken a while to bring that simple idea to screen. Parker, 41, was working as a writer on House of the Dragon when he first heard whispers that Martin’s other Westeros-set books could become a TV show. After he was given the job, it took even longer to work out how to do it. “That was a pre-pandemic writers’ room,” he says. “That feels like a lifetime ago. I had no children and a tiny little apartment in West Hollywood. Now I’m living in Belfast and my third child is due in a couple of days.” A key difficulty was finding a convincing Dunk and Egg, described in the books as a nearly seven-foot-tall man-mountain and a tiny bald boy respectively. Not quite central casting. “We scoured the world for the tallest people we could possibly find that had any sort of acting experience,” Parker says. “It’s hard – Hollywood doesn’t like tall actors. But we got really lucky because Peter Claffey and Dexter Sol Ansell are the only two people on planet Earth who could have done this, and they both agreed.” In 29-year-old Claffey, he says, they struck gold. Not only is he tall – 6ft 5in – with a TV CV that includes Sharon Horgan’s Bad Sisters, but he’s also an ex-professional rugby player, which makes him convincing as rough-and-ready Dunk. “There are things that Peter does so easily that we would have to get a stunt guy to do,” Parker marvels. “This big, heavy sack that he just casually throws up on the ramparts, and goes over… “And Dexter is the best child actor on planet Earth. It feels unfair to call him a child actor. He’s professional. He can riff. He takes notes.” As we speak, Parker is on set with them filming season two, already commissioned for next year. Beyond that, Martin only published one further novella starring the duo, but famously, Game of Thrones skipped ahead of Martin’s unfinished book series. Could this do the same? “George has a document of everything that happens for 13, 14, 15 of these novellas,” Parker says. “He just has to write them. The nice thing is, we know what the ending is. We would never be left making anything up. We would just have a looser road map than what we have right now. The show’s a reflection of the novellas, of the underlying source on which they are based. We take it back to the books. We drop you into a new location every season. We tell you a story and we wrap it up. And we have a bit of fun. So if you’re a fan of the books, hopefully you’ll like this show.” In any case, he says, he has already satisfied the only viewer who matters: Martin himself. “In this job you don’t try to write for a wide audience, because so many people like so many different things,” he says. “You pick a person, and you write for them. Season one was definitely written for George. The Hedge Knight is very close to him. He’s told me before that book is, he thinks, the best thing that he’s ever written. “He read every first draft of all the episodes. I think they went to him first, even before they went to HBO. And me and him would have conversations. It was rarely contentious. I’ll not say ‘never’…” The latest issue of Radio Times is out now – subscribe here. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is available on Sky and NOW, with new episodes arriving on Mondays. In the US, the show airs on HBO on Sundays. Add A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms to your watchlist on the <a id="OWA8b702c45-bee9-94e4-f018-57518e78041b" title="https://www.radiotimes.com/download-the-app/?af_xp=custom&pid=website&c=editorial_content&is_retargeting=true&af_reengagement_window=30d" href="https://www.radiotimes.com/download-the-app/?af_xp=custom&pid=website&c=editorial_content&is_retargeting=true&af_reengagement_window=30d" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-outlook-id="449c28d9-909e-4aab-b6b8-153454f55d5e" data-auth="NotApplicable" data-linkindex="0">Radio Times: What to Watch app – download now for daily TV recommendations, features and more. Check out more of our Fantasy coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Kids ask the Gladiators all the questions grown-ups never would
We gave kids the chance to quiz the stars of Gladiators the way only they can – and the results were brilliant.
These days, kids don’t watch TV – but they do watch Gladiators. Somehow, the lycra-clad '90s throwbacks of BBC1’s shiny-floor revival have managed to compete with all videogames, TikTok and general brainrot to enchant children across the UK and beyond. “My brother lives in Dubai, and his kids, my niece and nephew and all of their friends, do watch parties at my brother’s house to watch Gladiators,” Gladiator Sabre, AKA Sheli McCoy, tells Radio Times. “Series one had 90 million global downloads.” “We are like real-life superheroes to them,” adds Zack George, AKA Steel. “When they come to see us in any sort of capacity, there’s just the joy, and the biggest smiles that you have and that you see on all the kids’ faces, is absolutely amazing.” So when quizzing six of the Gladiators on their stories, what else could we do but hand the reins over to the real experts, some of the TV show’s youngest fans who had their own… unique… queries for the musclebound stars. Starting with… Fire, AKA Montell Douglas Charlotte, aged 8, asks: What makes you so quick? What makes me so quick? Well, like we mentioned, the hair, because this is my superpower. When you go fast, it looks like flames. But I genuinely think that’s a part of it. However, I am well-versed, and ran for a very long time, and trained really, really hard for a very long time. Though part of that is because it’s my superpower to be super, super fast, which also adds to my strength. So lots and lots of training. Lots of sprinting. It’s why I’m so fast. Isaac, aged 5, has asked: Who are better, the old Gladiators or the new Gladiators? Oh, that is controversial! We have to defend our throne, Isaac. Who are better? So I have, like I said, empathy. I’ve got massive respect… You know what? Those that laid the path before us are why we’re here. And I pay homage to the original Gs – I call them the OGs – because without them, we cannot be here. And I feel like we are a thread and a legacy of what it is that they created. That, for me, literally is it. And Izzy, aged 7, has said: Do your muscles hurt all the time? Not as much as the contenders. No, I’m joking. No, but we work. Sometimes you work hard, and you’ve got to make sure that you work hard enough that you can feel that you’re working. Hard work does sometimes feel really, really, really tough. However, you just know that you’re working your best, and you know that you’re going to get the real gains, and you’re going to get really good results from that. They don’t hurt all the time, because I take very good care of my body, because our body is our temple. You have to look after it. Steel, AKA Zack George Penny, aged 5: How is Steel so steel? (This is one of my favourite questions from the whole list.) I love that. I always get that. It’s like, “How much of your body is actually steel? Are your arms steel?” OK. So how did I get so steel? How did I get so strong? So, my training regime, I train about 12 times a week. So I train twice a day, six days a week, and I’ve done that for about 10 years. I have six meals a day, and it’s just about 4,500 calories a day. I always stay well-hydrated. I always get good sleep. And I’ve done that in a professional athletic environment for 10 years. So it’s a lot of training sessions, a lot of calories. I love every single of it. I’m an all-rounded Gladiator, so I have to play pretty much every game. So my training is extremely varied. For my cardio, I do running, swimming, cycling, rowing. For my weightlifting, I’ll do things like Olympic weightlifting – so, clean, jerk, and snatches. I’ll do squats and bench-press. And then I’ll also do gymnastics. It’s an extremely varied amount of training. And I’ve done a lot of it. And I’ve been very healthy for about 10 years. What kind of meals are you having? So my breakfast is the meal that’s always the same. The breakfast is a bowl of porridge, two bagels, and six eggs. And then the other five meals are very varied. It might be a pasta dish. It could be a jacket potato. It could be a chicken salad. It’s very varied. But the morning breakfast is always the same. The breakfast of champions. The breakfast of champions. The breakfast of Gladiators. Charlotte, aged 8, asks: Can you bend a steel bar (with your bare hands)? Yes. Seb, aged 8, asks: If you woke up tomorrow and all your muscles disappeared, what job would you do? Hmmm. I would… So, here’s an interesting fact for you. I used to be a really, really good table tennis player when I was young. I played for the county. So if I lost all my muscle, I’m going to go back to my pursuit of being a table tennis player. Are you still good now? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Unless you’ve trained in table tennis, you probably won’t win. It’s quite known in my gym – I can play people with a shoe. I can use a phone. I can use whatever, really. That’s great. Is it harder to play when you’re in Gladiator shape, when you’re a bit bigger, or no? It would be. That’s why it works quite well, because now, when you’re quite bulky, you don’t move as well. But if I lost all my muscle, I’d actually be prime for table tennis. And a final question from Josie, aged 11: What piece of advice would you give your 11-year-old self? When I was younger, I didn’t have any confidence. I was embarrassed about how I looked. So I used to skip school if I knew I had swimming, because I was too ashamed to take my top off. And I just didn’t eat healthy at all. So I would say to my younger self – I had a real issue with judging myself constantly on other people. And I would say, “Why don’t I look like them? Why don’t I look like them?” I just wish I could tell myself, “Don’t judge yourself on anyone else, because everyone’s unique. Everyone’s special in their own way. And it’s just about being happy and confident with who you are, and not judging yourself on anyone else.” And I’d also say: “Run your own race.” Everyone’s on their own journey. Everyone’s on their own path. And everyone will achieve their goals in different stages. Just because it took me a year longer, it doesn’t mean my journey was wrong or that I’m doing something wrong. It’s just that, for me, that was the time length it was going to take. So I would say: “Run your own race, because everyone will achieve goals at different stages, and don’t judge yourself on other people. It’s just about being happy and confident with who you are.” Legend, AKA Matt Morsia The first question is from eight-year-old Aurelia, who says: Are you really a legend? I would say: it’s such a stupid question. Do you know what I mean? Who has cleared that question? I think Aurelia and her parents need to go back to the drawing board. I think she needs to work on her comprehension and questioning skills. Not only is that question ridiculous, it’s also highly insulting. So I’m going to refuse to answer it. Fair enough. Well, if you didn’t like that one, Charlotte, aged 8, says: Why are you a doughnut? I feel like Charlotte’s being heavily influenced by an adult in that question, in my opinion. An adult – probably a jealous, bitter adult who looks at me as some kind of unattainable god, and so had encouraged her child to refer to me as a doughnut. I am not a doughnut. I like doughnuts, but I’m not one myself. I’m actually an extremely gifted human who is good at everything. This leads to the next question she asked. She said: Why do you have “Simply the Best” as your theme tune? I think it’s sort of explanatory. That song – this is an unknown fact, but that was actually written for me. The lyrics for that were written for me. It’s just a biography in a song, basically. Noah, aged 7, asks: How did you get so much muscle? I am a genetic freak. From a… not a young age but from a relatively young age I had above-average quantities of muscle mass. But also I train extremely hard twice a day, and I’m hyper-intelligent. So I’m able to build my training programme in a way that allows me to continue building muscle, whereas the average person maybe couldn’t do that. Leila, aged 7, asks: What do you want to be when you grow up? You grow up. What’s her name? Sienna? Leila. Leila? Leila needs to grow up. Emilio, who’s 10, asks: Are you paid to be arrogant? I mean, technically yes. I am just… Also, Emilio, it’s not arrogance, is it? If a bush claims to be a bush, that’s not arrogance. It’s just literally an objective observation. So it’s not arrogance. For me to say I’m the best, that’s not arrogance. I’m just explaining. I’m just describing an objective situation. But technically yes, I am literally paid to do that. Alfie, aged 10, asks: How many marshmallows can you fit in your mouth at once? I tried it once, and we had to stop because I ate the entire pack. You know one of those big family-sized packs of marshmallows? I can get the entire pack in my mouth, and I’ve still got more capacity. We needed to reset the game just to have more bags available. But at this point, potentially infinite amounts. Because my jaw is so strong, and my cheeks – it’s like one of those… You know in the factory where they just squash metal? Yeah. The hydraulic press. That’s what my mouth does to marshmallows. They just keep going. And by the time they get to the latter ones, the earlier ones have dissolved. It’s almost a conveyer belt. And Alfie’s last question was: PS, how do I become more of a legend like you? Alfie, I would say: it’s unrealistic. In the same way if Alfie said, “How do I become a T-Rex?” – I’d say, “It’s not going to happen, mate.” That’s the first thing. A reality check, Alfie – it’s never going to happen. However, you can be a better version of yourself by being confident, and having that belief in yourself. I think a lot of people don’t believe in themselves. Believe in yourself, and if you want to do something, do it. Because I quite frequently find that you won’t regret doing something – going something and doing something, you won’t regret that. But you may well regret not doing something. Just send it, mate, and just do stuff. Seb, who’s eight, says: If you woke up tomorrow and all your muscle disappeared, what job would you do? Probably either the Prime Minister of the UK or potentially the King. It would depend on what spots are open. But I imagine one of those two roles. Nitro, AKA Harry Aikines-Aryeetey From Daniel, aged 7: Nitro, what is your favourite dinner? Ha! What you need to know about Nitro is that Nitro is a great chef. But my good-luck meal is a pizza. I will have a pizza every week before a big arena day. I make good pizzas, but I like a pepperoni pizza with mozzarella and spicy pepperoni and nduja on top – spicy nduja. Even some hot honey on there as well. And a nice, Naples-type pizza. Stone-baked. A nice, puffy crust. That will go down really well. Regan, aged 9, asks: what age did you start working out, and what inspired you to become a Gladiator? I wanted to be a Gladiator from the moment I saw Jet on Gladiators, and became a Gladiator in the sense of mind and body. What people don’t realise is – I’ve always been working out. The moment you start playing – I used to play British Bulldog; I used to play 40/40; I used to play Stuck in the Mud. That’s all forms of training, whether it be agility… Sport is training. Having fun is training. So I’ve always been training my whole life. Learning how to win and lose, playing Monopoly – it’s a form of training. So all of these moments are built for me to become a Gladiator, and it started from when I was 5, because I’m playing. I’m having fun. I’m learning. I’m being adaptable. I’m learning new skills. These are all parts of being the best person you can be. Great. So these kids better start getting ready. Exactly. Evan, aged 6, has a controversial question. He says, which of the other Gladiators are you the most afraid of? Ha! Dare I say it: I’d be afraid of Diamond, because she’s very sassy, and when she hasn’t eaten, she gets quite hangry. And she’s a lot to deal with! Charlotte, aged 8, asks: Who is your best friend on Gladiators? My best friend on Gladiators? On the boys’ side, it would be Viper. I speak Viper-nese. I understand everything that he’s going through. Me and him, we go way back. And otherwise, on the girls’ side, it would probably be Diamond or Dynamite. Those two are sort of my go-tos. I can hang out with them, and we’re good energy. Lovely. And 5-year-old Joe says quite simply: How fast can Nitro run? Nitro’s completed the 100 metres in 9.90 seconds, and I’ve reached up to 27 miles per hour. So I would get a lot of tickets in London. Sabre, AKA Sheli McCoy Charlotte, who’s aged 8, had a lot of questions for you. First: Do you like lions? I love them. I love them. I actually find that a pride of lions is something that you could watch all day. Do you have a pet lion? I have a pet dog that looks like a wolf. His name is Alpha. It’s pretty close. I think I heard somewhere that you wanted Alpha to be your Gladiator name? Yeah, and they wouldn’t give me it. That’s annoying. I guess because then you’d be top. Yeah. Hierarchy. Although we have one called Legend. True. Well, this is related: What made you choose the name Sabre? Because I am wild, fierce, and formidable, and very, very rare – as is a Sabre-toothed tiger. Finally from Charlotte: How big are your teeth? My teeth? Average sized, but my jaw is very strong. But I do have shiny, white, pearly teeth. And actually – here’s an example – on my gumshield I have actual, big sabre teeth. Tell her to look closely in the next series for when I smile, because my gumshield has actual teeth on it. Nathalie, who’s 10, and Cami who’s 6, submitted this together. They say: a question for Sabre, What has been your favourite sign in the audience? “Sabre, will you marry my dad?” That’s good. Did you get in touch? There’s honestly 50 of them. Every audience, it’s all about the dads. The dads have made their kids sit down and make those signs. I guess the BBC or whoever would probably blur out the phone numbers at the bottom. Yeah. I don’t actually know. Although I know that Apollo the other day had a sign sent into the dressing room for him with the woman’s number and Instagram handle on it. Josie, aged 11, asks: What piece of advice would you give your 11-year-old self? Deep, Josie, aged 11. I would tell her that it’s not… do you know what? I actually wrote a letter to my younger self but it’s very deep and it’s very long. But the underlying thing that I think I needed to hear at 11 was: “It’s not going to be sunshine and roses. Not everyone’s going to help you succeed. And a lot of people won’t be happy when you do succeed. But that shouldn’t slow you down. That shouldn’t stop you. And you should try your best. And it’s OK to be the best in the room. And it’s also OK to be the worst. Effort will always trump the outcome. And whether you know it or not, you’re worth way more than what anyone else thinks about you.” That’s good advice. It’s a big question. Fury, AKA Jodie Ounsley Charlotte, aged 8, asks: Why did you join Gladiators? Why did I join it? Well, I think because it runs in the family. My dad was a contender on the previous Gladiators, so it’s always kind of been something we’ve had a lot of interest in. So, yeah, I wanted to see if I could be a Gladiator myself, and see how much I could push myself with it as well. Penny, aged 5, says: Is Fury furious when she doesn’t win? Sometimes. Most of the time, I’m not, because I always think you’ve just got to take it, be humble with it, and come back stronger. But no, I’m not furious all the time. Only sometimes. Sisters Nathalie and Cami, who are 10 and 6, had a couple of questions. They said, first of all, if you could introduce a new event for Gladiators, what would it be? The Scruminator? The Scruminator – that’s a good one. I actually think… I don’t know if you’re aware – I’ve done an event called The World Coal Carrying Champions, where you basically run with a sack of coal on your shoulders. So I think coal-carrying needs to be a new event. It’s a Yorkshire event. Perfect. I could imagine all your fellow Gladiators and contenders with sacks of coal Yes! And it could be a race. It could be contender and Gladiator, and it’s a sprint race with the sack of coal. Nathalie and Cami also asked: How long could you survive sharing a house with Legend? Probably zero. No, I think maybe one day. We’ll see. Gladiators returns on Saturday 17th January at 5:45pm on BBC One and iPlayer. Add Gladiators to your watchlist on the Radio Times: What to Watch app – download now for daily TV recommendations, features and more. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms showrunner confirms show's fate after adapting published Dunk and Egg novellas
“George has laid out… He has a document of everything that happens, basically, for 13, 14, 15 of these novellas.”
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms showrunner Ira Parker has revealed that George RR Martin has outlined ideas for many more unwritten novellas that could form the basis of future seasons. The fantasy author has only published three Dunk and Egg Novellas so far, with 1998’s The Hedge Knight serving as inspiration for the upcoming first season, 2003’s The Sworn Sword set to form the basis of season 2, which is currently in production, and 2010’s The Mystery Knight expected to inspire a potential third season. Asked whether there’s a possibility of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms going beyond the three novellas, as Game of Thrones did with Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire novels, Parker told Radio Times magazine: “I would love – and I’ve pitched to HBO a couple of times to sort of well-intentioned half-smiles or eye rolls." He continued: "I want to do three or four now with Egg, the boy, and come back in like five or 10 years and do three or four more with Egg, the young man. And then come back in five or 10 years, and do three or four more with Egg, the – well, the spoiler. “I don’t think that’s necessarily how TV gets made unless you’re… Lisa Kudrow gets to do that. You know, The Comeback comes back every 10 years, and that’s OK. Or Linklater. "But this is… There’s so many interesting things that happen throughout their lives. But I don’t want to focus the whole thing right at the beginning. It’s telling that whole journey that is very exciting to me." He continued: "George has laid out… He has a document of everything that happens, basically, for 13, 14, 15 of these novellas. He just has to get to writing these. "The nice thing is, we know what the ending is. We know the journeys that they go no. We would never be left making anything up. We would just have a looser road map than what we have right now. "Look, we’ll see. There’s a really decent chance that we’ll hopefully do three of those, and that’s it, and people can enjoy it. And that’ll be the experience that they have within this world, within Dunk and Egg. "But if George writes more, you know, we’ll discuss it. I certainly would write these forever. I love these characters. I love this world." Set approximately 90 to 100 years before the events of Game of Thrones, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms follows a knight called Dunk and his resourceful squire “Egg”, who is actually the young Prince Aegon Targaryen, as they journey through the Seven Kingdoms. Martin previously said in a blog post that the spin-off show is “as faithful an adaptation as a reasonable man could hope for". Ira Parker's full interview will be available in the next issue of Radio Times magazine, out on 20th January. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms premieres on 19th January 2026 on Sky Atlantic and NOW and airs in the US on HBO. Game of Thrones seasons 1 to 8 and House of the Dragon seasons 1 and 2 are available to stream on Sky and NOW – find out more about how to sign up for Sky TV. If you’re looking for something else to watch in the meantime, check out our TV Guide and Streaming Guide, or visit our dedicated Fantasy hub. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Bob Mortimer is back to defend his title but this time, he says, it’s a very different game…
Add Last One Laughing UK to your watchlist An entertainment hit on a streaming platform is something of a rarity. Stranger still when it’s a show stuffed with comedians where a mark of success is not laughing. But that’s what you get with Amazon Prime Video’s Last One Laughing UK, which sees some of the country’s best stand-ups locked in a room together, trying to “break” each other into fits of guffaws without cracking a smile themselves. Now, after the huge success of the first run in 2025, the show’s back this spring. “It’s exactly the same as series one, except for every single moment,” host Jimmy Carr tells RT. “It’s different comedians. A different level of competition. It’s basically comedy if it was a sport.” One of the new crop of contestants is former Bake Off host Mel Giedroyc. “I think there are pros and cons of doing a second series of something like this, because the first series was so brilliant and joyous and free,” she says. “Whereas when you’ve seen the first series, you go in with different levels of pressure, and expectation.” “It was more competitive this time,” agrees Carr. “They had gameplay in place. They had game faces. They knew what they were doing this time.” “Which isn’t to say that we didn’t also have a brilliant time!” Giedroyc adds. “We had an amazing gang. I mean, stellar.” Said gang features a mix of well-known and up-and-coming comics, including David Mitchell, Romesh Ranganathan, Amy Gledhill, Diane Morgan, Maisie Adam, Gbemisola Ikumelo, Sam Campbell and recent Celebrity Traitors champ Alan Carr, hoping he can keep the giggles under control this time. Plus, one more familiar face – Would I Lie to You? favourite and series one winner Bob Mortimer is back to defend his crown. “I didn’t expect to come back, but was delighted to be asked, because it’s an experience that you can never re-create,” says Mortimer. “It’s interesting – the moment I walked in, I thought, ‘No, this is just different. It’s an entirely different dynamic.’ So I didn’t feel I had any advantage.”
