EXCLUSIVE: New BBC sun-kissed drama left actors ‘turning blue’ and wearing hidden thermals
BBC sun kissed drama Two Weeks In August looks lovely on screen but all is not as it seems
Jessica Raine leads the cast of Two Weeks In August for fun in the sun(Image: BBC/Robert Viglasky)
The cast of new BBC drama of sun-kissed new drama “turned blue” because the Summer scenes were actually filmed in March.
Jessica Raine leads the cast of Two Weeks In August, a new primetime drama based around a group of friends who go on a greek holiday to try to rediscover joy in her life.
But it is far from paradise for the couples in the storyline and it was far from a sunny holiday for the cast at the start of the shoot in either.
Jessica said: “We filmed at the beginning of March, and I’ve never been so cold in my entire life, and I’ve shot in Iceland! There’s a birthday party scene we filmed early on where we’re all in summer clothes, but everyone’s secretly got thermals on underneath wherever they can fit them. We were packed with hot water bottles. People didn’t believe me when I called home at the beginning of the shoot and said it was freezing.”
Referring to her co-star and on screen husband Damien Molony who plays Dan, Jessica added: “I watched Damien go blue about five times. In episode three there is a birthday party and Jesus, I was worried about you. There was an icy wind.”
Damien added: “We shot a swimming pool scene in March and it was so cold, It is the best acting I have ever done. At 4am in March.”
The shoot took place in Malta for six months meaning later in the series the temperatures improved.
Jessica added: “Thankfully, the weather did change for the better. The locations were stunning – shooting on Gozo was a real treat.”
Jessica, who rose to prominence as Nurse Jennifer Lee in Call the Midwife, describes the scripts as “hilarious to read” with her character Zoe “on the cusp of breaking” when she arrives on holiday with her two kids and troubled husband.
The 43-year-old added: “It initially looks like paradise, but it soon becomes a hellscape. The beautiful, isolated location turns into utter loneliness and there is a sense of dread that the group can’t escape.
“I think what is great about this situation is that there’s a real sense that everyone is being polite, which is a typical British quality. These people were great university friends, but their lives have taken different paths.
“I always felt the tone had to strike the right balance of comedy and tragedy. It’s a delicious mix of humour and epic philosophies and ideas. I think everyone is going to love it!”
The comedy drama also stars Nicholas Pinnock, Antonia Thomas, Leila Farzad and Hugh Skinner.
* Two Weeks In August starts on BBC1 and BBC iPlayer on May 23.
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