A fan's guide to the 216+ roles played by Alun Armstrong, including descriptions, images, availability, ratings & reviews.
When We Are Married on Radio 4 Extra on 25 FebruaryThe radio play When We Are Married by J.B. Priestley is airing on Radio 4 Extra Saturday, 25 February at 6:00 a.m. and again at 4:00 p.m. and on Sunday 26 February at 4:00 a.m. It should be available on BBC iPlayer after the first broadcast. This radio play is also available to buy on audiobook from Amazon UK and Amazon.Alun Armstrong stars along with Alan Bennett, Gwen Taylor, Brenda Blethyn, Michael Jayston and Nicola Pagett as three couples celebrating their silver wedding anniversaries who discover that they are not legally married due to a technicality. Confronted with the revelation, the couples face a host of personal dilemmas. |
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The Mystery of Edwin Drood coming in April on PBS; DVD due in MayThe Mystery of Edwin Drood aired on 10 and 11 January on BBC2. It will air in the U.S. on PBS on Sunday, 15 April. The Region 1 (US/Canada) DVD and Blu-ray will be released 1 May 2012 and can be pre-ordered from Amazon.In an interview with Total TV Guide, Alun said: "I’ve played some strange Dickens characters in the past. Flintwinch from Little Dorrit was pretty horrible, as was Wackford Squeers in Nicholas Nickleby, but Grewgious is the absolute opposite. He’s delightfully warm and eccentric. He’s the guardian of Rosa Bud, an orphan and Edwin Drood’s fiancée. He applies himself with great seriousness to the job and is an odd sort of father figure to her." Matthew Rhys, who stars as John Jasper, told Digital Spy: "... we were all very lucky in that we had some great veterans of Dickens, like Alun Armstrong and Ian McNeice - the words fall out of their mouths as if they were born to say this stuff, so that influence was fantastic to have." |
Alun Armstrong as Mr Grewgious |
Garrow's Law series 3 DVD available; series cancelledThe Region 2 (UK/Europe) DVD of Garrow's Law series three is now available from Amazon UK. Unfortunately this will be the last series as Garrow's Law has been cancelled.In series 3, Garrow's cases include an assassination attempt on King George III, industrial sabotage, and allegations of torture in the British colonies. Meanwhile Lady Sarah is obsessed with regaining custody of her son Samuel, and Southouse is concerned about the effects her efforts will have on Garrow. But when Southouse becomes gravely ill with gaol fever, he changes his mind and helps her, assisted by his wayward nephew George Pinnock. |
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Big River, Big Songs DVD now availableAlun Armstrong and Tim Healy (pictured) sing "The Row upon the Stairs" by Joe Wilson on the DVD Big River, Big Songs, featuring an array of artists - including Sting, Jimmy Nail, Mark Knopfler and many more - performing songs from Tyneside. The DVD can be ordered online from Mawson & Wareham and should also be available at HMV shops in the UK.Armstrong and Healy recorded the song at the Priory Theatre in Tynemouth. "The Row upon the Stairs" is traditionally performed by men dressed as women arguing over who keeps the cleanest house. Armstrong commented, "You grow up on these songs, I have sang them all of my life. I have always loved them." The DVD, filmed by Geoff Wonfor, is part of the Northumbria Anthology project, collecting the songs and poems of North East England. 75% of the profits from the DVD will be donated to the Northumbria Anthology, the Sunday for Sammy, the Bobby Robson Foundation and the Rainforest Foundation. |
Tim Healy & Alun Armstrong |
Alun Armstrong will play the Henry Percy, the Earl of Northumberland, opposite his son Joe Armstrong as the Earl's son Henry "Hotspur" Percy in the forthcoming BBC2 production of Henry IV Part One. From the official BBC Press Release:
Continuing with the incredibly high standard set
by Richard II, Jeremy Irons plays the role of King Henry IV in this
production adapted and directed by Richard Eyre. Tom Hiddleston joins
the cast as Prince Hal, Simon Russell Beale plays Falstaff and Alun
Armstrong plays the Earl of Northumberland. Lady Northumberland is
played by Niamh Cusack with Hotspur played by Joe Armstrong.
As with Richard II and Henry V, these bold adaptations are set in the
medieval period and are being shot at some of the UK’s most stunning
locations. The films will bring a new scale to Shakespeare in one of the
most ambitious television projects of recent years.
Alun Armstrong will also appear as Northumberland in Henry IV Part Two. The plays will air in the summer of 2012 as part of BBC2's Shakespeare Season and also on Great Performances on PBS. Filming began in January 2012.
A Passionate Woman DVD to be released in FebruaryThe two-part television movie A Passionate Woman is coming on DVD on 27 February 2012. The film stars Joe Armstrong and Alun Armstrong as Donald, a man whose wife has a tragic affair that haunts her for 30 years of their marriage. Joe appears in part one as a young man in the 1950s and Alun is in part two as an older man in the 1980s. Billie Piper and Sue Johnston play Donald's wife Betty. The film was written by Kay Mellor.The Region 2 (UK/Europe) DVD is available for pre-order from Amazon UK. |
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Filming underway for New Tricks Series 9New Tricks has been commissioned for two more series of ten episodes each. Series 9 will air in 2012 and Series 10 will air in 2013. Production has begun on the next series. Episode 2 is entitled "Old School Ties" and guest stars Nicola Walker and Tony Gardner.James Bolam has decided to leave the show and will not be reprising his role as Jack Halford. He has been replaced by Denis Lawson playing retired DI Steve McAllister. The character is described as "a bundle of energetic optimism with a tendency to get personally involved in the cases he’s working on," which Radio Times observes "appears to be the complete antithesis of Brian Lane's pessimistic persona." Alun Armstrong told @totaltvguide, "They'll bring in a different character which will change things slightly, but it won't be a problem." DVD release dates: Region 2, UK/Europe - Series 8 out now Region 1, US/Canada - Series 6 out now |
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