Dara O Briain’s resurrected satirical panel show is coming back bigger – but will it be better?
Add Mock the Week to your watchlist Just over three years after it was cancelled by the BBC, topical panel show Mock the Week is returning soon to free-to-air channel TLC — with a familiar face at the helm. “It was only a couple of months ago that I first heard rumblings,” says comedian and longtime host Dara O Briain. “God, it might have been November… I mean, I’m not going, ‘I remember the moment the big red phone in my office rang. It’s the Mock phone, finally…’ But it’s all moved pretty quickly, as befits the show. “Honestly, you can be too precious,” he adds. “I didn’t sit for a long time going, ‘Will this in any way damage the legacy of the show that we’ve left behind?’ It’s just seven people in a room telling jokes.” Alongside O Briain, rotating guests will include Ahir Shah, Angela Barnes, Ed Byrne, Ellie Taylor, Hugh Dennis, Katherine Ryan, Lou Sanders, Rhys James, Russell Howard and Sara Pascoe — though expect more new names alongside the familiar ones. The biggest change comes from the length of episodes, now extended to an hour. “There’s no musical sequence now; there’s no nudity suddenly. I don’t think there’s anything particularly jarring. I just think there’ll be slightly more of it,” O Briain says. “But there was always more of it. We did two-and-a-half hours that came down to a BBC half-hour, which was 28 minutes. There will apparently be new rounds. But I don’t think there’s anything that will scare the horses, that will be too drastic a change from us talking. ‘Us talking’ is the mission statement, to be honest.” And what will they be talking about? “The world has got more pantomimic and ludicrous as time has gone by,” he muses. “The biggest change for us is that it’s no longer a Conservative government. People used to say, ‘You always talk about the Tories.’ Yes, because they were the ones doing stuff! Now, it’ll be about Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves. Not because we’re not on the BBC any more — but because they’re the ones in power.”
The BBC’s revamped Gladiators has become a colossus of Saturday-night TV – but are its perfectly formed stars gods, monsters or something in between? With a little help from some young fans, RT poses some very important questions
Add Gladiators to your watchlist NITRO aka Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, 37 What’s the biggest myth about being a Gladiator? The biggest myth about being a Gladiator is that you don’t want the contender to do well, because you actually do. Obviously, we’re the strength and the speed and the power. But ultimately they’re the soul of the show, right? What’s your Achilles’ heel? It’s probably The Edge, which is played at a very great height. I’m a very grounded person. If there was one event that I could choose not to do, it would be that one. Kids look up to all of you like gods. How do you handle that? I lean into it. When kids ask me how old I am, I often say, “I’m 1,000 years old, and I’m a demigod. The gifts and skills and talents that I have were bestowed upon me by the gods.” In Grecian times the idea was that, if you went to someone’s temple, that gave the gods strength, right? So, I often tell them, the more noise they make, the stronger I become. They’re my power cells. They fuel me. Do you feel a responsibility to your fans — ie the power cells? I was once a young star who wanted to be a Gladiator. I opted for the Olympics instead – and now I’ve become a Gladiator! I know there are many young fans out there who could now go on to become great athletes or great Gladiators themselves. When I go climbing, people say, “We can’t believe you’re here... we told our daughter or our son, ‘Try and climb the wall like Nitro’ to get them here.” I’m not a speed-climber. I won’t get an Olympic medal in that, but it’s made kids go and climb. We might have the next speed-climbing champion because of Gladiators, which is amazing. The biggest mistake I ever make is trying to take my daughter to soft play. If I try and take her to a trampoline park, I can’t look after her, because I’m in front of our target audience, doing the most gladiatorial stuff. I’m inundated! When your Gladiators legend is written, how do you hope to be remembered? Hercules was the first person I played in a play, in year three. And I was obsessed with being a demigod, being able to fly, having super-strength, having super-speed like Hermes. I’d want my legacy to be like the fables of Hercules – this person ran as fast as he could against the world’s best, championing his country. Having done both, which is more competitive, Gladiators or Strictly Come Dancing? I would say Gladiators is far more competitive, because there’s an actual gamesmanship around it. You can’t compare your rumba to someone else’s Argentine tango on the day. But what I would say is that Strictly can dress you down. You have to be strong. You have to be able to take the feedback. If you make a mistake, it can feel like the worst thing in the world. So there’s more of a mental aspect to understanding the process, and having to stay true to yourself through it. If you could see into the future, like Cassandra, what might you reveal about the new series of Gladiators? Nitro’s back, which is the most amazing thing for myself. I think maybe the last series of Gladiators was a little meaner without me around. I’m here to bring back that essence of entertainment and fun. We haven’t seen Nitro in battle since 2024. So, 2026 is the Year of the Nitro – let’s call it! Jake, 7, asks… What’s your favourite dinner? What you need to know about Nitro is that Nitro is a great chef. But my good-luck meal is a pizza. I will have one every week before a big arena day. I make good pizzas – my favourite is pepperoni with mozzarella with spicy pepperoni and nduja on top, perhaps with some hot honey on there as well. Delicious! SABRE aka Sheli McCoy, 37 What’s the biggest myth about being a Gladiator? That we’re mean. People assume that we are there to be baddies, to crush contenders. And that’s an absolute myth because, really, our job is to get the best out of every single contender. I will only push someone as far as they can go, to give me 100 per cent of what they have. I will never give them more than they can take. What is the hardest part of the job? The most Herculean task? Not the physical element. That’s easy. It’s the persona and the expectations that come with it: trying to balance being the world’s strongest, most capable humans while also trying to be relatable to everyone we want to inspire. What’s your Achilles’ heel? I don’t really have one. As Sabre, I am formidable in every aspect. There’s nothing that you could give me that I can’t do. That said, have you ever had a tainted, Pyrrhic victory? Loads of times. Do you remember Nia on The Edge [in series one]? My job was to take her down, but she was crying her eyes out. That doesn’t feel like a good win; it feels like a necessary win. Like Icarus, have you ever flown too close to the sun? That is my MO. That’s what I do. I wake up and think: how could I push the limit today to potentially burn out here? So, yes, I have, multiple times, because that’s how we learn. And I don’t think you’ll ever know your true potential until you overstep that potential. I co-own a gym. It’s 6,500 square feet with a full gym, a weightlifting club, a HYROX affiliate, seven staff, a new recovery room. I’ve got my clinic still open [McCoy is also a sports rehabilitation therapist]; Gladiators is on air; I’m chatting to you. Loads of people would have thought that was impossible to do. Kids look up to you like you’re a god. That’s quite a responsibility... It’s a privilege. Yeah, it’s a responsibility, because if we’re not doing it for them, who are we doing it for? Kids have sold their souls to us. They’ve got us on repeat in their living room. And now their birthdays are Gladiators-themed, and they’re having custom costumes made… I’ve got about 130 beaded, hand-made bracelets from kids. My brother lives in Dubai, and his children, my niece and nephew and all of their friends, have Gladiators watch parties at my brother’s house. Series one had 90 million global downloads. When your legend is written, how do you hope to be remembered? Today is the anniversary of my dad’s death. He died 33 years ago. And if today was my last day, I think I would feel proud that I’ve made a difference. There have been so many mothers and fathers who have told me stories of their children overcoming body-confidence issues, sports issues, health issues, eating disorders, due to the presence of Gladiators in their life. If you could tell us the future, what can we expect from the new series? I am the most excited about this series coming out, because not only are there new games, but they’re bringing back a classic. When they told us about them, I was like, “You want us to what? Is that safe?” Nathalie, 1o, and Cami, 6, ask… What has been your favourite audience sign? “Sabre, will you marry my dad?” There’s honestly 50 of them an episode. They’ve made their kids sit down and make those signs… Although I know that the other day Apollo had a sign sent into the dressing room for him with a woman’s telephone number and Instagram handle on it! LEGEND aka Matt Morsia, 40 What’s the biggest myth about being a Gladiator? The biggest myth is that Gladiators is a collective, and it’s all about everyone doing their own bit when in reality they’re just a support crew for Legend. When your legend is written, how do you hope you’ll be remembered? I don’t “hope”. I’m wholly confident that I’ll be remembered as the greatest Gladiator of all time. Do you have an Achilles’ heel? Probably that I’m too good. It’s awkward when you’re good at all of the games, because, firstly, it’s difficult to programme that logistically. But also, you attract a lot of envy from others. I imagine there was a similar situation for Muhammad Ali and Martin Luther King. When you’re at the top of your game, there are a lot of eyes on you. What’s the hardest part of being a Gladiator? I would say it is just managing the fans. For me, more so than the others. I’m having to fight my way into the arena. They’ll get me there eight hours early deliberately, and there’s still thousands of people queuing up, throwing themselves at my feet. Like Icarus, have you ever flown too close to the sun? I’ve been to the sun and it was fine. I can’t really relate to that. I was fine. You know when you open the oven? I can pull things straight out with my hands. My skin’s very resilient. I’m actually able to handle ultra-high temperatures. Metaphorically and literally? Yes, literally. Have you ever had a Pyrrhic victory — a win you’ve not been satisfied by? You know, for the average person, a win is like, “Great, I won. I’m so happy.” For me, that’s the norm. When you’re at that level, it’s hard to be satisfied. My standard is extremely high. My bar is so high that the standards have to be extended to reach it. Kids look up to you guys like gods. Do you feel a responsibility there? Yes and no. Yes, because, like you said, pretty much every kid in the world wants to be me. But I say no in the sense that I just need to exist, and that’s enough really, isn’t it? Even just looking at me, that’s probably very inspirational for the average person. Do kids approach you in the street — and if so, what do they say? Yeah, on a regular basis. They normally say things like, “Wow, Legend, you’re the best Gladiator ever!” “Legend, how did you get so good?” “Legend, why are you so much better than the others?” “Legend, do you find it awkward that you’re so much better than the others?” “Legend, how can I be more like you?” That’s the general chat. And what do you say? “Don’t touch me. Leave me alone.” If, like Cassandra, you could see the future, what could we expect from the new series of Gladiators? I’m in it. I think that’s all you really need. If you’re looking for a headline: “Gladiators series three – Legend’s in it.” I think that would probably suffice. Charlotte, 8, asks… Why are you such a doughnut? I feel like Charlotte’s been heavily influenced by an adult to ask that question. Probably a jealous, bitter adult who looks at me like I am some kind of unattainable god and has then encouraged their child to refer to me as a doughnut. I am not a doughnut. I like doughnuts, but I’m not one myself. I’m actually an extremely gifted human who is good at everything. FIRE aka Montell Douglas, 39 What’s the biggest myth about being a Gladiator? For me, it’s that our strength is mostly physical. I think the biggest strength that we have is our mental strength and our heart. Being a Gladiator is about your strength of heart, not the physicality. When your legend is written, how would you like to be remembered? Honestly, I’d like to be remembered not for what I’ve done, but how I’ve made people feel. I’m fierce, fun, but fair on the show. And I think that is me in real life. What is your Achilles’ heel? Empathy! I think that holds me back, because I’m a big softie. I’ve got a big, warm heart, that can be my downfall, because I respect the contenders and their craft, so sometimes I just feel sorry for them. Have you ever suffered a Pyrrhic victory? When you’re in the Gladiator arena, we always say that it’s like David versus Goliath, but actually I want everyone to bring 100 per cent, because I’m going to bring 100 per cent. I don’t ever want to win if someone’s not feeling great. Kids look up to you like gods. Do you feel that’s a responsibility? Absolutely a responsibility, and absolutely a privilege. I think that it’s an honour to be considered a role model in anything. Weirdly, the reactions of kids was almost an afterthought, even though it’s a very nostalgic and iconic show that we watched growing up. Do you meet a lot of young fans? It’s my favourite thing, meeting and connecting with those that love the show. I call my fans my Flames. It doesn’t matter if they’re boys or girls, they come up in full costume. Recently, we had a little girl whose parent told us that she’d taken up athletics because of me. Apparently she said, “I want to be fast like Fire. Get me down to the athletics track.” Which is incredible, because it’s access to new sports that she might have never tried. Chloe, 5, asks… Why did you choose the name Fire? Oh, Chloe! I say it’s Fire because obviously it’s hot, and it burns brightly. But more importantly, fire is unpredictable. I’d say I’m a bit of an all-rounder where I’m fast, and you don’t really realise how much power I have. And being an element, it just says that you’re one of the core energy sources that we have in this world. I’m just very happy to be Fire. STEEL aka Zack George, 35 What’s the biggest myth about being a Gladiator? People assume we’ve always been extremely fit and super-motivated. But I, personally, was very different as a child. I didn’t eat healthy foods. I didn’t do any exercise. I didn’t have any confidence. And now I’m a Gladiator! Like Icarus, have you ever flown too close to the sun? When I won the UK’s Fittest Man [in 2020]. I was about two weeks into the five-week competition, and I was thinking, “This has consumed my whole life.” I’d train for four or five hours a day and have no social life. You have to sacrifice so, so much. I was thinking, “Is it all going to be worth it?” But I said, “No, you’re going to win this.” And I did. What is your Achilles’ heel? I played a lot of rugby growing up, and I probably injured my ankle around 20 to 30 times. So for me, my Achilles’ heel would be my left ankle. Almost a literal Achilles’ heel! What’s the hardest part of being a Gladiator? I sometimes find it hard when they think that my Mr Nice Guy personality is going to spill into the games. When that whistle blows, I’m there to win. Kids look up to you. Does that give you pause for thought? Hugely, yeah, because we are like real-life superheroes, and the joy on the kids’ and adults’ faces when they come to watch the show… they’re in awe. I’m a father, and as a child if your parent says, “Eat some healthy food” or “Do a bit of exercise”, it’s like, “Ugh, whatever.” But when a Gladiator says it, it genuinely sinks in. You seem particularly passionate about this… That’s my main role as Steel. I want to prove to the millions of children – and adults – that anything is possible. I like to show children what I was like when I was younger. And you can see that it blows their minds. What are your predictions for the new series? The contenders have come back bigger, faster, stronger – which obviously doesn’t bother us, because we are bigger and faster and stronger. But we could tell this time they’d been watching and studying the games. There was a big difference in their strategy. Penny, 5, asks... How is Steel so steel? I love that. I always get asked that. It’s like, “How much of your body is actually steel?” I train twice a day, six days a week and I’ve done that for about 10 years. I have six meals a day, about 4,500 calories. I do running, swimming, cycling, rowing, weightlifting, squats, bench-press and gymnastics. It’s varied! FURY aka Jodie Ounsley, 25 What’s the biggest myth about being a Gladiator? I think the biggest myth is thinking we’re not human. We are human, but we are also our Gladiator. It’s nice that we can combine the two. What is the hardest part of the job? The most Herculean task? Probably seeing your friends or yourself getting injured. But you know that’s the risk of playing a tough sport, or doing a TV show. Everyone gets tweaks and niggles – contenders and Gladiators. It’s about how you adapt and crack on with it. Have you ever had a Pyrrhic victory on the show — where your win felt tainted? If it’s over really quickly after going through all that prep of psyching yourself up. For example, if it’s a game of Duel, you’re getting in the zone, you’re ready to get into a fight. And then it lasts like two seconds. And you think, “Oh, all for that?” Kids look up to the Gladiators like they’re gods. Do you feel that responsibility? If my younger self had someone to look up to that I could really relate to, and think, “I want to be like that person” – that would have been so cool. We have the privilege to be that for someone else. As a deaf person with a cochlear implant, did you think about how that might inspire children with similar disabilities? I was a bit nervous because I didn’t really know what to expect going into an environment with TV and production, and being honest with my deafness. I do struggle in certain areas, so I have to be open about that. But they were all just amazing. And I really grasped how big it could be, especially on TV, for kids being able to see that. It’s so cool that I can normalise it for kids who have no idea about deafness, but by seeing us on Gladiators they might have a bit more of an understanding of it. Evan, 6, asks… Which of the other Gladiators are you the most afraid of? I’d say Cyclone. When you see her real personality, she’s so lovely and so kind to be around and she has a great energy. But I would not cross her, that’s for sure. She is the strongest, most physical woman I’ve ever seen. Even out of my whole rugby career – she’s just another level.
Last One Laughing UK season 2 cast members tease new episodes as Bob Mortimer talks return
"The moment I walked in, I thought, 'No, this is just different.'"
