Latest news with #HardSun
Irish Daily Mirror
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Daily Mirror
Playing Nice and The White Lotus stars team in first-look at new Sky thriller
Neil Cross, the mastermind behind Luther, is set to thrill audiences once again with a new Sky original series, The Iris Affair, slated for release later this year. The creator of edge-of-your-seat dramas such as Spooks and Hard Sun, Neil Cross is bringing his latest creation to life, promising to make The Iris Affair one of the most anticipated shows of 2025. With a cast featuring Tom Hollander from The White Lotus and Niamh Algar of Playing Nice fame, the first glimpse of this sun-drenched thriller has just been unveiled to eager fans. The series, comprising eight parts, will be brought to the screen by directors Terry McDonough, known for his work on Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, and Sarah O'Gorman, acclaimed for her direction in A Gentleman in Moscow and The Witcher. Sky's synopsis teases: "The Iris Affair is a tense and cinematic chase thriller that pits two brilliant minds against each other in a deadly game of hide and seek across Italy", reports the Express. "When enigmatic genius Iris Nixon (Algar) cracks a string of complex online puzzles, she's led to a piazza in Florence where she meets charismatic entrepreneur Cameron Beck (Hollander). "He invites her to come and work for him to unlock a powerful and top-secret piece of technology. Her curiosity piqued, she accepts. But when Iris discovers its dangerous potential, she steals the journal containing the device's activation sequence-and vanishes. "What follows is a relentless pursuit, from a remote cabin in Sardinia through the bustling streets of Rome, as Cameron races to find Iris in a high-stakes game where trust is dangerous and failure could be catastrophic." The Iris Affair, with its captivating premise and top-notch talent behind the scenes, boasts a star-studded cast alongside Hollander and Algar for this thrilling journey. Joining the lead duo are renowned actors like Game of Thrones' Kristofer Hivju, Arcane's Harry Lloyd and Doctor Who's Sacha Dhawan. TV lovers can now get Sky TV, Netflix and Discovery+ for £22 per month with the new Ultimate TV bundle. This includes more than 140 channels live and on-demand without a satellite dish or aerial and includes hit shows like The White Lotus, The Last of Us and Squid Game. The supporting cast is rounded off by Meréana Tomlinson, Maya Sansa, Peter Sullivan, Debi Mazar, Marco Leonardi, Angela Bruce and Lorenzo De Moor. The series, created and showrun by Cross, is being produced by Fremantle, with scripts penned by Susan E. Connolly and Ian Scott McCullough. While an official release date is yet to be confirmed, this must-see thriller is set to hit our screens by the end of 2025. The Iris Affair will premiere in 2025 on Sky and NOW.
BBC News
01-04-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Doctor Who: Varada Sethu wants to inspire young South Asian women
When new Doctor Who companion Varada Sethu first told her family she wanted to be an actress, there wasn't immediate support."They had difficulty coming to terms with it initially," she tells BBC Asian Network who will be playing Ncuti Gatwa's sidekick, Belinda Chandra in the upcoming series, feels going into acting is "sadly still not encouraged in the South Asian community"."There's an element of resistance we face," the 32-year-old Varada wants to change all of that, and says inspiring young girls to follow their dreams is one of her big goals."I want to be the person that these girls can point out to and say: 'She made it and she came from a community that looks like mine'."So I think I've gone about this with the energy of, I can't fall flat on my face," she says. But the actress, who has had roles in Disney+ Star Wars series Andor as well as 2018 crime drama Hard Sun, and Jurassic World Dominion, says affecting change comes with difficulties.A report by the Creative Diversity Network found in 2022/23 the percentage of on-screen contributions by those who identify as South Asian or South Asian British was 4.9%. That's compared to the latest census data, analysed by the UK Government, that found around 8% of people with that background are in the working-age population."It's a constant battle of failure isn't an option," says Varada."Because, you know, your uncle's daughter who's six, who might wanna go into acting when she's a bit older, but won't be allowed to, if I become the cautionary tale."Despite that, while filming, she says she tries not to put too much pressure on herself, adding she tries to stay authentic to her true self, instead of getting caught up in the moment."Occasionally it does hit me in my face like oh, that's a lot, that's a big thing that's happening."But I try not to get swept up in it. You know, I try to just do the best I can." Playing the role of Belinda in Doctor Who has been an "honour", Varada says."Everyone's heard of Doctor Who, everyone knows of Doctor Who, even if you don't regularly watch it."It's so iconic and British, and it's such a part of our culture." Praising Ncuti Gatwa for the "energy he brings to the role", she describes him as inspiring to watch work and "an absolute joy" to work character Belinda travels to a number of different planets and times zones after asking the doctor for help to get home, which Varada says was the most exciting thing about the role. "This character is discovering all these different sides to herself in circumstances that, no human gets to experience in real life." And she says some of her character's "feisty" and "independent" traits have helped her in her real life."As an actor you get to practice saying things that you maybe you wouldn't be as brave in saying."And it's safer because you know what the other person is going to say, but you know, your nervous system gets used to that."I think with each character I play, I discover a new chapter about myself as well."And Belinda's taught me a lot about that," she says. Doctor Who Season 2 is set to premiere on Saturday 12 April 2025, on BBC One and BBC iPlayer in the UK, with those outside of the UK able to watch on Disney+. Listen to Ankur Desai's show on BBC Asian Network live from 15:00-18:00 Monday to Thursday - or listen back here.
