The Long Firm
Introduction
A four-part drama for BBC TWO based on Jake Arnott's
critically acclaimed novel
.
"Brilliant... Arnott's great achievement is
making his grisly hero so darn likeable, even when he's at his ugliest"
- The Times
"The evocation of Sixties London is brilliantly
done and the powerful, stylish writing hooks the reader from the first
page" - Mail on Sunday
The dark underbelly of Sixties London is brought into
sharp focus in Joe Penhall's adaptation of Jake Arnott's critically
acclaimed novel The Long Firm, starting on BBC TWO
on Wednesday 7 July at 9.00pm.
Cool, stylish and sexy, Penhall's four-part drama serial
captures the colourful and seedy side of the criminal underworld.
It tells the story of Harry Starks, played by Mark
Strong, as seen through the eyes of four characters that come into
his orbit - a Tory Lord, an actress, a lowlife speed dealer and an academic.
"Starks is a charismatic
nightclub owner, racketeer, porn king and avid Judy Garland fan who
makes and loses his fortune in Sixties Soho," says producer Liza
Marshall.
"He is no regular gangster – Starks is a complex
man; intelligent, vulnerable, violent when he needs to be, but all the
while yearning for something more than the rough and tumble of criminal
life.
"Everyone that he encounters is changed forever
by the experience."
The impressive cast includes Mark Strong (Our Friends
In The North, Prime Suspect) as Harry Starks.
"Pound for pound, I think
Mark is one of the best actors in Britain at the moment, and this piece
will bear that out," states award-winning writer, Joe Penhall.
"He has done a very complex, cinematic performance
which is very endearing and intelligent, yet also immediate, inclusive
and easy to grasp."
Sir Derek Jacobi plays Lord Teddy Thursby, a
cash-strapped politician whose introduction to Harry Starks is a match
made in heaven.
Starks uses the peer's impressive name to give credibility
to his shady dealings, while Thursby gets to slum it with the lowlifes
and indulge his taste for young men away from the disapproving gaze
of his wife.
"Derek Jacobi is a big fan
of the book, so when we were thinking about casting the role, his name
came up really early on," confirms Marshall.
"He was just perfect for the part. Derek hasn't
been on television for a while, and so it felt exciting to be casting
him in a part that some people might think is ever so slightly shocking."
Fading movie star Ruby Ryder (Lena Headey) is
just the kind of person Starks likes to have at his club.
Down on her luck, she agrees to help him out and choreograph
his strippers, and even give acting lessons to Starks' toyboy Tommy
(Joe Absolom).
But she soon learns that you never get something for
nothing.
Phil Daniels is Jimmy, a petty criminal and general
lowlife who gets caught up in Harry's world.
Haunted by his past, he can identify with Harry's quest
to find out the truth about a murdered rent boy.
Shaun Dingwall plays Lenny, a young lecturer
and radical criminologist who becomes enthralled by Starks when he teaches
him in prison, ending up following him to an explosive dénouement
on the Costa Del Crime.
George Costigan plays bent copper Detective Sergeant
Mooney.
Laura Mackie, Head of BBC Drama Serials, adds: "The
combination of Jake Arnott's cult novel and the appeal of bringing award-winning
playwright Joe Penhall on board was an irresistible pairing.
"Like Hawking for BBC TWO which uncovered the personal
life of an iconic scientist, The Long Firm takes a challenging and intimate
approach into the world of a gangster.
"It really lifts the lid on that world in a surprising
way."
The Long Firm is directed by Billie Eltringham
(Kid In The Corner, This Is Not A Love Song) and written by accomplished
playwright Joe Penhall, winner of the Evening Standard Award
& Olivier Awards for Blue/Orange.
Penhall's film Enduring Love, directed by Roger Michell.
is due for cinematic release later this year.
The producer is Liza Marshall (The Sins, Eroica)
and the executive producers are Hilary Salmon, Laura Mackie
and David Bernath for BBC America.
The Long Firm starts on BBC
TWO on Wednesday 7 July at 9.00pm.
Notes to Editors
The original soundtrack for The Long Firm is due out
on 5 July.
The DVD/Video is due for release on 23 August.
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