This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine. An entertainment hit on a streaming platform is something of a rarity. Stranger still when it’s a show stuffed with comedians where a mark of success is not laughing. But that’s what you get with Amazon Prime Video’s Last One Laughing UK, which sees some of the country’s best stand-ups locked in a room together, trying to “break” each other into fits of guffaws without cracking a smile themselves. Now, after the huge success of the first run in 2025, the show’s back this spring. “It’s exactly the same as series one, except for every single moment,” host Jimmy Carr tells RT. “It’s different comedians. A different level of competition. It’s basically comedy if it was a sport.” One of the new crop of contestants is former Bake Off host Mel Giedroyc. “I think there are pros and cons of doing a second series of something like this, because the first series was so brilliant and joyous and free,” she says. “Whereas when you’ve seen the first series, you go in with different levels of pressure, and expectation.” “It was more competitive this time,” agrees Carr. “They had gameplay in place. They had game faces. They knew what they were doing this time.” “Which isn’t to say that we didn’t also have a brilliant time!” Giedroyc adds. “We had an amazing gang. I mean, stellar.” Said gang features a mix of well-known and up-and-coming comics, including David Mitchell, Romesh Ranganathan, Amy Gledhill, Diane Morgan, Maisie Adam, Gbemisola Ikumelo, Sam Campbell and recent Celebrity Traitors champ Alan Carr, hoping he can keep the giggles under control this time. Plus, one more familiar face – Would I Lie to You? favourite and series one winner Bob Mortimer is back to defend his crown. “I didn’t expect to come back, but was delighted to be asked, because it’s an experience that you can never re-create,” says Mortimer. “It’s interesting – the moment I walked in, I thought, ‘No, this is just different. It’s an entirely different dynamic.’ So I didn’t feel I had any advantage.” View Green Video on the source website The latest issue of Radio Times is out now – subscribe here. Last One Laughing UK streams on Prime Video. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
10 best entertainment shows to watch in 2026 - from Gladiators to The Claudia Winkleman Show
Who says shiny-floor TV is dead? Looking at the schedules for 2026, the entertainment genre is in rude health, kicking off strong this month with Claudia et al in the Traitors’ castle, before handing off to a host of other shows throughout the year. Whether you’re interested in a Gladiatorial contest, a laughter lesson, a bit of celeb chat, nosy neighbours or ‘summit’ completely different (with thanks to Ben Shephard), there’s really something for everyone in the UK’s unscripted TV offering this year. Here are 10 of our top picks for the reality and entertainment shows heading to the small screen this year – and remember, this is just the beginning. Time to set a few reminders... 10 best entertainment shows to watch in 2026 - from Gladiators to The Claudia Winkleman Show 1. Gladiators – coming to BBC One from Saturday 17th January Do you feel the power... of the Gladiator? The BBC’s hugely successful reboot has pugil stick-battered its way to this third series, which looks set to be as popular with families as the first two. All your favourite musclebound lads and lasses are back – including the injured ‘glads’ benched last series – alongside some new games, including one revived from the original series. Bradley and Barney Walsh are back on hosting duties. 2. Michael McIntyre’s Big Show – coming to BBC One from Saturday 17th January McIntyre’s back, taking the Michael with his revolving set of formats, from Send to All and the Unexpected Star of the show to The Midnight Gameshow, which this series includes Jonathan Ross and Joe Marler – one of whom will get a Traitors-inspired twist to their nighttime quizzing. Plus, expect more pranks and surprises for the theatre audience, including a new segment simply titled ‘Big Surprise’… 3. Mock the Week – coming to TLC from 1st February Return of the Mock! Just over three years after it was canned by the BBC, digital channel TLC has risen the topical panel show from beyond the grave. While longtime host Dara O Briain is back in charge and some familiar guests from the old show are confirmed to appear across the series (including Hugh Dennis, Ed Byrne and Sara Pascoe) expect some changes too, including a longer runtime (now an hour with adverts) and some fresh rounds alongside the old favourites. 4. The Summit – coming soon to ITV1 The pressure is Mountain for the 14 strangers attempting this reality show, which has them competing to scale an 8,500ft peak in the New Zealand wilderness for a chance at a £200,000 cash prize. This Morning’s, Ben Shephard is on hosting duties as these social climbers face challenges, team up and betray each other on their way to the top. 5. Last One Laughing – coming soon to Prime Video That rare meeting of comedians where the winning move is not to laugh returns. Last year, Bob Mortimer’s poker face saw off all competitors – but with a new crop of stand-ups now taking him on, can he stifle his chuckles? Jimmy Carr and Roisin Conaty return as hosts, with while the contestants are Mortimer, David Mitchell, Mel Giedroyc, Alan Carr, Romesh Ranganathan, Amy Gledhill, Maisie Adam, Gbemisola Ikumelo, Sam Campbell, and Diane Morgan. 6. The Claudia Winkleman Show – coming to BBC One this spring With her ballroom days behind her and fresh from the Traitors' castle, Claudia’s next challenge will be channelling her ‘Clauditorium’ Strictly debrief skills into celeb sofa chats. Kicking off in spring, the series – made by Graham Norton’s So Television production company – is expected to fill the gaps while The Graham Norton Show is off-air. 7. The Neighbourhood – coming this year to ITV1 and ITVX Speaking of Norton, he’s set to front his own display of social gameplay and betrayal. In ITV’s 12-part series, coming this year, real-life families and households will move into a specially-built street and take each other on in various challenges and contests, defeating their neighbours while trying to remain popular – and then voting each other out. 8. The Box – coming this year to ITV1 and ITVX Used to being boxed in – whether by other players or BBC bosses – Gary Lineker is presumably the perfect host for this remake of a Norwegian series. Each episode, celeb contestants are packed up into yellow boxes and sent off to find themselves in different locations and unusual challenges. The first crop of contestants includes Ellie Taylor, John Bercow, Ranvir Singh and Sara Davies. 9. Saturday Night Live UK – Coming this year to Sky Max and NOW After celebrating its half-century last year, the venerable US sketch show is getting a UK transplant. While longtime SNL boss Lorne Michaels is still executive producing, the writers and cast of the new spin-off will be from the UK, alongside a celebrity host and musical guest each week. Currently, information about those involved is top secret, but expect news soon… 10. Would You Rather: Decide to Survive – Coming this year to Prime Video An entertainment format hosted by Romesh Ranganathan – surely not?? This time, the reliably safe pair of hands chairs a game show where “familiar faces” compete in challenges based on simple ‘would you rather’ decisions. Apparently, their choices will affect everything from what they eat to who is eliminated each episode. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Dara Ó Briain teases new Mock the Week revival format – and why they'll be tackling the current Labour government
The comedian and longtime host discusses who and what to expect from the returning panel show.
This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine. Just over three years after it was cancelled by the BBC, topical panel show Mock the Week is returning soon to free-to-air channel TLC — with a familiar face at the helm. “It was only a couple of months ago that I first heard rumblings,” says comedian and longtime host Dara Ó Briain. “God, it might have been November... I mean, I’m not going, ‘I remember the moment the big red phone in my office rang. It’s the Mock phone, finally…’ But it’s all moved pretty quickly, as befits the show. “Honestly, you can be too precious,” he adds. “I didn’t sit for a long time going, ‘Will this in any way damage the legacy of the show that we’ve left behind?’ It’s just seven people in a room telling jokes.” Alongside Ó Briain, rotating guests will include Ahir Shah, Angela Barnes, Ed Byrne, Ellie Taylor, Hugh Dennis, Katherine Ryan, Lou Sanders, Rhys James, Russell Howard and Sara Pascoe — though expect more new names alongside the familiar ones. The biggest change comes from the length of episodes, now extended to an hour. “There’s no musical sequence now; there’s no nudity suddenly. I don’t think there’s anything particularly jarring. I just think there’ll be slightly more of it,” Ó Briain says. “But there was always more of it. We did two-and-a-half hours that came down to a BBC half-hour, which was 28 minutes. There will apparently be new rounds. But I don’t think there’s anything that will scare the horses, that will be too drastic a change from us talking. ‘Us talking’ is the mission statement, to be honest.” And what will they be talking about? “The world has got more pantomimic and ludicrous as time has gone by,” he muses. “The biggest change for us is that it’s no longer a Conservative government. People used to say, ‘You always talk about the Tories.’ Yes, because they were the ones doing stuff! Now, it’ll be about Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves. Not because we’re not on the BBC any more – but because they’re the ones in power.” The latest issue of Radio Times is out now - subscribe here Check out more of our interviews or visit our TV guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Gladiators season 3 stars shatter the myths behind being a cast member - and answer child fan questions
Nitro, Sabre, Legend, Fire, Steel and Fury preview the brand new episodes – and answer questions from young fans.
This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine. The BBC’s revamped Gladiators has become a colossus of Saturday-night TV – but are its perfectly formed stars gods, monsters or something in between? With a little help from some young fans, RT poses some very important questions... Nitro aka Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, 37 What’s the biggest myth about being a Gladiator? The biggest myth about being a Gladiator is that you don’t want the contender to do well, because you actually do. Obviously, we’re the strength and the speed and the power. But ultimately they’re the soul of the show, right? What’s your Achilles’ heel? It’s probably The Edge, which is played at a very great height. I’m a very grounded person. If there was one event that I could choose not to do, it would be that one. Kids look up to all of you like gods. How do you handle that? I lean into it. When kids ask me how old I am, I often say, “I’m 1,000 years old, and I’m a demigod. The gifts and skills and talents that I have were bestowed upon me by the gods.” In Grecian times the idea was that, if you went to someone’s temple, that gave the gods strength, right? So, I often tell them, the more noise they make, the stronger I become. They’re my power cells. They fuel me. Do you feel a responsibility to your fans – ie the power cells? I was once a young star who wanted to be a Gladiator. I opted for the Olympics instead – and now I’ve become a Gladiator! I know there are many young fans out there who could now go on to become great athletes or great Gladiators themselves. When I go climbing, people say, “We can’t believe you’re here... we told our daughter or our son, ‘Try and climb the wall like Nitro’ to get them here.” I’m not a speed-climber. I won’t get an Olympic medal in that, but it’s made kids go and climb. We might have the next speed-climbing champion because of Gladiators, which is amazing. The biggest mistake I ever make is trying to take my daughter to soft play. If I try and take her to a trampoline park, I can’t look after her, because I’m in front of our target audience, doing the most gladiatorial stuff. I’m inundated! When your Gladiators legend is written, how do you hope to be remembered? Hercules was the first person I played in a play, in year three. And I was obsessed with being a demigod, being able to fly, having super-strength, having super-speed like Hermes. I’d want my legacy to be like the fables of Hercules – this person ran as fast as he could against the world’s best, championing his country. Having done both, which is more competitive, Gladiators or Strictly Come Dancing? I would say Gladiators is far more competitive, because there’s an actual gamesmanship around it. You can’t compare your rumba to someone else’s Argentine tango on the day.But what I would say is that Strictly can dress you down. You have to be strong. You have to be able to take the feedback. If you make a mistake, it can feel like the worst thing in the world. So there’s more of a mental aspect to understanding the process, and having to stay true to yourself through it. If you could see into the future, like Cassandra, what might you reveal about the new series of Gladiators? Nitro’s back, which is the most amazing thing for myself. I think maybe the last series of Gladiators was a little meaner without me around. I’m here to bring back that essence of entertainment and fun. We haven’t seen Nitro in battle since 2024. So, 2026 is the Year of the Nitro – let’s call it! Jake, 7, asks… What’s your favourite dinner? What you need to know about Nitro is that Nitro is a great chef. But my good-luck meal is a pizza. I will have one every week before a big arena day. I make good pizzas – my favourite is pepperoni with mozzarella with spicy pepperoni and nduja on top, perhaps with some hot honey on there as well. Delicious! Sabre aka Sheli McCoy, 37 What’s the biggest myth about being a Gladiator? That we’re mean. People assume that we are there to be baddies, to crush contenders. And that’s an absolute myth because, really, our job is to get the best out of every single contender. I will only push someone as far as they can go, to give me 100 per cent of what they have. I will never give them more than they can take. What is the hardest part of the job? The most Herculean task? Not the physical element. That’s easy. It’s the persona and the expectations that come with it: trying to balance being the world’s strongest, most capable humans while also trying to be relatable to everyone we want to inspire. What’s your Achilles’ heel? I don’t really have one. As Sabre, I am formidable in every aspect. There’s nothing that you could give me that I can’t do. That said, have you ever had a tainted, Pyrrhic victory? Loads of times. Do you remember Nia on The Edge [in series one]? My job was to take her down, but she was crying her eyes out. That doesn’t feel like a good win; it feels like a necessary win. Like Icarus, have you ever flown too close to the sun? That is my MO. That’s what I do. I wake up and think: how could I push the limit today to potentially burn out here? So, yes, I have, multiple times, because that’s how we learn. And I don’t think you’ll ever know your true potential until you overstep that potential. I co-own a gym. It’s 6,500 square feet with a full gym, a weightlifting club, a HYROX affiliate, seven staff, a new recovery room. I’ve got my clinic still open [McCoy is also a sports rehabilitation therapist]; Gladiators is on air; I’m chatting to you. Loads of people would have thought that was impossible to do. Kids look up to you like you’re a god. That’s quite a responsibility... It’s a privilege. Yeah, it’s a responsibility, because if we’re not doing it for them, who are we doing it for? Kids have sold their souls to us. They’ve got us on repeat in their living room. And now their birthdays are Gladiators-themed, and they’re having custom costumes made… I’ve got about 130 beaded, hand-made bracelets from kids. My brother lives in Dubai, and his children, my niece and nephew and all of their friends, have Gladiators watch parties at my brother’s house. Series one had 90 million global downloads. When your legend is written, how do you hope to be remembered? Today is the anniversary of my dad’s death. He died 33 years ago. And if today was my last day, I think I would feel proud that I’ve made a difference. There have been so many mothers and fathers who have told me stories of their children overcoming body-confidence issues, sports issues, health issues, eating disorders, due to the presence of Gladiators in their life. If you could tell us the future, what can we expect from the new series? I am the most excited about this series coming out, because not only are there new games, but they’re bringing back a classic. When they told us about them, I was like, “You want us to what? Is that safe?” Nathalie, 10, and Cami, 6, ask… What has been your favourite audience sign? “Sabre, will you marry my dad?” There’s honestly 50 of them an episode. They’ve made their kids sit down and make those signs... Although I know that the other day Apollo had a sign sent into the dressing room for him with a woman’s telephone number and Instagram handle on it! Legend aka Matt Morsia, 40 What’s the biggest myth about being a Gladiator? The biggest myth is that Gladiators is a collective, and it’s all about everyone doing their own bit when in reality they’re just a support crew for Legend When your legend is written, how do you hope you’ll be remembered? I don’t “hope”. I’m wholly confident that I’ll be remembered as the greatest Gladiator of all time. Do you have an Achilles’ heel? Probably that I’m too good. It’s awkward when you’re good at all of the games, because, firstly, it’s difficult to programme that logistically. But also, you attract a lot of envy from others. I imagine there was a similar situation for Muhammad Ali and Martin Luther King. When you’re at the top of your game, there are a lot of eyes on you. What’s the hardest part of being a Gladiator? I would say it is just managing the fans. For me, more so than the others. I’m having to fight my way into the arena. They’ll get me there eight hours early deliberately, and there’s still thousands of people queuing up, throwing themselves at my feet. Like Icarus, have you ever flown too close to the sun? I’ve been to the sun and it was fine. I can’t really relate to that. I was fine. You know when you open the oven? I can pull things straight out with my hands. My skin’s very resilient. I’m actually able to handle ultra-high temperatures. Metaphorically and literally? Yes, literally. Have you ever had a Pyrrhic victory – a win you’ve not been satisfied by? You know, for the average person, a win is like, “Great, I won. I’m so happy.” For me, that’s the norm. When you’re at that level, it’s hard to be satisfied. My standard is extremely high. My bar is so high that the standards have to be extended to reach it. Kids look up to you guys like gods. Do you feel a responsibility there? Yes and no. Yes, because, like you said, pretty much every kid in the world wants to be me. But I say no in the sense that I just need to exist, and that’s enough really, isn’t it? Even just looking at me, that’s probably very inspirational for the average person. Do kids approach you in the street – and if so, what do they say? Yeah, on a regular basis. They normally say things like, “Wow, Legend, you’re the best Gladiator ever!” “Legend, how did you get so good?” “Legend, why are you so much better than the others?” “Legend, do you find it awkward that you’re so much better than the others?” “Legend, how can I be more like you?” That’s the general chat. And what do you say? “Don’t touch me. Leave me alone.” If, like Cassandra, you could see the future, what could we expect from the new series of Gladiators? I’m in it. I think that’s all you really need. If you’re looking for a headline: “Gladiators series three – Legend’s in it.” I think that would probably suffice. Charlotte, 8, asks… Why are you such a doughnut? I feel like Charlotte’s been heavily influenced by an adult to ask that question. Probably a jealous, bitter adult who looks at me like I am some kind of unattainable god and has then encouraged their child to refer to me as a doughnut. I am not a doughnut. I like doughnuts, but I’m not one myself. I’m actually an extremely gifted human who is good at everything. Fire aka Montell Douglas, 39 What’s the biggest myth about being a Gladiator? For me, it’s that our strength is mostly physical. I think the biggest strength that we have is our mental strength and our heart. Being a Gladiator is about your strength of heart, not the physicality. When your legend is written, how would you like to be remembered? Honestly, I’d like to be remembered not for what I’ve done, but how I’ve made people feel. I’m fierce, fun, but fair on the show. And I think that is me in real life. What is your Achilles’ heel? Empathy! I think that holds me back, because I’m a big softie. I’ve got a big, warm heart, that can be my downfall, because I respect the contenders and their craft, so sometimes I just feel sorry for them. Have you ever suffered a Pyrrhic victory? When you’re in the Gladiator arena, we always say that it’s like David versus Goliath, but actually I want everyone to bring 100 per cent, because I’m going to bring 100 per cent. I don’t ever want to win if someone’s not feeling great. Kids look up to you like gods. Do you feel that’s a responsibility? Absolutely a responsibility, and absolutely a privilege. I think that it’s an honour to be considered a role model in anything. Weirdly, the reactions of kids was almost an afterthought, even though it’s a very nostalgic and iconic show that we watched growing up. Do you meet a lot of young fans? It’s my favourite thing, meeting and connecting with those that love the show. I call my fans my Flames. It doesn’t matter if they’re boys or girls, they come up in full costume. Recently, we had a little girl whose parent told us that she’d taken up athletics because of me. Apparently she said, “I want to be fast like Fire. Get me down to the athletics track.” Which is incredible, because it’s access to new sports that she might have never tried. Chloe, 5, asks… Why did you choose the name Fire? Oh, Chloe! I say it’s Fire because obviously it’s hot, and it burns brightly. But more importantly, fire is unpredictable. I’d say I’m a bit of an all-rounder where I’m fast, and you don’t really realise how much power I have. And being an element, it just says that you’re one of the core energy sources that we have in this world. I’m just very happy to be Fire. Steel aka Zack George, 35 What’s the biggest myth about being a Gladiator? People assume we’ve always been extremely fit and super-motivated. But I, personally, was very different as a child. I didn’t eat healthy foods. I didn’t do any exercise. I didn’t have any confidence. And now I’m a Gladiator! Like Icarus, have you ever flown too close to the sun? When I won the UK’s Fittest Man [in 2020]. I was about two weeks into the five-week competition, and I was thinking, “This has consumed my whole life.” I’d train for four or five hours a day and have no social life. You have to sacrifice so, so much. I was thinking, “Is it all going to be worth it?” But I said, “No, you’re going to win this.” And I did. What is your Achilles’ heel? I played a lot of rugby growing up, and I probably injured my ankle around 20 to 30 times. So for me, my Achilles’ heel would be my left ankle. Almost a literal Achilles’ heel! What’s the hardest part of being a Gladiator? I sometimes find it hard when they think that my Mr Nice Guy personality is going to spill into the games. When that whistle blows, I’m there to win. Kids look up to you. Does that give you pause for thought? Hugely, yeah, because we are like real-life superheroes, and the joy on the kids’ and adults’ faces when they come to watch the show… they’re in awe. I’m a father, and as a child if your parent says, “Eat some healthy food” or “Do a bit of exercise”, it’s like, “Ugh, whatever.” But when a Gladiator says it, it genuinely sinks in. You seem particularly passionate about this… That’s my main role as Steel. I want to prove to the millions of children – and adults – that anything is possible. I like to show children what I was like when I was younger. And you can see that it blows their minds. What are your predictions for the new series? The contenders have come back bigger, faster, stronger – which obviously doesn’t bother us, because we are bigger and faster and stronger. But we could tell this time they’d been watching and studying the games. There was a big difference in their strategy. Penny, 5, asks... How is Steel so steel? I love that. I always get asked that. It’s like, “How much of your body is actually steel?” I train twice a day, six days a week and I’ve done that for about 10 years. I have six meals a day, about 4,500 calories. I do running, swimming, cycling, rowing, weightlifting, squats, bench-press and gymnastics. It’s varied! Fury aka Jodie Ounsley, 25 What’s the biggest myth about being a Gladiator? I think the biggest myth is thinking we’re not human. We are human, but we are also our Gladiator. It’s nice that we can combine the two. What is the hardest part of the job? The most Herculean task? Probably seeing your friends or yourself getting injured. But you know that’s the risk of playing a tough sport, or doing a TV show. Everyone gets tweaks and niggles – contenders and Gladiators. It’s about how you adapt and crack on with it. Have you ever had a Pyrrhic victory on the show — where your win felt tainted? If it’s over really quickly after going through all that prep of psyching yourself up. For example, if it’s a game of Duel, you’re getting in the zone, you’re ready to get into a fight. And then it lasts like two seconds. And you think, “Oh, all for that?” Kids look up to the Gladiators like they’re gods. Do you feel that responsibility? If my younger self had someone to look up to that I could really relate to, and think, “I want to be like that person” – that would have been so cool. We have the privilege to be that for someone else. As a deaf person with a cochlear implant, did you think about how that might inspire children with similar disabilities? I was a bit nervous because I didn’t really know what to expect going into an environment with TV and production, and being honest with my deafness. I do struggle in certain areas, so I have to be open about that. But they were all just amazing. And I really grasped how big it could be, especially on TV, for kids being able to see that. It’s so cool that I can normalise it for kids who have no idea about deafness, but by seeing us on Gladiators they might have a bit more of an understanding of it. Evan, 6, asks… Which of the other Gladiators are you the most afraid of? I’d say Cyclone. When you see her real personality, she’s so lovely and so kind to be around and she has a great energy. But I would not cross her, that’s for sure. She is the strongest, most physical woman I’ve ever seen. Even out of my whole rugby career – she’s just another level. The latest issue of Radio Times is out now - subscribe here. Gladiators returns on Saturday 17th January at 5:45pm on BBC One and iPlayer. Check out more of our interviews or visit our TV guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
The actor is proud to promote the Welsh language — even in lands far, far away
Add Dal y Mellt to your watchlist What’s the view from your sofa? Well, the TV is on a table. It’s not gigantic-silly, but it’s quite a decent size. We have a large sofa, so my wife will sit there and I’ve got four sons, so if any of them are with us with their girlfriends, they will also sit on this incredibly long sofa. And I sit on the chair. Who controls the remote at home? Me – if somebody else has it, it makes me a little bit twitchy. What have you enjoyed watching recently? We watch a lot of “murder things”: Into the Fire: The Lost Daughter, Mindhunter, American Nightmare. And Adolescence – the single-shot thing was extraordinary, but I kind of forgot about that, because I was so taken in by the acting. You’re one of the busiest actors around — especially in Welsh TV. How do you choose your roles? It’s what feels right in the moment. I’m not in the position of being able to pick and choose much. If it’s not a lead part, I’m happy to do a well-crafted cameo in one episode only. It’s stuff like Baby Reindeer and The Crown where you get an opportunity to make an impact. Star Wars [Jones played Captain Canady in The Last Jedi] was exactly that. You also had the first Welsh accent in Star Wars… I wasn’t told to do any other accent, so I thought, “Well, there’s no point me putting on an accent. What for?” You’re now back for the second series of Dal y Mellt, the Welsh-language crime drama. What can we expect? It’s a group of people who work out a plan to do a heist, and then over the next six hours, we get the backstory of the heist, and why they’re doing it. The response was fantastic to the first series. I do a lot of “back-to-back” series in both Welsh and English, but it feels special that this is just in Welsh. After the S4C and BBC airing it, it went onto Netflix titled Rough Cut – the first Welsh-language-speaking series on there. Was that a big deal? It’s fantastic. A lot of the big Oscar films from South Korea and all the Nordic noir stuff means that people have become comfortable with subtitles. The character I played in The Crown spoke Welsh with his wife, and it was a real move forward. It opened a lot of people’s minds. If you look at the listings of those episodes in that series, the one I’m in is called Tywysog Cymru. They don’t translate it. That means Prince of Wales. You’ve also represented Wales at the Oscars… There have been two Oscar-nominated Welsh-speaking films in the foreign language section, and I was in one of them, Solomon & Gaenor. To be there representing a Welsh-language film, and to do the foreign film circuit running up to the ceremony – it was wonderful. How do “back-to-back” series work? The same show is filmed in Welsh and English, scene by scene. You see it in Keeping Faith/Un Bore Mercher, The Light in the Hall/Y Golau, Hinterland/Y Gwyll… you’ve got to learn it twice, basically. You do it shot by shot, not scene by scene, so you have to keep changing from one to another. It sounds like a challenge! But it works. And in these times of tightened budgets, without it, we’d probably have a lot fewer Welsh series. There’s more Welsh drama than ever. Is there a Welsh renaissance? I hope so. People are much more aware now of the Welsh language because of things like Dal y Mellt. The aim is to have a million Welsh speakers by 2050. I just think doing more through the arts really helps.
Alex Kingston and Johannes Radebe on their friendship, age gaps and Christmas plans
The final of Strictly Come Dancing is on Saturday 20 Dec at 7.00pm on BBC One. Add it to your watchlist At 62, actor Alex Kingston is only three years younger than the mother of her Strictly Come Dancing partner, 38-year-old professional Johannes Radebe. But in this partnership, she was the one learning from him. Over the past few months, they went from tentative first steps to earning standing ovations. And now, despite their Strictly journey ending, they vow they’ll stay on the dance floor one way or another… Alex, what was it like learning from someone younger? Alex Oh my gosh, I can’t imagine anyone else being my dance partner. The problem is, now my Strictly journey has come to an end, I will have to carry on dancing and I don’t know who will ever come close to Johannes. Johannes Oh my goodness, we’ll have to book some lessons. I’ve always said that partnerships are special because they grow, and that I always teach like a marriage – even though I have never been married. Alex And I’ve been married three times! Did you have a mentor or someone you looked up to earlier in your careers? Johannes As a boy, there was an Australian dancer I watched from a distance from my township in South Africa. His name is Jason Gilkison. I modelled my career on his, and now I am in the same room as him – he’s the creative director of Strictly Come Dancing. It’s an honour to work with him. Nowadays, I go back home to South Africa and run workshops teaching kids to dance. That’s my way of giving back. Alex My English teacher saw that I wasn’t academic in the sciences, but she made sure I had an opportunity to begin acting, devising plays where I was the lead. Her name was Margaret Kirk. She’s no longer with us, but I’m forever thankful to her. Are you looking forward to the final, where every Strictly couple returns for a reunion? Alex Oh yes, one hundred per cent. Looking at the opening credits of Strictly, seeing all the contestants, you realise how few are left. The first week does seem a long time ago now. It will be really lovely to see all those smiling faces again. Johannes Strictly plus Christmas feels like a warm hug. It’s so dark outside, it’s cold… I know that people are thankful it’s on telly. And finally, what are your post-Strictly Christmas plans? Alex We celebrate two Christmasses – the German Christmas on the 24th and the English Christmas on the 25th. I also participate in our village pub panto. This year, it’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. They asked me to be the mirror on the wall, so that if I was still busy with Strictly, I could just record a voiceover! Johannes After two years of not being home for Christmas, I’m jumping on a flight. It’s summer back home. Normally there’s a big barbecue – the whole family’s in the yard, playing music and dancing. Sounds like heaven to me.
Loved Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery? 6 locked-room mysteries to enjoy next
A list of the essential locked-room mysteries every crime fan should know.
With Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery now streaming on Netflix, here's a list of some of the seminal locked-room mysteries from literature. Some of the titles may even be familiar to viewers of the new movie, with a certain reading list playing a key part in Benoit Blanc's investigations... 1. The Hollow Man by John Dickson Carr A key influence on Wake Up Dead Man came from this 1935 novel by American author John Dickson Carr. Today, it’s renowned for both the ingenuity of its central locked-room mystery – whereby a murderous visitor seemingly disappears into thin air – and a fourth-wall-stretching speech by sleuth Dr Gideon Fell, who lays out the various methods often used by writers to explain such “impossible crimes”. Can I watch it? Unlike others on the list below, there are no major adaptations of this work outside of a few radio dramas – perhaps re-creating Carr’s solution is an impossible task in and of itself. 2. The Adventure of the Speckled Band by Arthur Conan Doyle Holmes and Watson tackle a fiendish criminal in this eerie 1892 short story, about a young woman who dies alone in her locked room a few days after hearing a low whistle. Soon, her surviving sister hears the same noise and understandably believes her time is up. But what could a house full of animals, an unconnected bell cord and a saucer of milk have to do with either murder attempt? Can I watch it? The Speckled Band features as an episode of the classic adaptation Sherlock Holmes, starring Jeremy Brett as Holmes, and is available to stream on ITVX. View Green Video on the source website 3. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie The Queen of Crime didn’t often go in for “classic” locked-room murder mysteries of the sort laid out by Dickson Carr. Still, this influential 1926 novel does provide what could be considered the Christie take on the idea, when the titular wealthy landowner apparently perishes just moments after being left alone in his study. Can I watch it? The obligatory ITV adaptation starring David Suchet’s Poirot perhaps doesn’t quite do the story justice, due to a missing key ingredient from the written version – but for a better onscreen locked-room Poirot, try Hercule Poirot’s Christmas, broadcast in 1994. Both are episodes of Agatha Christie’s Poirot, available on ITVX. 4 Have His Carcase by Dorothy L Sayers Dorothy L Sayers’ 1932 work stars her regular sleuths Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane, the latter of whom stumbles on a body while out hiking. With the victim found dead on a sandy beach with no footsteps nearby, his blood still warm, it appears a clear suicide – but there’s more to this crime than meets the eye. Can I watch it? The 1980s TV adaptation of this mystery – a three-part episode of the A Dorothy L Sayers Mystery series starring Harriet Walter and Edward Petherbridge – is available now on YouTube. A 1981 radio adaptation starring Ian Carmichael and Maria Aitken also returned to BBC Radio 4 (and BBC Sounds) this month. 5. The Murders in the Rue Morgue by Edgar Allan Poe Poe’s short story was published in 1841 and has been described as the “first modern detective story”. Certainly, it’s one of the earliest locked-room mysteries, exploring a baffling double murder in a fourth-floor room that was locked from the inside. The only clues as to how a mother and daughter were brutally killed are a bloody razor, some tufts of grey hair and two bags of gold coins... Can I watch it? Several adaptations of the story have been attempted. A 1971 version by director Gordon Hessler – which takes a number of liberties with the story – is available on Amazon Prime Video, where you can also rent a 1932 adaptation starring Bela Lugosi. Most recently, a very loose version of the story was included in episode three of Netflix’s The Fall of the House of Usher. 6. The Mystery of the Yellow Room by Gaston Leroux The prototypical locked-room/impossible crime story comes from French author Leroux, published in his 1908 novel (serialised a year earlier). Providing the reader with precise diagrams and floorplans, Leroux invites us to also try and solve the mystery of how a criminal disappeared from a sealed yellow room — and how he then repeated the trick twice more. Can I watch it? Despite adaptations in 1913, 1919, 1930, 1947, 1949, 1965 and 2003, it’s hard to track down a version of it. However, a BBC radio adaptation is available online for free on the Internet Archive, and the story also inspired an episode of Jonathan Creek in 2014 — The Letters of Septimus Noone (available on iPlayer). Read our guide to the best Christmas TV for 2025 The latest issue of Radio Times is out now – subscribe here. Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is available now on Netflix. Sign up for Netflix from £5.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream. Check out more of our Film coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Doctor Who favourite Alex Kingston and Johannes Radebe spill on Strictly journey and finale return
From first steps to standing ovations: Alex Kingston and Johannes Radebe reflect on dancing, friendship, and their post-Strictly Christmas plans.
This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine. At 62, actor Alex Kingston is only three years younger than the mother of her Strictly Come Dancing partner, 38-year-old professional Johannes Radebe. But in this partnership, she was the one learning from him. Over the past few months, they went from tentative first steps to earning standing ovations. And now, despite their Strictly journey ending, they vow they’ll stay on the dance floor one way or another… Alex, what was it like learning from someone younger? ALEX: Oh my gosh, I can’t imagine anyone else being my dance partner. The problem is, now my Strictly journey has come to an end, I will have to carry on dancing and I don’t know who will ever come close to Johannes. JOHANNES: Oh my goodness, we’ll have to book some lessons. I’ve always said that partnerships are special because they grow, and that I always teach like a marriage – even though I have never been married. ALEX: And I’ve been married three times! Did you have a mentor or someone you looked up to earlier in your careers? JOHANNES: As a boy, there was an Australian dancer I watched from a distance from my township in South Africa. His name is Jason Gilkison. I modelled my career on his, and now I am in the same room as him – he’s the creative director of Strictly Come Dancing. It’s an honour to work with him. Nowadays, I go back home to South Africa and run workshops teaching kids to dance. That’s my way of giving back. ALEX: My English teacher saw that I wasn’t academic in the sciences, but she made sure I had an opportunity to begin acting, devising plays where I was the lead. Her name was Margaret Kirk. She’s no longer with us, but I’m forever thankful to her. Are you looking forward to the final, where every Strictly couple returns for a reunion? ALEX: Oh yes, one hundred per cent. Looking at the opening credits of Strictly, seeing all the contestants, you realise how few are left. The first week does seem a long time ago now. It will be really lovely to see all those smiling faces again. JOHANNES: Strictly plus Christmas feels like a warm hug. It’s so dark outside, it’s cold… I know that people are thankful it’s on telly. And finally, what are your post-Strictly Christmas plans? ALEX: We celebrate two Christmasses – the German Christmas on the 24th and the English Christmas on the 25th. I also participate in our village pub panto. This year, it’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. They asked me to be the mirror on the wall, so that if I was still busy with Strictly, I could just record a voiceover! JOHANNES:After two years of not being home for Christmas, I’m jumping on a flight. It’s summer back home. Normally there’s a big barbecue – the whole family’s in the yard, playing music and dancing. Sounds like heaven to me. The latest issue of Radio Times is out now – subscribe here. Strictly Come Dancing continues on BBC One and iPlayer. Add Strictly Come Dancing to your watchlist on the Radio Times: What to Watch app – download now for daily TV recommendations, features and more. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Gugu Mbatha-Raw felt liberated by her transformation
Add The War Between the Land and Sea to your watchlist The Sea Devils have been around in Doctor Who since the 1970s. Were you aware of them? I have to confess, I wasn’t around in the 70s! And I didn’t do a deep-dive into the Sea Devils’ mythology. For me, it was exciting to start where we are, in the world that Russell T Davies has created with the show. For fans of Doctor Who, there are so many nuances and layers that they will pick up on. But you don’t have to know all of that background to really invest in the story, which I think is one of its strengths. You’ve been in the Doctor Who world before in 2007. You played Tish Jones, the sister of companion Martha; now you’re fish-woman Salt. What brought you back? I have such fond memories of working on Doctor Who. It was one of my first TV jobs and there was so much buzz around the show. I’ve seen Russell T Davies socially and in passing over the years. When he reached out about this project, I was really, really excited. But I was also kind of curious and a bit trepidatious, knowing that the character is an amphibian, and it’s something very, very different. Yes, as Salt you’re pretty unrecognisable… I’ve never done such a large-scale creature-character. I thought it would be a really interesting acting challenge, physically. Without spoiling too much of the magic, I spent three hours in hair and make-up every morning with Georgia Brown and Samantha Di Giuseppe. It’s quite a surreal experience as an actor, I think, to look in a mirror and almost not recognise yourself. You’re liberated from all the usual tools you have. Suddenly you don’t have curly hair and brown skin. You’re free to create something completely different. You have what you bring: your face, your physicality. Three hours! Wasn’t that exhausting? It was an arduous process, I’m not going to lie. It’s three hours just to do the face, and there’s the layers of glue and paint. Not to mention when you get into the body, the body armour, the scales and the skin. There were so many pieces, I felt a bit like Frankenstein’s monster! Once you’re all made up… who is Salt, exactly? She’s a warrior. She’s a mother. She’s an ambassador, and she has a very regal presence. She’s a fierce protector of her species, and she meets Barclay [Russell Tovey’s character] in this negotiation process to defend the rights of her people who have been under the sea for many years, dormant, until now. It’s a bit of a parable for climate change — has it made you think about your own habits? Oh my gosh, I know. Here I am, just drinking a glass of water, right? There is a whole sequence about a polluted glass of water in the show. There’s a plastic apocalypse in one episode. Now, every time I see a river or the sea, I do re-evaluate what we’ve done to it, and think about things we take for granted. Russell has done such a beautiful job — and Pete McTighe, the other writer on the show — of illustrating that in a really epic, visceral way that we can understand. Yes, we’re talking about the planet and climate change and the pollution of the oceans. But also, there’s a lot to be said about how we treat other people that we don’t necessarily relate to or think are “one of us”.
The creators and stars of the Netflix hit discuss the dramatic finale and emotional farewells as they take one last trip into the Upside Down
Add Stranger Things to your watchlist Stranger Things has a history of setting and releasing its series during major US holidays, whether that’s series two’s Halloween theme – which featured a deadly pumpkin patch – or the firework-laden 4th of July setting of Stranger Things 3. So, with the final ever episodes of the hit Netflix series airing over the Christmas period, we had to ask the two men who created it – why have you not made a Christmas special? “Like the Star Wars Holiday Special, something like that?” laughs series co-creator Matt Duffer, referencing the infamously awful 1978 straight-to-TV spin-off. “Sadly, there is no Stranger Things Holiday Special. When we were working on it, we didn’t know exactly what the release date was.” Still, that doesn’t mean it’s completely divorced from the festive season. The Duffers have cited Yuletide classic Home Alone as a key influence on this final series – particularly its homespun traps – and lest we forget, one of the key images of the show has always been ominously flickering Christmas lights… “And we do like the idea of releasing it on Christmas,” adds Matt. “Just because we’re film guys and big films were often released at Christmas. We like the idea of people watching it together. So instead of just sitting there by yourself watching on a phone, perhaps it encourages people to sit down as a family or with a group of friends.” Following a cliffhanger episode four released in late November, three more episodes will be released on Boxing Day, while the finale – so secret even the actors aren’t allowed to see it beforehand – drops on New Year’s Eve. The final battle for Hawkins between Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) and Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) will also be shown in certain cinemas in America. “It’s really nice that we’re not going to have any super fans rushing ahead and spoiling it,” says Matt’s twin brother and co-creator Ross Duffer. “Everyone can experience that last episode at the same time.” “Filming the ending was very emotional,” Matt continues. “We made it so everybody’s final scene in the show was their final day on the set. Each of those days was really hard, but I would argue it was harder for me and Ross, because we had to experience it many, many times for everybody’s final day!” Certainly, emotions ran high for the series’ original trio. For Finn Wolfhard, Gaten Matarazzo and Caleb McLaughlin – who play nerds-turned-heroes Mike, Dustin and Lucas – these final episodes marked the end of their childhoods. Now in their 20s, they were only 13 or 14 when the series began in 2016. “I’ve been on the show for almost half my life,” says McLaughlin. “It’s a big part of what I know. It’s moulded me into the actor I am now, the person I am today. It’s my childhood experience. “So saying goodbye is one of those bittersweet moments. It’s hard. But all good things come to an end. I don’t think we would cherish it if it didn’t end.” “I didn’t cry once!” jokes Wolfhard. “I mean, we shot for so long, we shot a year for this series, and then before that, eight years. So it was a long process of figuring out how to process it.” But will the fans be equally as emotional to say goodbye to Mike, Lucas, Dustin, Eleven and the rest? “I hope fans will feel really satisfied,” says Matarazzo. “It’s very special to us, and we’ve heard from a lot of people that it’s special to them. So we can imagine a good amount of tears just because the whole process is wrapping up. “It’s heavy, you know? It’s five seasons. It’s a decade long, something that a lot of people have invested a good amount of time into. It’ll definitely have an impact.”
Stranger Things creators reveal "very emotional" reactions to ending scenes – as stars talk final goodbye
"Saying goodbye is one of those bittersweet moments. It’s hard. But all good things come to an end."
This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine. Stranger Things has a history of setting and releasing its series during major US holidays, whether that’s season 2's Halloween theme – which featured a deadly pumpkin patch – or the firework-laden 4th of July setting of Stranger Things 3. So, with the final ever episodes of the hit Netflix series airing over the Christmas period, we had to ask the two men who created it – why have you not made a Christmas special? “Like the Star Wars Holiday Special, something like that?” laughs series co-creator Matt Duffer, referencing the infamously awful 1978 straight-to-TV spin-off. “Sadly, there is no Stranger Things Holiday Special. When we were working on it, we didn’t know exactly what the release date was.” Still, that doesn’t mean it’s completely divorced from the festive season. The Duffers have cited Yuletide classic Home Alone as a key influence on this final series – particularly its homespun traps – and lest we forget, one of the key images of the show has always been ominously flickering Christmas lights… “And we do like the idea of releasing it on Christmas,” adds Matt. “Just because we’re film guys and big films were often released at Christmas. We like the idea of people watching it together. So instead of just sitting there by yourself watching on a phone, perhaps it encourages people to sit down as a family or with a group of friends.” Following a cliffhanger episode four released in late November, three more episodes will be released on Boxing Day, while the finale – so secret even the actors aren’t allowed to see it beforehand – drops on New Year’s Eve. The final battle for Hawkins between Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) and Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) will also be shown in certain cinemas in America. “It’s really nice that we’re not going to have any super fans rushing ahead and spoiling it,” says Matt’s twin brother and co-creator Ross Duffer. “Everyone can experience that last episode at the same time.” “Filming the ending was very emotional,” Matt continues. “We made it so everybody’s final scene in the show was their final day on the set. Each of those days was really hard, but I would argue it was harder for me and Ross, because we had to experience it many, many times for everybody’s final day!” Certainly, emotions ran high for the series’ original trio. For Finn Wolfhard, Gaten Matarazzo and Caleb McLaughlin – who play nerds-turned-heroes Mike, Dustin and Lucas – these final episodes marked the end of their childhoods. Now in their 20s, they were only 13 or 14 when the series began in 2016. <img src="https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2025/07/StrangerThingsS50011-4747587-e1763381660267.jpg" width="4480" height="2990" alt="Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler, Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas Sinclair, Natalia Dyer as Nancy Wheeler, Joe Keery as Steve Harrington, Charlie Heaton as Jonathan Byers, and Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin Henderson in Stranger Things season 5" title="Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler, Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas Sinclair, Natalia Dyer as Nancy Wheeler, Joe Keery as Steve Harrington, Charlie Heaton as Jonathan Byers, and Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin Henderson in Stranger Things season 5" /> “I’ve been on the show for almost half my life,” says McLaughlin. “It’s a big part of what I know. It’s moulded me into the actor I am now, the person I am today. It’s my childhood experience. “So saying goodbye is one of those bittersweet moments. It’s hard. But all good things come to an end. I don’t think we would cherish it if it didn’t end.” “I didn’t cry once!” jokes Wolfhard. “I mean, we shot for so long, we shot a year for this series, and then before that, eight years. So it was a long process of figuring out how to process it.” But will the fans be equally as emotional to say goodbye to Mike, Lucas, Dustin, Eleven and the rest? “I hope fans will feel really satisfied,” says Matarazzo. “It’s very special to us, and we’ve heard from a lot of people that it’s special to them. So we can imagine a good amount of tears just because the whole process is wrapping up. “It’s heavy, you know? It’s five seasons. It’s a decade long, something that a lot of people have invested a good amount of time into. It’ll definitely have an impact.” The latest issue of Radio Times is out now – subscribe here. Stranger Things 5 premieres on Netflix on Wednesday 26th November. Further episodes follow on Christmas Day and New Year's Eve. Add Stranger Things to your watchlist on the <a id="OWA8b702c45-bee9-94e4-f018-57518e78041b" title="https://www.radiotimes.com/download-the-app/?af_xp=custom&pid=website&c=editorial_content&is_retargeting=true&af_reengagement_window=30d" href="https://www.radiotimes.com/download-the-app/?af_xp=custom&pid=website&c=editorial_content&is_retargeting=true&af_reengagement_window=30d" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-outlook-id="449c28d9-909e-4aab-b6b8-153454f55d5e" data-auth="NotApplicable" data-linkindex="0">Radio Times: What to Watch app – download now for daily TV recommendations, features and more. Check out more of our Sci-fi coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Two Doors Down writer reveals Christmas episode with a twist – and why the show returned after co-creator’s death
Creator Gregor Sharp on what makes Two Doors Down's Christmas special so heartwarming and unmissable this festive season.
This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine. What makes the perfect sitcom Christmas special? Having now written five festive outings for his Scottish sitcom Two Doors Down, Gregor Sharp has a few ideas. “The audience is slightly different that time of year,” he tells RT. “Somehow, you’re trying to catch what’s magic about Christmas. The line to tread is emotion and warmth, without mawkishness. You’re also very conscious of repetition. Early on we did one set around a Christmas lunch. It now feels like it would be difficult to find an original angle on that.” So this year, the special isn’t even set in December. It’s late November, and long-suffering neighbourhood hosts Beth and Eric (Arabella Weir and Alex Norton) impulsively decide to put up their tree early. Cue their troublesome neighbours turning up, asking what gives the Bairds the right to “declare it’s Christmas” – and demanding a wee mince pie. “It’s typical of the show,” says Sharp. “It’s those moments that should be harmonious, but there’s a bit of tension as people bring up their expectations around Christmas. “There are certain shows that Christmas specials really work for,” he muses. “I think that Two Doors Down is by accident one of those, just because it’s a very domestic set. You’re not having to bend it.” The new Christmas special will also be a welcome return for a show that, following the unexpected death of co-creator Simon Carlyle in 2023, seemed like it might be gone for good. “In the immediate aftermath of all that, it felt like there was no appetite for it,” Sharp says. “And then, I suppose, time passes, and you go, ‘Well, actually, creatively, there’s more to do there.’ “It’s a real privilege to have a Christmas episode. Whether everyone would want to do more than that, we don’t know yet. It’s over to the audience now.” The latest issue of Radio Times is out now – subscribe here. Two Doors Down returns to BBC One this Christmas. Stream old episodes on iPlayer. Add Two Doors Down to your watchlist on the <a id="OWA8b702c45-bee9-94e4-f018-57518e78041b" title="https://www.radiotimes.com/download-the-app/?af_xp=custom&pid=website&c=editorial_content&is_retargeting=true&af_reengagement_window=30d" href="https://www.radiotimes.com/download-the-app/?af_xp=custom&pid=website&c=editorial_content&is_retargeting=true&af_reengagement_window=30d" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-outlook-id="449c28d9-909e-4aab-b6b8-153454f55d5e" data-auth="NotApplicable" data-linkindex="0">Radio Times: What to Watch app – download now for daily TV recommendations, features and more. Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to see what's on tonight. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
The show’s first script was rejected 20 times. Now, five seasons on, The Duffer Brothers are moving on to even stranger things
Add Stranger Things to your watchlist Over one billion hours streamed of the most recent season; sold-out West End and Broadway shows; 15 million Funko Pop action figures bought by obsessed fans. Stranger Things is, by any metric, a runaway success, a bona fide pop culture phenomenon for under-20s to rival Star Wars or Marvel. One can only imagine the dream team of top writers, big-name stars and slick executives who brainstormed Netflix’s mega-hit into existence. Or perhaps not… “We were all failures. Complete failures,” says Matt Duffer, one half of the twin writer-director duo known as The Duffer Brothers, who created the drama. “Before we made this, we had only experienced heartbreak. We thought it was going to happen again.” From where they’re sitting as we speak, the star attraction at one of Europe’s biggest pop culture conventions in Lucca, Italy, his words seem ridiculous. Attended by 280,000 guests, the festival – which saw the 41-year-old brothers and the cast swamped by hordes of screaming fans – is but a modest first stop on a worldwide press tour for Stranger Things 5, the culmination of their franchise nine years after it began. But back in 2016, it was a different story. The Duffers weren’t sought-after creatives – they were 30-something wannabe film directors whose first projects had stalled. The story of Stranger Things and Will, a young boy who disappears in the 1980s while a terrifying monster attacks his friends, was deemed uncommercial. And while Winona Ryder (who plays the missing boy’s mother, Joyce) had been a star in her day, the rest of the cast was largely filled with unknowns and untested child stars. “None of us had had a success,” says Matt’s brother Ross. “We were a group of misfit toys.” It’s a familiar feeling for them. Born in North Carolina in 1984 – a few months after the first season of Stranger Things is set – the Duffer brothers remember themselves as uncool, movie-obsessed nerds, bullied and overlooked in much the same way as the heroes of their series. “One reason Ross and I loved film so much was because it was transportive,” says Matt. “You get to experience worlds and characters that you wouldn’t otherwise. We lived in a medium-sized town in North Carolina, but we got to go on all these incredible adventures.” As adults, after trying and failing to make it in movies, the pair turned to TV, where those childhood experiences came in handy. “We always felt like outsiders growing up,” says Ross. “Obviously, we didn’t have monsters thrown in our way, or anyone kidnapped. But you still have so many obstacles growing up, and it can feel hard to fit in, and it can be so scary at times.” Those feelings of not belonging, of endless childhood possibility – plus their formative love of 70s and 80s creatives like Steven Spielberg, Stephen King and John Carpenter – would form the nucleus of what became Stranger Things. At first, their script for Montauk – as the series was originally called – was rejected “15 to 20” times. Eventually, Hollywood director Shawn Levy (Night at the Museum, Deadpool & Wolverine) took a chance and backed the young creatives. But even then, no one seriously expected the show to last long. “When we were working on season one, we weren’t expecting there to be a season two,” Matt says. “I would say David Harbour was the least confident that the show would be successful.” That’s putting it mildly. Harbour, who has played gruff police chief Jim Hopper since the first episode, was so downhearted at the lack of promotion for Stranger Things that he locked himself away in his apartment, stayed off the internet and shaved his head. “He loved doing the show, and he was proud of it, but he was discouraged by the lack of subway ads that Netflix put out,” Matt laughs. But despite starting slowly, the first season became a word-of-mouth hit, snowballing into a pop culture behemoth. It went viral online, attracting celebrity fans and huge viewing figures. Soon, people were dressing up as Millie Bobby Brown’s telekinetic pre-teen Eleven for Halloween, buying action figures of the monstrous Demogorgon and raiding their parents’ wardrobes to copy the 80s fashion. The fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana, where the show is set, now has its name plastered on millions of T-shirts around the world. And with each subsequent season, the buzz and cultural power only grew. The use of Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill in a pivotal scene in Stranger Things 4 saw the song shoot to number one in the UK for the first time. But unquestionably, the biggest boost was felt by the show’s youngest cast members, catapulted from relatively ordinary lives to stardom incredibly quickly. Just 12 when she started filming, British actor Millie Bobby Brown – who as Eleven, became the face of the series – is now one of the world’s most in-demand actors. Her similarly-aged co-stars Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Noah Schnapp, Finn Wolfhard and Sadie Sink, who form the core “party” of the series, have also gone on to become Hollywood fixtures. “Millie says she doesn’t remember life before Stranger Things,” Matt says. “That’s how much of a part of their lives this show is. So, moving past it, I think it’s both freeing and exciting, but also sad and scary for them.” “Any time we see them out doing other films and working with other great film-makers, it’s such a thrill,” adds Ross. “It’s amazing to discover someone and sort of show them to the world.” “You hear horror stories,” continues Matt. “You know, you create a star and they turn into a monster. That wasn’t the case. I wouldn’t say we feel like parental figures to the cast, more like older brothers. That makes me feel less old.” Of course, while not quite as baby-faced as their cast, the Duffers were just 32 when Stranger Things debuted. Today, it’s hard to imagine a pair of unproven writer/directors being given the keys to a show as big as this. “When you look back at season one,” says Ross, “it feels quaint and small compared to now – but it felt like a massive undertaking.” “We’ve certainly learnt a lot about visual effects,” adds Matt. “I rewatch season one and I cringe. It looks so much worse.” “We also had a lot less money,” interjects Ross. “True – but we also didn’t know what we were doing!” Matt concludes. “And did we know it was going to take 10 years? Absolutely not. We’ve sometimes had to turn down interesting opportunities, but we have no regrets about staying on and telling this particular story.” Their story comes to an end with Stranger Things 5. We return to a Hawkins transformed – after the evil Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) literally cracked open the town in the previous season, its residents are now under quarantine. Meanwhile, a military group is conducting experiments on the Upside Down, an alternate dimension, which has been leaking into the real world since season one. It’s up to our heroes to track down Vecna and save their town. “Every season, we would run out of time or space to explore everything,” says Matt. “We’d say, ‘we’ll deal with that next season’. There wasn’t that luxury any more.” “The big one is, what is the Upside Down, exactly?” adds Ross. “That’s the biggest question that we wanted to answer.” Four episodes drop this week, followed by three more on Boxing Day. The feature-length finale, which is being screened in some cinemas in America, comes to Netflix on New Year’s Eve. “The scale is bigger than anything we’ve had before,” says Matt. “Hopefully it’s fun, exciting, scary – everything you want out of the show.” The Duffers are good at keeping secrets. They won’t be drawn on plot hints, character deaths or even details on the other hot topic among fans – a long-rumoured spin-off that remains a mystery. But following the prequel stage play in London and New York, Stranger Things: The First Shadow, anticipation is high for more Stranger Things stories. “I don’t want to say too much,” says Ross. “We’ve had the idea for a live-action spin-off for a few years, and only recently have we actually had the time and bandwidth to work on it. That’s sort of the next big thing in the Stranger Things universe. But it’s not a continuation of the story of any of these characters in the flagship show, or of Hawkins. We really are trying to close the door on all of that with this final season. So it’s a new story, but one that works in this universe.” “It very much feels like Stranger Things,” agrees Matt. “As soon as Stranger Things 5 releases we’re going to jump into working properly on the spin-off. We’re really excited about it.” Sometimes, however, success can be as much of a burden as failure. “I liked in season one that we felt we were under the radar,” Matt muses. “I liked the underdog status that we had. So it’s been hard losing that. “But it’s worth the trade-off. You have so many people watching the show, it allows us to tell exactly the story that we want to tell.” Subconsciously or not, he slips back into the language of Stranger Things to conclude his point. “There’s definitely more upside than downside.”
Stranger Things creators reveal the biggest question answered in the final season and tease future spin-offs
The Duffer Brothers reveal how they went from "complete failures" to creating one of Netflix's biggest hits.
Over one billion hours streamed of the most recent season; sold-out West End and Broadway shows; 15 million Funko Pop action figures bought by obsessed fans. Stranger Things is, by any metric, a runaway success, a bona fide pop culture phenomenon for under-20s to rival Star Wars or Marvel. One can only imagine the dream team of top writers, big-name stars and slick executives who brainstormed Netflix’s mega-hit into existence. Or perhaps not… “We were all failures. Complete failures,” says Matt Duffer, one half of the twin writer-director duo known as The Duffer Brothers, who created the drama. “Before we made this, we had only experienced heartbreak. We thought it was going to happen again.” From where they’re sitting as we speak, the star attraction at one of Europe’s biggest pop culture conventions in Lucca, Italy, his words seem ridiculous. Attended by 280,000 guests, the festival – which saw the 41-year-old brothers and the cast swamped by hordes of screaming fans – is but a modest first stop on a worldwide press tour for Stranger Things 5, the culmination of their franchise nine years after it began. But back in 2016, it was a different story. The Duffers weren’t sought-after creatives – they were 30-something wannabe film directors whose first projects had stalled. The story of Stranger Things and Will, a young boy who disappears in the 1980s while a terrifying monster attacks his friends, was deemed uncommercial. And while Winona Ryder (who plays the missing boy’s mother, Joyce) had been a star in her day, the rest of the cast was largely filled with unknowns and untested child stars. “None of us had had a success,” says Matt’s brother Ross. “We were a group of misfit toys.” It’s a familiar feeling for them. Born in North Carolina in 1984 – a few months after the first season of Stranger Things is set – the Duffer brothers remember themselves as uncool, movie-obsessed nerds, bullied and overlooked in much the same way as the heroes of their series. “One reason Ross and I loved film so much was because it was transportive,” says Matt. “You get to experience worlds and characters that you wouldn’t otherwise. We lived in a medium-sized town in North Carolina, but we got to go on all these incredible adventures.” As adults, after trying and failing to make it in movies, the pair turned to TV, where those childhood experiences came in handy. “We always felt like outsiders growing up,” says Ross. “Obviously, we didn’t have monsters thrown in our way, or anyone kidnapped. But you still have so many obstacles growing up, and it can feel hard to fit in, and it can be so scary at times.” Those feelings of not belonging, of endless childhood possibility – plus their formative love of 70s and 80s creatives like Steven Spielberg, Stephen King and John Carpenter – would form the nucleus of what became Stranger Things. At first, their script for Montauk – as the series was originally called – was rejected “15 to 20” times. Eventually, Hollywood director Shawn Levy (Night at the Museum, Deadpool & Wolverine) took a chance and backed the young creatives. But even then, no one seriously expected the show to last long. “When we were working on season one, we weren’t expecting there to be a season two,” Matt says. “I would say David Harbour was the least confident that the show would be successful.” That’s putting it mildly. Harbour, who has played gruff police chief Jim Hopper since the first episode, was so downhearted at the lack of promotion for Stranger Things that he locked himself away in his apartment, stayed off the internet and shaved his head. “He loved doing the show, and he was proud of it, but he was discouraged by the lack of subway ads that Netflix put out,” Matt laughs. But despite starting slowly, the first season became a word-of-mouth hit, snowballing into a pop culture behemoth. It went viral online, attracting celebrity fans and huge viewing figures. Soon, people were dressing up as Millie Bobby Brown’s telekinetic pre-teen Eleven for Halloween, buying action figures of the monstrous Demogorgon and raiding their parents’ wardrobes to copy the 80s fashion. The fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana, where the show is set, now has its name plastered on millions of T-shirts around the world.And with each subsequent season, the buzz and cultural power only grew. The use of Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill in a pivotal scene in Stranger Things 4 saw the song shoot to number one in the UK for the first time. But unquestionably, the biggest boost was felt by the show’s youngest cast members, catapulted from relatively ordinary lives to stardom incredibly quickly. Just 12 when she started filming, British actor Millie Bobby Brown – who as Eleven, became the face of the series – is now one of the world’s most in-demand actors. Her similarly-aged co-stars Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Noah Schnapp, Finn Wolfhard and Sadie Sink, who form the core “party” of the series, have also gone on to become Hollywood fixtures. “Millie says she doesn’t remember life before Stranger Things,” Matt says. “That’s how much of a part of their lives this show is. So, moving past it, I think it’s both freeing and exciting, but also sad and scary for them.” <img src="https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2025/07/StrangerThingsS50011-4747587-e1763381660267.jpg" width="4480" height="2990" alt="Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler, Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas Sinclair, Natalia Dyer as Nancy Wheeler, Joe Keery as Steve Harrington, Charlie Heaton as Jonathan Byers, and Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin Henderson in Stranger Things season 5" title="Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler, Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas Sinclair, Natalia Dyer as Nancy Wheeler, Joe Keery as Steve Harrington, Charlie Heaton as Jonathan Byers, and Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin Henderson in Stranger Things season 5" /> “Any time we see them out doing other films and working with other great film-makers, it’s such a thrill,” adds Ross. “It’s amazing to discover someone and sort of show them to the world.” “You hear horror stories,” continues Matt. “You know, you create a star and they turn into a monster. That wasn’t the case. I wouldn’t say we feel like parental figures to the cast, more like older brothers. That makes me feel less old.” Of course, while not quite as baby-faced as their cast, the Duffers were just 32 when Stranger Things debuted. Today, it’s hard to imagine a pair of unproven writer/directors being given the keys to a show as big as this. “When you look back at season one,” says Ross, “it feels quaint and small compared to now – but it felt like a massive undertaking.” “We’ve certainly learnt a lot about visual effects,” adds Matt. “I rewatch season one and I cringe. It looks so much worse.” “We also had a lot less money,” interjects Ross. “True – but we also didn’t know what we were doing!” Matt concludes. “And did we know it was going to take 10 years? Absolutely not. We’ve sometimes had to turn down interesting opportunities, but we have no regrets about staying on and telling this particular story.” Their story comes to an end with Stranger Things 5. We return to a Hawkins transformed – after the evil Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) literally cracked open the town in the previous season, its residents are now under quarantine. Meanwhile, a military group is conducting experiments on the Upside Down, an alternate dimension, which has been leaking into the real world since season one. It’s up to our heroes to track down Vecna and save their town. “Every season, we would run out of time or space to explore everything,” says Matt. “We’d say, ‘we’ll deal with that next season’. There wasn’t that luxury any more.” “The big one is, what is the Upside Down, exactly?” adds Ross. “That’s the biggest question that we wanted to answer.” Four episodes drop this week, followed by three more on Boxing Day. The feature-length finale, which is being screened in some cinemas in America, comes to Netflix on New Year’s Eve. “The scale is bigger than anything we’ve had before,” says Matt. “Hopefully it’s fun, exciting, scary – everything you want out of the show.” The Duffers are good at keeping secrets. They won’t be drawn on plot hints, character deaths or even details on the other hot topic among fans – a long-rumoured spin-off that remains a mystery. But following the prequel stage play in London and New York, Stranger Things: The First Shadow, anticipation is high for more Stranger Things stories. View Green Video on the source website “I don’t want to say too much,” says Ross. “We’ve had the idea for a live-action spin-off for a few years, and only recently have we actually had the time and bandwidth to work on it. That’s sort of the next big thing in the Stranger Things universe. But it’s not a continuation of the story of any of these characters in the flagship show, or of Hawkins. We really are trying to close the door on all of that with this final season. So it’s a new story, but one that works in this universe.” “It very much feels like Stranger Things,” agrees Matt. “As soon as Stranger Things 5 releases we’re going to jump into working properly on the spin-off. We’re really excited about it.” Sometimes, however, success can be as much of a burden as failure. “I liked in season one that we felt we were under the radar,” Matt muses. “I liked the underdog status that we had. So it’s been hard losing that. “But it’s worth the trade-off. You have so many people watching the show, it allows us to tell exactly the story that we want to tell.” Subconsciously or not, he slips back into the language of Stranger Things to conclude his point. “There’s definitely more upside than downside.” The latest issue of Radio Times is out now – subscribe here. Stranger Things is available to stream on Netflix. Sign up for Netflix from £5.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream. Add Stranger Things to your watchlist on the <a id="OWA8b702c45-bee9-94e4-f018-57518e78041b" title="https://www.radiotimes.com/download-the-app/?af_xp=custom&pid=website&c=editorial_content&is_retargeting=true&af_reengagement_window=30d" href="https://www.radiotimes.com/download-the-app/?af_xp=custom&pid=website&c=editorial_content&is_retargeting=true&af_reengagement_window=30d" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-outlook-id="449c28d9-909e-4aab-b6b8-153454f55d5e" data-auth="NotApplicable" data-linkindex="0">Radio Times: What to Watch app – download now for daily TV recommendations, features and more. Check out more of our Sci-fi coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Doctor Who spin-off The War Between the Land and the Sea gives new name for classic monster: "It's racist to say Sea Devil"
Climate - Sustainable contributions within wider content
When the Sea Devils rise again, they’re not monsters – they’re Homo Aqua.
The first time you see a blue, six-foot fish-man walking towards you, it’s a shock. But after your third or fourth – and once you’ve seen them yawning, stretching and singing Whitney Houston songs between takes – you get used to it. After all, rubbing fins with the blue and scaly is everyday life on the set of The War Between the Land and the Sea, the new spin-off from sci-fi stalwart Doctor Who that reimagines the classic 1972 monsters, the Sea Devils. Although… "It’s racist to say Sea Devil," screenwriter Russell T Davies tells RT, with a twinkle in his eye. In the context of the show, he says, the sea-dwelling race prefer to be called "Homo Aqua". And don’t call them monsters – arguably, it’s we humans who are the villains of the piece. After years of humankind polluting the oceans, Homo Aqua have had enough, with violence brewing unless human negotiator Barclay (Russell Tovey) and aquatic ambassador Salt (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) can broker peace. "I think every writer in the world is thinking, how do you write about the climate crisis?" says Davies, while showing us around the twisted, tendril-strewn dome of the Homo Aqua base. "We’re already in a climate war. This just dramatises it. "When they first approached me about coming back to Doctor Who in 2021, this was the first bit of my pitch," he adds. "I had this idea separately first. "But weirdly, it needs the Doctor Who setting. If I just go and pitch this cold, saying, ‘There is a race of creatures that live in the sea…' They’d say, 'Really? You sure?' The pre-existence of the Sea Devils takes all the problems out of it." Read more: Doctor Who spin-off The War Between the Land and the Sea releases epic teaser Doctor Who spin-off The War Between the Land and the Sea has release window confirmed with new-look images Still, despite the presence of a Jon Pertwee-era monster, several returning Who characters (led by Jemma Redgrave’s UNIT boss Kate Stewart) and, in Tovey and Mbatha-Raw, two leads who starred as different characters in Davies’s 2005–2010 Doctor Who run, we shouldn’t expect a repeat of the main show — or for a familiar blue police box to turn up. "It’s deliberately tougher. There are things here that would never happen in a Doctor Who story," Davies says. "It’s in the same universe, but just a different slant. I’m really pleased with it." Missing Doctor Who? Register now for Radio Times' Doctor Who Insiders club for exclusive interviews with Doctor Who legends every month. Doctor Who is available to stream on BBC iPlayer. Check out more of our Sci-fi coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Russell T Davies on the new Doctor Who spin-off, The War between the Land and the Sea
Add The War between the Land and the Sea to your watchlist The first time you see a blue, six-foot fish-man walking towards you, it’s a shock. But after your third or fourth — and once you’ve seen them yawning, stretching and singing Whitney Houston songs between takes — you get used to it. After all, rubbing fins with the blue and scaly is everyday life on the set of The War between the Land and the Sea, the new spin-off from sci-fi stalwart Doctor Who that reimagines classic 1972 monsters the Sea Devils. Although… “It’s racist to say Sea Devil,” screenwriter Russell T Davies tells RT, with a twinkle in his eye. In the context of the show, he says, the sea-dwelling race prefer to be called “Homo Aqua”. And don’t call them monsters — arguably, it’s we humans who are the villains of the piece. After years of humankind polluting the oceans, Homo Aqua have had enough, with violence brewing unless human negotiator Barclay (Russell Tovey) and aquatic ambassador Salt (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) can broker peace. “I think every writer in the world is thinking, how do you write about the climate crisis?” says Davies, while showing us around the twisted, tendril-strewn dome of the Homo Aqua base. “We’re already in a climate war. This just dramatises it. “When they first approached me about coming back to Doctor Who in 2021, this was the first bit of my pitch,” he adds. “I had this idea separately first. But weirdly, it needs the Doctor Who setting. If I just go and pitch this cold, saying, ‘There is a race of creatures that live in the sea…’ They’d say, ‘Really? You sure?’ The pre-existence of the Sea Devils takes all the problems out of it.” Still, despite the presence of a Jon Pertwee-era monster, several returning Who characters (led by Jemma Redgrave’s UNIT boss Kate Stewart) and in Tovey and Mbatha-Raw two leads who starred as different characters in Davies’s 2005—2010 Doctor Who run, we shouldn’t expect a repeat of the main show. Or for a familiar blue police box to turn up. “It’s deliberately tougher. There are things here that would never happen in a Doctor Who story,” Davies says. “It’s in the same universe, but just a different slant. I’m really pleased with it.” The War between the Land and the Sea comes to BBC One later this year
'If I get picked to be a Traitor, I'll be ecstatic'
The 73-year-old actor is hoping to feel Claudia's hand on her shoulder…
Add The Celebrity Traitors to your watchlist Celia, why have you decided to take part in The Celebrity Traitors? Well, it’s the most talked about game on television, isn’t it? On both sides of the Atlantic – worldwide in fact. I just think it’s such a clever invention. I’d love to meet the person who thought it up. What will you bring to the game? It’s a very good thing to remain as open as possible, really. But people think I’m nice, which could be useful. Are you good at reading people, would you say? Can you spot a liar? Yes, but I’ve got to have time. I don’t think it’s an instant thing. I want to give myself time to scrutinise their body language. Do you want to be a Traitor or a Faithful? I don’t really mind – if Claudia’s hand goes on my shoulder, I’ll be ecstatic with excitement. But I do think it’s quite a hard job. We recently spoke to you for your role in The Thursday Murder Club — was all that mystery and murder good practice? In a strange sort of way, yes. More generally, I suppose, being an actor, you do spend your life pretending to be somebody else, so that’s quite an advantage. But it is also a horror, because you haven’t got a character to hide behind here. It’s quite exposing. It’s true, we rarely see Celia Imrie “as herself”… In my autobiography I say that actresses are likened to Victorian young girls sitting round a ballroom on their gilt chairs waiting to be asked to dance. We all have to wait for the part to come along. Yes, I could play Hedda Gabler in my attic but there’s nobody to tell me how good I am. If I was Van Gogh, I could create a painting in the middle of the night, I wouldn’t need an audience. The only thing I have tried to do in terms of control in my career is to attempt to try and do something as different to the last thing so as not to be pigeonholed. And this, to be a player of The Traitors, is as different to anything else I have ever done. Speaking of the game — how do you feel about the Missions? I’m quite nervous about them. I watched a bit of the first series where people were upside down on one of those wheels. That would give me the absolute heebie jeebies. I wouldn’t want to be a bad sport, but I really wouldn’t want to do that. I’m not mad about heights – I used to love fairground rides when I was younger, but not now. You’ve watched the previous series — do you have a favourite player? The young soldier boy, Harry Clark [from series two]. I was so on his side all the way through, and then I thought he was a wretch at the end! Clearly, the game changes people — will we might see a different side to you? Yes, quite possibly. I have a naughty streak that I find hard to suppress.
'This is the first thing I’ve ever done as myself'
Comedian and actor Nick Mohammed, 44, rarely appears publicly when he's not in character… so how will he cope in the castle?
Add The Celebrity Traitors to your watchlist Nick, why join The Celebrity Traitors? I absolutely adore the show, and always have done. This is the first thing I’ve ever done as myself. I did Taskmaster, which was sort of as me, but even that, I decided to dress as Dracula to hide behind something. In my comedy I’m usually in character, so I tend not to do much as myself to preserve that element of mystery. But there was no way I was going to give up an opportunity like this! I’ve always loved games like this and to hang out with such a wonderful bunch too – what a privilege. So, your character Mr Swallow won’t be making an appearance? Sadly, I think Nick Mohammed was booked rather than Mr Swallow. But also, can you imagine how irritating that would be, not just for the people taking part, but. for the nation! There are always potential tactics from your other work — perhaps a rousing team talk à la Ted Lasso? Maybe that would be good at the Round Table – a sort of Gladiator-style motivational speech. But you don’t want to draw too much attention to yourself or make yourself a target. I don’t know if I would want to do anything too overconfident, because it’s like when Kas [in series three] did a toast to the first person who went and then was immediately suspected as being a Traitor. He was clearly a lovely, lovely guy, I just don’t want to fall into the same trap. It’s a fine line to tread. If you blend into the background too much, people will think you’re deliberately hiding. Have you got a strategy? I think I’ll just try and be quite easy breezy in the first instance. A little further down the line you can maybe start considering strategy – and it also depends on whether I’m made a Traitor or a Faithful. There’s a certain thrill of being made a Traitor, of course, and you’re in a little bit more control, but if I’m a Faithful, I’ll also have that constant worry each night whether I’ll be murdered. That said, I’ve got a lovely family, so it’s sort of a win, win. When my time is up, I get to go back home and see them! Have you done anything to prepare? I’ve thought about it a lot. It was strange watching series three, knowing I was going to be doing it in a few months’ time. But it’s always different with a different group of people, so you can’t copy what previous players have done. I had a couple of dreams about it. One was that I had to do the whole thing in an American accent! Are you looking forward to the Missions? Loads! I love all of that. And how camp the whole show is – the kind of gothic, Wicker Man vibe that they have. Yeah, can’t wait! Would you say that you’re good at reading people? I think I can smell bulls**t, but I think someone lying specifically about whether they’re a Traitor or not is a very different thing because it’s quite abstract. You’ve not chosen it, you’ve been selected. And some people might be amazing at it. That’s the thrill of it. Do you think you’ve got a good poker face? A lot of people I’ve worked with will testify that I do often get the giggles. My biggest worry is the moment when the blindfolds are taken off at the start, because irrespective of whether I’ve been made a Traitor or a Faithful, I’ll struggle not to smile. That is a real, genuine worry.
TV has a new crime-busting priest – he’s like me, but hotter, says creator the Rev Richard Coles
Add Murder Before Evensong to your watchlist "Do you know how many vicar detectives there are in fiction?” asks musician, priest and now writer the Rev Richard Coles. “No? There’s 200. If you think about it, vicars are very likely candidates for murder mysteries. You get stuck in everywhere and nobody asks what you’re doing.” But even outside the world of so-called cosy crime, Coles says dealing with murder is a part of any priest’s job. “I was in central London, then left to become a vicar of a semi-rural parish for 12 years. Everybody said, ‘Oh, you’ll get bored. You’ll just be doing village fêtes.’ But there was a murder in my first week. Or rather, an alleged murder. It happens, you see. The human heart is the human heart. It’s darkness and it’s light wherever you go. “Murder victims need to have funerals, just like everybody else. Often you’ll find yourself doing funerals not just for murder victims but for murderers, too. Everyone comes to your door in the end.” With this on-the-job experience, plus the fact that his brother was a detective at Scotland Yard, it was perhaps fate that Coles would turn to writing holy whodunnits. His addition to the, er, canon is cultured cleric Daniel Clement, who solved his first case in the 2022 novel Murder before Evensong, before returning for three more novels (and a short story). Now he’s getting the TV treatment, with Harry Potter star Matthew Lewis stepping into a cassock for a six-episode adaptation, in which Daniel’s roped in to hunt down a killer in a 1988 Midlands village. “Readers think that Daniel Clement is basically me and when I saw Matthew in costume, he actually does look like a hotter version of me,” says Coles. “So that’s a little bit of mental rearrangement!” Given how closely the series cleaves to Coles’s own experiences – like him, Daniel has moved to a village parish after time in London, and has a fondness for sausage dogs – I wonder at a line of dialogue in the second episode. Daniel ruffles feathers by praying for mercy for the mystery killer, telling his detective sidekick later, “I don’t believe in retribution.” Does Coles feel the same? “I think God’s mercy is coterminous with God’s judgement,” he replies. “To speak of them in isolation of the other is theologically… not quite “meaningless” exactly, but fruitless. “There is always mercy for those who seek it and want it. My job as a priest would be to make it as easy as possible for anyone to find their way to it. A couple of people… I couldn’t forgive them. But then I would think, ‘I’m glad there is a God who could.’” It seems that reassurance of things made right is also at the heart of the fictional genre. “It’s interesting: British murder mysteries were very popular at the end of the 1930s, because we sensed a world of menace,” Coles suggests. “Again, today the world is growingly uncertain. Murder mysteries condense that, and then someone fixes it, and makes us feel OK again.” Praise be! IN GOOD FAITH Matthew Lewis swaps magic for murder You’re an atheist — what was it like playing a man of the cloth? Well, I didn’t immediately burst into flames when I put on a dog collar, so that was a good start. When I told my family and friends what I was going to be doing, once they stopped laughing, they said, “That’s going to really push your acting chops.” I’m someone who’s not a particularly huge fan of organised religion, and yet can’t help but feel like it still has a part to play in society in some way. What did Richard make of that? I am, as an actor and a human being, fascinated by faith and Richard’s faith. I’ve had more than my fair share of theological discussions and debates with him, which have been a real pleasure. Because I find his particular faith fascinating and so interesting — as someone who has none! A lot of readers have thought Daniel is basically Richard writing himself — do you agree? I think there’s more of him in Daniel than he cares to admit, but it’s not him. Your first job was bringing a famous book character to life, as Neville Longbottom in the Harry Potter movies — did you have any misgivings about doing it again? There’s trepidation. Much like we had with Harry Potter, we’re trying to appeal to new fans who haven’t read the books. But at the same time we really want to make sure that we don’t cast aside the people who have. I’m a passionate reader myself, and I know some adaptations that have left me with a bitter taste. I want to make sure that people who read it and love it, still love this, too. I want to get it right.
As the Celebrity Traitors convene at Claudia Winkleman’s Highlands castle, Uncloaked host Ed Gamble reveals who he thinks has the wits to win the game
Add The Celebrity Traitors to your watchlist The torches are lit, the Round Table waxed and polished, the green cloaks freshly dry-cleaned, all ready for the latest return to the cut-throat world of The Traitors. And this time, you’ll recognise some of the faces under the hoods. Yes, the inevitable has happened – after three smash-hit series of glossy betrayal on BBC One, we’re getting the celebrity version. But this is no cheap cash-in, with genuine, A-list household names like Stephen Fry, Tom Daley and Clare Balding among the 19 famous faces being put through their paces by Claudia Winkleman. “I could barely breathe when I saw them all in the Highlands,” Winkleman says. “I’m such a fan of every single one of them. The whole team were just in awe, it was hard not to scream, ‘You’re here!’” “Any worry that they’re going to take it easy on these people because they’re celebrities – you can forget about that,” adds comedian Ed Gamble, host of companion series The Celebrity Traitors: Uncloaked. “We’ll get to see how they cope under that amount of pressure, and whether they will let slip their media-trained mask. But it’s still the Traitors we know and love.” Though perhaps, for those playing it’s a little trickier. Normally, Traitors contestants are strangers to each other, sometimes even rewriting their backstories to play the game. Here, there’s no chance of pretending to have a different job – or putting on a fake Welsh accent. “You’ve made a lot of your decisions about someone if you’ve seen them on television for years,” agrees Gamble. “I think that throws an extra spanner in the works.” Over the last two series of the main show, Gamble has gone toe-to-toe with every Traitor and Faithful on Uncloaked, commiserating with and grilling them on every double-cross, bad vote and tough decision they’ve made throughout the game. In other words, he’s seen it all. So which celebrities does he think have what it takes to win the game as Faithful or Traitor? Here are his first impressions and his dagger rating of how far he thinks each celebrity will go… Stephen Fry Actor/writer/presenter “Stephen’s renowned for being witty and erudite, as well as a hugely intelligent, perceptive man. So, I think he is built for a game like The Traitors. But you never know what happens to people in these situations. “At the beginning of the game, you’ve got nothing to go on. And, you know, the discussions might come around to: ‘Stephen would be a good Traitor. He’s very intelligent.’ I’d give him five if it wasn’t for that.” 4 DAGGERS Celia Imrie Actor “Celia’s an actor, and in past civilian series of The Traitors, people have hidden being actors. Because people latch onto anything — they might think, ‘Maybe that means they’re a Traitor. If they’re an actor, they’re good at lying, aren’t they?’ “That said, I think people love Celia so much that even if they suspect her, they won’t do anything, because it’s Celia Imrie, and how dare you! I actually might give Celia a five. She’s got sort of “queen of the castle” vibes.” 5 DAGGERS Nick Mohammed Actor/comedian “I’ve known Nick since 2005 when I was 19, so I was very excited to see him in the line-up! He is an incredibly nice man and I can’t imagine him wanting to wish harm on anyone — or coping with that level of pressure. “But to his benefit, he’s clever, he can be a little bit quieter, and people just naturally love him. So, I will give Nick four. I think he’s incredibly perceptive, and people will naturally warm to him.” 4 DAGGERS Tom Daley Olympian/author/ broadcaster/entrepreneur “Tom Daley is a very nice man. He has obviously achieved a lot in his life and his career. But I wonder if he’ll be a bit too nice…” 3 DAGGERS Charlotte Church Singer/activist “Charlotte’s reputation and position within the British public is unassailable — she obviously started working as a child, and then became a national treasure. She’s a lovely person, and wants everyone to be OK. But I think she’s got more of a sharp edge to her than people might think.” 3 DAGGERS Joe Wilkinson Comedian “I’ve known Joe for ages. He’s incredibly funny, but I’ve never seen him be arsed to do anything! I think Joe will have a nice time, but I don’t know if he can be bothered. There are people I feel comfortable giving a one to, and Joe is one of them.” 1 DAGGER Jonathan Ross Presenter “I’ve grown up watching Jonathan. He’s very good at asking people questions, and he’s very good at getting to the heart of the matter. So that might help him in the castle.” 4 DAGGERS Cat Burns Singer/songwriter “I knew very little about Cat Burns until recently, because I’m not particularly plugged into the Gen Z pop music scene. I think that might serve her well, because fewer of them will know who she is, or be familiar with her work. Going in with a little less preconception might make her an interesting contestant. There’s a question mark around her.” 3.5 DAGGERS Clare Balding Broadcaster/author “Look, they’re all legends here. That’s the umbrella term. Clare Balding has been working in broadcasting for so long, so is good at getting the most out of people, and good at assessing a situation. She’s also lovely, so I wonder whether she’s too lovely for the situation. But we will see. I’m going to give Clare Balding a three, which is sort of my question mark number. No fives yet, you’ll notice…” 3 DAGGERS David Olusoga Historian/film-maker “David Olusoga is also hugely intelligent. We can put him up there in the Fry ranks, I think, and he’s a very calming presence as well. At the Round Table, perhaps, an asset. Regardless of whether he’s a Faithful or Traitor, I think he will bring the group together.” 4 DAGGERS Alan Carr Comedian “Alan is one of the loveliest people on the planet. I don’t know him particularly well but whenever I see him, his life seems like a whirlwind, so I wonder if he would be slightly too chaotic to find a Traitor, or be a Traitor. He’s always got a joke ready, though. So maybe that will help him in the castle.” 3 DAGGERS Joe Marler Former England rugby player/podcaster “I’m not particularly a rugby fan, but I was aware of Joe’s work through his podcast. He is an extremely funny man. I think he will be popular within the group. He seems to like a laugh. But there are some people in there that like a laugh so much, I wonder if they can be serious when they need to. I want to give him a two, but I’m going to give him a three because he is absolutely massive, and could crush me with his little finger.” 3 DAGGERS Kate Garraway Broadcaster “Again, a professional interviewer. She deals with difficult people on a regular basis, and is friendly and open. But the thing is, with people who seem genuine and seem open within their work, that could be an advantage or a disadvantage based on their role within the game.” 2 DAGGERS Mark Bonnar Actor “He’s been in a show like Line of Duty, which was largely about subterfuge and hiding your role, and I feel like people could use that against him potentially. The acting thing can be an advantage or a disadvantage. I think Mark loves the show, which helps. And Mark is well loved and seems like a very genuine man. So, I’m going to go a bit higher.” 4 DAGGERS Niko Omilana Content creator “I’ve seen a few of Niko’s YouTube videos. Quite a lot of them involve him asking spoof questions to people. So, there’s an element of subterfuge there, which might be relevant experience. He has the same advantage as Cat Burns — I’m not sure how much Niko’s work with The Beta Squad will be in Stephen Fry or Celia Imrie’s sphere of interest. He may benefit from being a little less known amongst that group, even though he’s absolutely huge within his own audience.” 4 DAGGERS Lucy Beaumont Comedian “I’m going to be harsher on the comedians because I do know them! Lucy Beaumont is incredibly funny. She’s very talented. But she’s one of the maddest people I’ve ever met in my life. You never know what’s going to come out of Lucy Beaumont’s mouth. So, I think maybe she could cause chaos in there among all camps within the castle.” 2 DAGGERS Paloma Faith Singer/songwriter/actor “Paloma Faith is brilliant. She’s so funny, but from what I’ve seen of her she has no filter. And I think that could be an issue in the castle. She’s well liked though, so I think people will trust her. Sorry to be boring, but I’m going to give another three.” 3 DAGGERS Ruth Codd Actor “I’ve watched quite a lot of Ruth’s acting work — she’s been in some really good Mike Flanagan projects, and I’m a big Mike Flanagan fan — but she might be slightly less known by some of the people in there, unless they watch a lot of Netflix horror series. She’s an actor with a very distinctive personality and I don’t think she takes bulls**t from anyone.” 4 DAGGERS Tameka Empson Actor/comedian “She’s absolutely hilarious. I was a big fan of her sketch show growing up, and she’s obviously brilliant in EastEnders as well. Again, a very open and genuine person, who wants to get to know people. But I wonder whether she’ll just enjoy the experience too much and forget to play the game.” 2 DAGGERS
Reverend Richard Coles reveals if Murder Before Evensong's crime-solving vicar is based on him
This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine. “Do you know how many vicar detectives there are in fiction?” asks musician, priest and now writer the Rev Richard Coles. “No? There’s 200. If you think about it, vicars are very likely candidates for murder mysteries. You get stuck in everywhere and nobody asks what you’re doing.” But even outside the world of so-called cosy crime, Coles says dealing with murder is a part of any priest’s job. “I was in central London, then left to become a vicar of a semi-rural parish for 12 years. Everybody said, ‘Oh, you’ll get bored. You’ll just be doing village fêtes.’ But there was a murder in my first week. Or rather, an alleged murder. It happens, you see. The human heart is the human heart. It’s darkness and it’s light wherever you go. “Murder victims need to have funerals, just like everybody else. Often you’ll find yourself doing funerals not just for murder victims but for murderers, too. Everyone comes to your door in the end.” With this on-the-job experience, plus the fact that his brother was a detective at Scotland Yard, it was perhaps fate that Coles would turn to writing holy whodunnits. His addition to the, er, canon is cultured cleric Daniel Clement, who solved his first case in the 2022 novel Murder Before Evensong, before returning for three more novels (and a short story). Now he’s getting the TV treatment, with Harry Potter star Matthew Lewis stepping into a cassock for a six-episode adaptation, in which Daniel’s roped in to hunt down a killer in a 1988 Midlands village. “Readers think that Daniel Clement is basically me and when I saw Matthew in costume, he actually does look like a hotter version of me,” says Coles. “So that’s a little bit of mental rearrangement!” Given how closely the series cleaves to Coles’s own experiences – like him, Daniel has moved to a village parish after time in London, and has a fondness for sausage dogs – I wonder at an intriguing storyline in the drama that didn’t feature in the novels, where Daniel’s visits AIDS victims in hospital putting him under fire from the press and parishioners. “That came from Nick Hicks-Beach [the screenwriter], really,” says Coles. “He took the trouble to get to know a bit about my life, and it was something that was so prominent in my own personal story, and he sensed that. I went through the AIDS crisis, like any gay man of my age living in London in the 1980s. it was a terrible experience. It devastated all of us. “As soon as I saw the storyline in the TV version, I thought ‘Yes, that works’ - but I couldn’t have written that. They had to write it.’ Because it’s still too raw? “It’s hard to talk about,” he agrees. “I talk about it now to my friends who went through it at the same time, but it’s 30 years later we’ve really talked about it. I certainly don’t think it’s something I want to write about.” Though like the priestly proximity to murder, this part of the show is also true to life. Some members of the church, like Daniel, really did break that taboo to help those suffering with AIDS. “I was involved with the London Lighthouse [a centre for people with HIV/AIDs], and there was this convent of nuns who were absolutely among the first who acknowledged that something needed to be done, and did so without any judgement or hesitation,” says Coles. “I remember being impressed by that. It’s one of the reasons why I started thinking that the Church might not be such a bad idea. I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing now if it hadn’t been for that.” <img src="https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2025/08/Murder-Before-Evensong-Amit-Shah-is-DS-Neil-Vanloo-Matthew-Lewis-is-Canon-Daniel-Clement-1-e2b638d.jpg" width="800" height="533" alt="Amit Shah as DS Neil Vanloo and Matthew Lewis as Canon Daniel Clement in Murder Before Evensong; they are sat on a sofa talking to an interview subject. Neil is taking notes on a small notepad." title="Murder Before Evensong Amit Shah is DS Neil Vanloo_ Matthew Lewis is Canon Daniel Clement-1" /> There’s also a line of dialogue in the second episode, where Daniel ruffles feathers by praying for mercy for the mystery killer, telling his detective sidekick later, “I don’t believe in retribution.” Does Coles feel the same? “I think God’s mercy is coterminous with God’s judgement,” he replies. “To speak of them in isolation of the other is theologically… not quite “meaningless” exactly, but fruitless. “There is always mercy for those who seek it and want it. My job as a priest would be to make it as easy as possible for anyone to find their way to it. A couple of people… I couldn’t forgive them. But then I would think, ‘I’m glad there is a God who could.’” It seems that reassurance of things made right is also at the heart of the fictional genre. “It’s interesting: British murder mysteries were very popular at the end of the 1930s, because we sensed a world of menace,” Coles suggests. “Again, today the world is growingly uncertain. Murder mysteries condense that, and then someone fixes it, and makes us feel OK again.” Praise be! Q&A with Murder Before Evensong star Matthew Lewis You’re an atheist — what was it like playing a man of the cloth? Well, I didn’t immediately burst into flames when I put on a dog collar, so that was a good start. When I told my family and friends what I was going to be doing, once they stopped laughing, they said, “That’s going to really push your acting chops.” I’m someone who’s not a particularly huge fan of organised religion, and yet can’t help but feel like it still has a part to play in society in some way. What did Richard make of that? I am, as an actor and a human being, fascinated by faith and Richard’s faith. I’ve had more than my fair share of theological discussions and debates with him, which have been a real pleasure. Because I find his particular faith fascinating and so interesting — as someone who has none! A lot of readers have thought Daniel is basically Richard writing himself — do you agree? I think there’s more of him in Daniel than he cares to admit, but it’s not him. Your first job was bringing a famous book character to life, as Neville Longbottom in the Harry Potter movies — did you have any misgivings about doing it again? There’s trepidation. Much like we had with Harry Potter, we’re trying to appeal to new fans who haven’t read the books. But at the same time we really want to make sure that we don’t cast aside the people who have. I’m a passionate reader myself, and I know some adaptations that have left me with a bitter taste. I want to make sure that people who read it and love it, still love this, too. I want to get it right. The latest issue of Radio Times is out now – subscribe here. Murder Before Evensong premieres on 5 at 9pm on Tuesday 7th October. Add Murder Before Evensong to your watchlist on the <a id="OWA8b702c45-bee9-94e4-f018-57518e78041b" title="https://www.radiotimes.com/download-the-app/?af_xp=custom&pid=website&c=editorial_content&is_retargeting=true&af_reengagement_window=30d" href="https://www.radiotimes.com/download-the-app/?af_xp=custom&pid=website&c=editorial_content&is_retargeting=true&af_reengagement_window=30d" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-outlook-id="449c28d9-909e-4aab-b6b8-153454f55d5e" data-auth="NotApplicable" data-linkindex="0">Radio Times: What to Watch app – download now for daily TV recommendations, features and more. Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. 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From overcoming grief to chasing lifelong dreams – here’s why this year’s Strictly stars have embraced the sequins
Add Strictly Come Dancing to your watchlist Editors' note: this feature was updated to exclude Dani Dyer, who has been forced to withdraw from this year's competition due to injury. Strictly Come Dancing is bigger than its scandals. This time last year, amid a flurry of damaging behind-the-scenes stories, there were whispers that the show’s days might be numbered. Instead, it delivered one of its most heartwarming competitions yet, as blind comedian Chris McCausland and pro partner Dianne Buswell waltzed their way to victory. Now, despite more tabloid headlines, Strictly is quickstepping back onto our screens for its 23rd series. As always, there are a few changes – voting is online onlyand the set has had a minor refresh – but the heart of the show remains the same: a new cast of celebrities looking to dazzle the judges with their dancing. So, who’s bringing secret dance experience? Who’s got two left feet? Who’s already sweating with nerves – and who’s cool as a cucumber? This year’s professional dancers introduce the class of 2025… Dianna Buswell with Stefan Dennis 66, Neighbours actor Dianne “Stefan’s acting is going to help, as I always like to show a character in the dance. When we met he didn’t know anything about me. He told me the guy who won last year made him tear up. I had to say, ‘Did you notice he was dancing with me?’ “Last year was an incredible experience. Chris [McCausland] and I weren’t prepared for the way people kept us in to the end. I don’t come into it thinking, ‘Ooh, I won last year.’ It’s a new slate. One year you could be holding the glitterball, the next you could be gone in week two or three.” So, Stefan, you didn’t recognise Dianne? Stefan “I didn’t know her from a bar of soap! But she’s a brilliant teacher. It’s going to be hard work, but it’s going to be fun. You know, I could be digging ditches.” Who’s your biggest competition? “I’m a bit nervous about Dani, Karen, Lewis… Harry’s going to be a surprise. And Ellie is just a delight — she’s a bowl of positivity.” Obviously, Neighbours is coming to an end again… “Yeah, it’s a bugger, isn’t it?” Is that why you had the time to do Strictly? “Well, yeah. I was going into semi-retirement, then Strictly called and I’m into hours of intense training. I thought we had long hours on Ramsay Street. This makes that look like a picnic!” Katya Jones with Lewis Cope 30, Emmerdale actor Katya “I’m known as the queen of dad dancers, but this year is different. I think everyone’s aware that Lewis can move and I’m looking forward to turning him into a ballroom dancer. But his musical theatre experience might be a hindrance. Unlearning habits is harder than blank-canvas learning.” Lewis, you joined the show late, replacing Game of Thrones actor Kristian Nairn. Have you caught up? Lewis “The first call came on a Monday. By the Wednesday I’d agreed to do it, and on the Thursday I was on The One Show announcing it. I don’t feel like I’ve had the time to actually let it settle in and realise, ‘Oh God, this is actually happening.‘ I’m just taking every day as it comes.” As a child, you appeared in a West End production of Billy Elliot the Musical. Have you drawn on that experience for Strictly? “Well, it was 19 years ago, and it was just tap dancing in my part. I haven’t worn a pair of tap shoes in 17 years, so I’m not sure how that would go. But if I manage to get to musicals week, I’d love to do something from Billy Elliot.” How have you found being “Strictly-fied” with the fake tan, sequins and so on? “I haven’t had the fake tan yet — I might need to change my bedding, it’s all white! But I think when you put the clothes on, it changes you. You start thinking, talking and walking differently. It brightens you up in every way.” Carlos Gu with Karen Carney 38, ex-professional footballer Carlos “As a former athlete, Karen has incredible stamina and great muscle ability. But more than that, she learns so quickly. I think she’s going to do some really great dancing.” Karen, what’s it like in the Strictly spotlight? Karen “The launch show was incredible. It felt like a big football team to me, but now it’s just me and Carlos. I trust him implicitly. It’s starting to feel a little more real.” Are you bringing your sporting competitive spirit to the dancefloor? “No. When you’re that competitive, you’re never in the moment — you’re always thinking about the next game. I’m just here to have a good time.” Is it hard to get out of that mindset? “I think if I had more of a competitive mindset, I’d probably have a gold medal, not silver and bronze! That’s where I failed. But seriously, I think sometimes people get competitiveness wrong. There’s a competitiveness to be the best version of yourself as well.” Johannes Radebe with Alex Kingston 62, former Doctor Who and ER star Johannes “The first thing we noticed about each other was our matching dress sense. She saw my ruffle shirt, and I saw her ruffle shirt, and we said, ‘How did we know this was going to happen?’ “In terms of dancing, Alex’s acting experience helps — dancing is storytelling, after all. But also, she has got rhythm, which I’m very excited about. When she dances, there’s an energy and a joy.” Alex, did anyone inspire you to sign up? Alex “Sarah Hadland doing it last year was the catalyst. We were in a play together in 2019, and we both said how much we wanted to do it, but our agents didn’t approve. So when I watched her I thought, ‘I’ve got to give it a go, then we can both fulfil the secret dream that we shared.’” What’s your biggest Strictly fear? “You have to be vulnerable in front of millions of people. That’s quite daunting, as is standing in front of the judges. When I watch Strictly, on the whole I agree with the judges, so I can’t just be thinking, ‘What do they know anyway?’” Aljaž Škorjanec with La Voix 45, drag queen Aljaž “When I met La Voix, I was amazed. We have a speed-dating day where we test who will dance with who, and it was so hot — 40 degrees inside the studio. I was sweating and self-conscious, but La Voix was there without a bead of moisture on her forehead. The way she made it look effortless was just brilliant. That’s years of drag performing in hot night clubs! We clicked right away.” La Voix, how does it feel stepping into the Strictly spotlight? La Voix “First of all, it’s a dream come true. I never thought it would ever happen. I had a leg wax cancellation, there was a window. I thought, ‘Let’s do this.’ For me, just having someone do my make-up and hair — it’s unheard of. I love it. I’ve always had to do it all myself.” You’re looking fabulous today. Is the plan to perform in full drag every week? “I think at the minute, the plan is: super, super, glam, glam every single week. Because I think that’s what Strictly is, and I can’t turn down the opportunity. To come out in some dungarees and an old T-shirt — I can’t do that.” Drag queens are known for their funny comebacks. Do you have any one-liners for Craig Revel Horwood? “Within reason — I am genuinely here wanting to learn. But, yeah, if Craig goes too far, I will give as good as I get. I can’t help it. My mouth is my problem.” Jowita Przystał with Ross King 63, showbiz reporter Jowita “It’s like we’ve met in a past life. We’re so comfortable with each other. We’re getting in trouble because we chat so much. Ross’s real strength is his personality. Dancing is truth, it’s joy, it’s feelings. I know that I will get that from Ross, and I think that’s 75 per cent of what you need. Technique, you always can learn.” Ross, you’re used to getting the showbiz stories. What’s it like to be in one? Ross “It’s very weird. There’s a bit of trepidation. I’m trying to surrender to it.” Is there any experience from your career that might help? “I’m used to live TV, and a live audience, so I think those two things will. But obviously, there’s the lack of dancing ability…” Who’s rooting for you to win? “Scotland — I’ve got the pressure of a nation behind me. And Team Lorraine! Lorraine Kelly’s called me “twinkletoes” from the beginning.” Nadiya Bychkova with Chris Robshaw 39, ex-rugby player Nadiya “I love working with athletes — they understand that you need to put the work in, and it’s really important for Strictly because the time frame is so short. I can already say that Chris is maybe even better than any of my experiences before with athletes.” Chris, how competitive will you be in Strictly? Chris “I’m naturally that way from the life I’ve lived, but people say you don’t want to be too competitive on Strictly. My mate Ugo Monye did it a few years ago, so my competition is to beat him. A bit of friendly rivalry.” What made you decide to do Strictly now? “I’ve had conversations before, but I haven’t been in the right head space. I wanted to challenge myself. Plus, my son loves dancing. He’s excited.” What did your rugby mates make of it? “The support I’ve had has been amazing. I’ve already had more friends ask for Strictly tickets than England tickets! The demand is crazy.” Kai Widdrington with Vicky Pattison 37, reality TV star Kai “Vicky was who I wanted to get partnered with. People may not know that we have a big Geordie connection: my family’s from Newcastle. Naturally, there are nerves — but when the sense of accomplishment comes through, hopefully that will have a snowball effect.” Vicky, you got married last year. What was your first dance at the reception? Vicky “Oh, baby, come on. I didn’t have a first dance. We probably just shuffled a little bit, like some awkward couple at prom.” So why do Strictly now? “I’ve wanted to do it for years, but I’ve never been asked. When I got it, I was so shocked, I said to my agent, ‘Can I think about it?‘ She said, ‘Yes, but just so you know, you’re doing it.’” How does Strictly compare to I’m a Celebrity...? “In the jungle, I was in a bubble eating kangaroo bits with Ant and Dec. Here, I’m learning a new skill with judges critiquing us, as well as Sandra from Surrey. That does strike fear in my heart.” Alexis Warr with George Clarke 25, social media influencer Alexis “George picks up steps quite well. Then I feel like he overthinks it and messes up the footwork. But it’s there. He has a natural rhythm. I’ve watched George’s online videos — he’s funny! And when he just goofs around, he’s super-groovy. I see a lot of potential.” George, what’s it like to join Strictly? George “It’s out of my usual realm. But when this came, I said, ‘Number one: it’s insane that I’ve even been asked. Number two: in three or four years, people may not even have a clue who I am. While I have the chance, I should do it!’” What do your friends and family make of it? “My nan would kill me if I said no. It’s cool to have something that my family actually understands when they watch it.” Maybe you’ll get new followers from Strictly? “There’s been a few occasions where somebody has come over and said, ‘Good luck on Strictly.’ And I can tell, without being rude, that they’re not in my usual demographic!” Julian Caillon with Balvinder Sopal 46, EastEnders actor Julian “To get someone like Balvinder has been such a blessing. After we first met the celebrities, we are asked ‘Who do we think is good? Who do we think is one of the better dancers?’ Bal was in almost everyone’s top two. She has a hidden natural dance ability.” Balvinder, you’ve revealed you did some amateur ballroom before. What started that? Balvinder “It was because of Strictly! Watching the show in its first few series, I thought ‘God, what an amazing thing to get into.’ So I did a social dance thing in Huddersfield. It was the most euphoric thing I’ve ever done. But the class didn’t last long because it cost a lot of money.” So, why do Strictly now? “2025 is my ‘yes’ year. I lost my mum last year, and I think she would hate for me not to take up an opportunity like this. My mum was a real fan of the show. We used to watch together. She was strong and always put her best foot forward — I need to step into her energy.” Lauren Oakley with Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink 53, ex-footballer Lauren “What I’ve noticed with Jimmy is that any kind of instruction that I give him — lower the arm, point the toe — he takes it on straight away, because he’s used to taking instructions from a coach. Which is great for me! Aside from that, he’s also got some rhythm. So I’ve definitely got something to work with.” Jimmy, you’re a football legend, but have you done much dancing? Jimmy “In the kitchen with the girls. I’m a girly dad. They make me do all sorts of things. My middle daughter is in dance school, and she was trying to make me do a split in the air. A box jump, I think it’s called. The moment I was asked to go onto the show, there was no way back. They said, ‘You’re going to have to take it, Daddy.’” You’re used to performing at a high level in front of big crowds, but is Strictly a different ball game? “Football, for me, is so easy. Dancing is out of my comfort zone. But that’s a good thing. When you stop playing football, you’re not really in that competitive kind of world. It’s nice to dip back in.” It’s a sporty line-up — footballers, a rugby player, a sprinter-turned-Gladiator. Will you be fiercely competitive? “I think all of us are going to be very competitive — all of us want to go as far as possible, you know? For now, I’m just trying to get better.” Karen Hauer with Harry Aikines-Aryeetey 37, sprinter and Gladiator Karen “Harry’s an Olympian — he has the right mindset. But I want to take it further. I’ll say, ‘Can you isolate your toe from your right armpit? Bring your right shoulder down, so that your left little finger doesn’t touch the back of my neck.’ But we’ll also be laughing and having fun.” Harry, you did the Strictly Christmas special last year. How different is the main series? Harry “Christmas Strictly is a fun place to be — there’s an essence of glee and sparkle. So I’m fully aware that Christmas tens don’t equate to real tens!” How does Strictly compare to life as Nitro on Gladiators — or as a sprinter? “I’m on holiday. This is fun! I’m not getting hit with the pugil stick or racing Usain Bolt.” Will you take any dance skills back with you to Gladiators? “Come Gladiators series four, you’ll see my pinkie isolated on that pugil stick. You’ll see that right toe turn out on The Wall.” Vito Coppola with Ellie Goldstein 23, model and actor Vito “Ellie is like my little sister, and I’m her big brother. She’s one of the most brilliant, exciting personalities I have ever met, and we are going to make sure to bring that out on the show. I want Ellie to be herself. I think people will really appreciate and understand the way she will shine like a star in the sky.” Ellie, you’re an actor and a model. How different is that to being on Strictly? Ellie “It’s different from modelling because that’s just posing for pictures. It’s similar to acting which, like Strictly, is a whole big thing. On Strictly it’s dark, there are bright lights and there’s glitz. I love it so much.” You’ve done a lot to raise awareness — you were the first model with Down’s syndrome on the cover of Vogue. What do you hope your time on Strictly will mean to people? “Oh, just to work towards your dreams and hopes. Keep that up and be confident in your life. It’s been the best experience on Strictly. I loved doing the launch show. The dancers were amazing. And all the celebrities were incredible.” Which of your fellow celebrities were you most excited to meet? “La Voix. Who else? Well, the pros — Karen, Vito and Nikita are the best pro dancers ever. They’re all amazing, but the best one is Vito!” Which dances are you looking forward to? “The cha-cha-cha, the Charleston, the foxtrot, and the waltz. Just a few!” Amy Dowden with Thomas Skinner 34, ex-Apprentice contestant Amy “Tom’s strength is his work ethic. He told me he’s up at three o’clock in the morning for work, selling on the market! And what I love about him is that he commits. There’s nothing worse than when you watch a celebrity begin a dance and they’re really insecure. But Tom just throws himself at it.” So, Tom, why do Strictly now? Thomas “No one’s ever going to think that someone like me would be doing Strictly. I want people to see that I can try new things and literally learn how to dance. I love that this show brings so much joy to families.” Will your family come down to watch you? “Of course. Everyone’s been saying, ‘Tom, I can’t wait to see you dance.’ I went to West Ham last week, and at least 500 people were queuing up to have a selfie or to wish me good luck. There were people going, ‘I’ve never watched Strictly before, but I’ll watch it because of you.’ I’m going to do it for the dads with the beer bellies.”
Meet Strictly's class of 2025: From a Doctor Who star to a Neighbours legend
From overcoming grief to chasing lifelong dreams – here’s why this year’s Strictly stars have embraced the sequins.
This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine. Strictly Come Dancing is bigger than its scandals. This time last year, amid a flurry of damaging behind-the-scenes stories, there were whispers that the show’s days might be numbered. Instead, it delivered one of its most heartwarming competitions yet, as blind comedian Chris McCausland and pro partner Dianne Buswell waltzed their way to victory. Now, despite more tabloid headlines, Strictly is quickstepping back onto our screens for its 23rd series. As always, there are a few changes – voting is online only and the set has had a minor refresh – but the heart of the show remains the same: a new cast of celebrities looking to dazzle the judges with their dancing. So, who’s bringing secret dance experience? Who’s got two left feet? Who’s already sweating with nerves – and who’s cool as a cucumber? This year’s professional dancers introduce the class of 2025… Dianne Buswell with Stefan Dennis, 66, Neighbours actor Dianne “Stefan’s acting is going to help, as I always like to show a character in the dance. When we met he didn’t know anything about me. He told me the guy who won last year made him tear up. I had to say, ‘Did you notice he was dancing with me?’ “Last year was an incredible experience. Chris [McCausland] and I weren’t prepared for the way people kept us in to the end. I don’t come into it thinking, ‘Ooh, I won last year.’ It’s a new slate. One year you could be holding the glitterball, the next you could be gone in week two or three.” So, Stefan, you didn’t recognise Dianne? Stefan “I didn’t know her from a bar of soap! But she’s a brilliant teacher. It’s going to be hard work, but it’s going to be fun. You know, I could be digging ditches.” Who’s your biggest competition? “I’m a bit nervous about Dani, Karen, Lewis… Harry’s going to be a surprise. And Ellie is just a delight — she’s a bowl of positivity.” Obviously, Neighbours is coming to an end again… “Yeah, it’s a bugger, isn’t it?” Is that why you had the time to do Strictly? “Well, yeah. I was going into semi-retirement, then Strictly called and I’m into hours of intense training. I thought we had long hours on Ramsay Street. This makes that look like a picnic!” Katya Jones with Lewis Cope, 30, Emmerdale actor Katya “I’m known as the queen of dad dancers, but this year is different. I think everyone’s aware that Lewis can move and I’m looking forward to turning him into a ballroom dancer. But his musical theatre experience might be a hindrance. Unlearning habits is harder than blank-canvas learning.” Lewis, you joined the show late, replacing Game of Thrones actor Kristian Nairn. Have you caught up? Lewis “The first call came on a Monday. By the Wednesday I’d agreed to do it, and on the Thursday I was on The One Show announcing it. I don’t feel like I’ve had the time to actually let it settle in and realise, ‘Oh God, this is actually happening.‘ I’m just taking every day as it comes.” As a child, you appeared in a West End production of Billy Elliot the Musical. Have you drawn on that experience for Strictly? “Well, it was 19 years ago, and it was just tap dancing in my part. I haven’t worn a pair of tap shoes in 17 years, so I’m not sure how that would go. But if I manage to get to musicals week, I’d love to do something from Billy Elliot.” How have you found being “Strictly-fied” with the fake tan, sequins and so on? “I haven’t had the fake tan yet — I might need to change my bedding, it’s all white! But I think when you put the clothes on, it changes you. You start thinking, talking and walking differently. It brightens you up in every way.” Carlos Gu with Karen Carney, 38, ex-professional footballer Carlos “As a former athlete, Karen has incredible stamina and great muscle ability. But more than that, she learns so quickly. I think she’s going to do some really great dancing.” Karen, what’s it like in the Strictly spotlight? Karen “The launch show was incredible. It felt like a big football team to me, but now it’s just me and Carlos. I trust him implicitly. It’s starting to feel a little more real.” Are you bringing your sporting competitive spirit to the dancefloor? “No. When you’re that competitive, you’re never in the moment — you’re always thinking about the next game. I’m just here to have a good time.” Is it hard to get out of that mindset? “I think if I had more of a competitive mindset, I’d probably have a gold medal, not silver and bronze! That’s where I failed. But seriously, I think sometimes people get competitiveness wrong. There’s a competitiveness to be the best version of yourself as well.” Johannes Radebe with Alex Kingston, 62, former Doctor Who & ER star Johannes “The first thing we noticed about each other was our matching dress sense. She saw my ruffle shirt, and I saw her ruffle shirt, and we said, ‘How did we know this was going to happen?’ In terms of dancing, Alex’s acting experience helps — dancing is storytelling, after all. But also, she has got rhythm, which I’m very excited about. When she dances, there’s an energy and a joy.” Alex, did anyone inspire you to sign up? Alex “Sarah Hadland doing it last year was the catalyst. We were in a play together in 2019, and we both said how much we wanted to do it, but our agents didn’t approve. So when I watched her I thought, ‘I’ve got to give it a go, then we can both fulfil the secret dream that we shared.’” What’s your biggest Strictly fear? “You have to be vulnerable in front of millions of people. That’s quite daunting, as is standing in front of the judges. When I watch Strictly, on the whole I agree with the judges, so I can’t just be thinking, ‘What do they know anyway?’” Aljaž Škorjanec with La Voix, 45, drag queen Aljaž “When I met La Voix, I was amazed. We have a speed-dating day where we test who will dance with who, and it was so hot — 40 degrees inside the studio. I was sweating and self-conscious, but La Voix was there without a bead of moisture on her forehead. The way she made it look effortless was just brilliant. That’s years of drag performing in hot night clubs! We clicked right away.” La Voix, how does it feel stepping into the Strictly spotlight? La Voix “First of all, it’s a dream come true. I never thought it would ever happen. I had a leg wax cancellation, there was a window. I thought, ‘Let’s do this.’ For me, just having someone do my make-up and hair — it’s unheard of. I love it. I’ve always had to do it all myself.” You’re looking fabulous today. Is the plan to perform in full drag every week? “I think at the minute, the plan is: super, super, glam, glam every single week. Because I think that’s what Strictly is, and I can’t turn down the opportunity. To come out in some dungarees and an old T-shirt — I can’t do that.” Drag queens are known for their funny comebacks. Do you have any one-liners for Craig Revel Horwood? “Within reason — I am genuinely here wanting to learn. But, yeah, if Craig goes too far, I will give as good as I get. I can’t help it. My mouth is my problem.” Karen Hauer with Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, 37, sprinter and Gladiator Karen “Harry’s an Olympian — he has the right mindset. But I want to take it further. I’ll say, ‘Can you isolate your toe from your right armpit? Bring your right shoulder down, so that your left little finger doesn’t touch the back of my neck.’ But we’ll also be laughing and having fun.” Harry, you did the Strictly Christmas special last year. How different is the main series? Harry: “Christmas Strictly is a fun place to be — there’s an essence of glee and sparkle. So I’m fully aware that Christmas tens don’t equate to real tens!” How does Strictly compare to life as Nitro on Gladiators — or as a sprinter? “I’m on holiday. This is fun! I’m not getting hit with the pugil stick or racing Usain Bolt.” Will you take any dance skills back with you to Gladiators? “Come Gladiators series four, you’ll see my pinkie isolated on that pugil stick. You’ll see that right toe turn out on The Wall.” Jowita Przystał with Ross King, 63, showbiz reporter Jowita “It’s like we’ve met in a past life. We’re so comfortable with each other. We’re getting in trouble because we chat so much. Ross’s real strength is his personality. Dancing is truth, it’s joy, it’s feelings. I know that I will get that from Ross, and I think that’s 75 per cent of what you need. Technique, you always can learn.” Ross, you’re used to getting the showbiz stories. What’s it like to be in one? Ross “It’s very weird. There’s a bit of trepidation. I’m trying to surrender to it.” Is there any experience from your career that might help? “I’m used to live TV, and a live audience, so I think those two things will help. But obviously, there’s the lack of dancing ability…” Who’s rooting for you to win? “Scotland — I’ve got the pressure of a nation behind me. And Team Lorraine! Lorraine Kelly’s called me “twinkletoes” from the beginning.” Nadiya Bychkova with Chris Robshaw, 39, ex-rugby player Nadiya “I love working with athletes — they understand that you need to put the work in, and it’s really important for Strictly because the time frame is so short. I can already say that Chris is maybe even better than any of my experiences before with athletes.” Chris, how competitive will you be in Strictly? Chris “I’m naturally that way from the life I’ve lived, but people say you don’t want to be too competitive on Strictly. My mate Ugo Monye did it a few years ago, so my competition is to beat him. A bit of friendly rivalry.” What made you decide to do Strictly now? “I’ve had conversations before, but I haven’t been in the right head space. I wanted to challenge myself. Plus, my son loves dancing. He’s excited.” What did your rugby mates make of it? “The support I’ve had has been amazing. I’ve already had more friends ask for Strictly tickets than England tickets! The demand is crazy.” Kai Widdrington with Vicky Pattison, 37, reality TV star Kai “Vicky was who I wanted to get partnered with. People may not know that we have a big Geordie connection: my family’s from Newcastle. Naturally, there are nerves — but when the sense of accomplishment comes through, hopefully that will have a snowball effect.” Vicky, you got married last year. What was your first dance at the reception? Vicky “Oh, baby, come on. I didn’t have a first dance. We probably just shuffled a little bit, like some awkward couple at prom.” So why do Strictly now? “I’ve wanted to do it for years, but I’ve never been asked. When I got it, I was so shocked, I said to my agent, ‘Can I think about it?‘ She said, ‘Yes, but just so you know, you’re doing it.’” How does Strictly compare to I’m a Celebrity...? “In the jungle, I was in a bubble eating kangaroo bits with Ant and Dec. Here, I’m learning a new skill with judges critiquing us, as well as Sandra from Surrey. That does strike fear in my heart.” Vito Coppola with Ellie Goldstein, 23, model and actor Vito “Ellie is like my little sister, and I’m her big brother. She’s one of the most brilliant, exciting personalities I have ever met, and we are going to make sure to bring that out on the show. I want Ellie to be herself. I think people will really appreciate and understand the way she will shine like a star in the sky.” Ellie, you’re an actor and a model. How different is that to being on Strictly? Ellie: “It’s different from modelling because that’s just posing for pictures. It’s similar to acting which, like Strictly, is a whole big thing. On Strictly it’s dark, there are bright lights and there’s glitz. I love it so much.” You’ve done a lot to raise awareness — you were the first model with Down’s syndrome on the cover of Vogue. What do you hope your time on Strictly will mean to people? “Oh, just to work towards your dreams and hopes. Keep that up and be confident in your life. It’s been the best experience on Strictly. I loved doing the launch show. The dancers were amazing. And all the celebrities were incredible.” Which of your fellow celebrities were you most excited to meet? “Ooh, Dani Dyer, of course. And La Voix. Who else? Well, the pros — Karen, Vito and Nikita are the best pro dancers ever. They’re all amazing, but the best one is Vito!” Which dances are you looking forward to? “The cha-cha-cha, the Charleston, the foxtrot, and the waltz. Just a few!” Amy Dowden with Thomas Skinner, 34, ex-Apprentice contestant Amy “Tom’s strength is his work ethic. He told me he’s up at three o’clock in the morning for work, selling on the market! And what I love about him is that he commits. There’s nothing worse than when you watch a celebrity begin a dance and they’re really insecure. But Tom just throws himself at it.” So, Tom, why do Strictly now? Thomas “No one’s ever going to think that someone like me would be doing Strictly. I want people to see that I can try new things and literally learn how to dance. I love that this show brings so much joy to families.” Will your family come down to watch you? “Of course. Everyone’s been saying, ‘Tom, I can’t wait to see you dance.’ I went to West Ham last week, and at least 500 people were queuing up to have a selfie or to wish me good luck. There were people going, ‘I’ve never watched Strictly before, but I’ll watch it because of you.’ I’m going to do it for the dads with the beer bellies.” Alexis Warr with George Clarke, 25, social media influencer Alexis “George picks up steps quite well. Then I feel like he overthinks it and messes up the footwork. But it’s there. He has a natural rhythm. I’ve watched George’s online videos — he’s funny! And when he just goofs around, he’s super-groovy. I see a lot of potential.” George, what’s it like to join Strictly? George “It’s out of my usual realm. But when this came, I said, ‘Number one: it’s insane that I’ve even been asked. Number two: in three or four years, people may not even have a clue who I am. While I have the chance, I should do it!’” What do your friends and family make of it? “My nan would kill me if I said no. It’s cool to have something that my family actually understands when they watch it.” Maybe you’ll get new followers from Strictly? “There’s been a few occasions where somebody has come over and said, ‘Good luck on Strictly.’ And I can tell, without being rude, that they’re not in my usual demographic!” Julian Caillon with Balvinder Sopal, 46, EastEnders actor Julian “To get someone like Balvinder has been such a blessing. After we first met the celebrities, we are asked ‘Who do we think is good? Who do we think is one of the better dancers?’ Bal was in almost everyone’s top two. She has a hidden natural dance ability.” Balvinder, you’ve revealed you did some amateur ballroom before. What started that? Balvinder “It was because of Strictly! Watching the show in its first few series, I thought ‘God, what an amazing thing to get into.’ So I did a social dance thing in Huddersfield. It was the most euphoric thing I’ve ever done. But the class didn’t last long because it cost a lot of money.” So, why do Strictly now? “2025 is my ‘yes’ year. I lost my mum last year, and I think she would hate for me not to take up an opportunity like this. My mum was a real fan of the show. We used to watch together. She was strong and always put her best foot forward — I need to step into her energy.” Nikita Kuzmin with Dani Dyer, 29, ex-Love Island star Nikita “When we got paired up, I asked around — how is she when she’s not on camera? Everybody said she’s the most amazing person, she’s kind, she’s gorgeous. And they were right! I don’t think she can dance yet, but she can wiggle — which is a promising start.” We photographed your dad, Danny Dyer, and he let slip that you were doing the show… Dani “He told everyone. When I told my family, I thought, ‘I shouldn’t tell him, because he can’t keep his mouth shut.’ He said ‘I haven’t told anyone, baby.’ The next day, people are coming up to me like, ‘Are you doing Strictly? Your dad said.’ He’s so excited about me doing this — he’s coming to watch the first live show.” What are you looking forward to the most? “Probably musicals week. I love a musical.” Have any ex-contestants given you advice? “I spoke to Dan Walker, because we climbed Kilimanjaro together. He told me he wishes he could do it again because it’s the best time.” Lauren Oakley with Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, 53, ex-footballer Lauren “What I’ve noticed with Jimmy is that any kind of instruction that I give him — lower the arm, point the toe — he takes it on straight away, because he’s used to taking instructions from a coach. Which is great for me! Aside from that, he’s also got some rhythm. So I’ve definitely got something to work with.” Jimmy, you’re a football legend, but have you done much dancing? Jimmy “In the kitchen with the girls. I’m a girly dad. They make me do all sorts of things. My middle daughter is in dance school, and she was trying to make me do a split in the air. A box jump, I think it’s called. The moment I was asked to go onto the show, there was no way back. They said, ‘You’re going to have to take it, Daddy.’” You’re used to performing at a high level in front of big crowds, but is Strictly a different ball game? “Football, for me, is so easy. Dancing is out of my comfort zone. But that’s a good thing. When you stop playing football, you’re not really in that competitive kind of world. It’s nice to dip back in.” It’s a sporty line-up — footballers, a rugby player, a sprinter-turned-Gladiator. Will you be fiercely competitive? “I think all of us are going to be very competitive — all of us want to go as far as possible, you know? For now, I’m just trying to get better.” The latest issue of Radio Times is out now – subscribe here. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.