Back on stage again woo-hoo!

So, I know it's been ages, but I'm curious about David Tennant in Dr Who. More specifically, he really rocks that coat he wears when playing The Doctor. Has he ever indicated in interviews or whatever if it's his own, what was the idea behind it etc? And was it hard to run around in? I wonder if a coat like that limits mobility .

Takin' Over the Asylum follows a salesman who revitalizes a hospital radio station in a Glasgow psychiatric facility, giving patients a voice and sense of purpose. Praised for its humane mix of humor and empathy, it treats mental illness with sensitivity while avoiding stereotypes. With standout turns from Ken Stott and a young David Tennant, it earned BAFTAs and remains a cult favourite for its wit, warmth, and social insight.

• Eddie McKenna (Ken Stott), an alcoholic double glazing salesman and aspiring disc jockey, develops the hospital radio station with the help of several of the patients at the hospital, including:
• Campbell Bain (David Tennant) – a nineteen-year-old, enthusiastic contributor to the station, who has bipolar disorder (formerly known as manic depression).
• Francine Boyle (Katy Murphy) – a long-term depressive patient who self harms to whom Eddie is attracted.
• Fergus MacKinnon (Angus Macfadyen) – an electrical engineer, who has schizophrenia and a tendency to escape the hospital and then return.
• Rosalie Gerrity (Ruth McCabe) – a middle-aged housewife who has OCD regarding cleanliness and is separating from her husband.
• Jim Gerrity (Jon Morrison) - Husband of Rosalie Gerrity, he refuses to accept her home until she is 'normal'.
• Campbell's Dad (James Grant) - Is unsupportive of Campbell's dream of being a DJ.
• Grandma (Elizabeth Spriggs) - Eddie's Lithuanian grandmother who lives with him and is eager for him to find a wife.
• Isabel (Angela Bruce) - The principal nurse at St Jude's, who is very supportive of the radio station.
• Mr Gordon Griffin (Roy Hanlon) - Eddie's boss at TwinView windows, who encourages Eddie to give up the radio in order to dedicate more time to his job.
• John MacAteer (Neil McKinven) - Eddie's work rival at TwinView windows.
• Paula (Arabella Weir) - Eddie's contact at Radio Scotland, who Eddie and Campbell use to try and get their own radio show.
• Evelyn McDonald (Sandra Voe) - part of the hospital board, she comes to inspect the station.

Much thanks to Martha Jones for fast forwarding past the pear thing.

A Jilly Cooper FSB Award nominee!😅

(I played with the background shading but not him. 'FSB' See: Jilly Cooper ;-)

The Time Series/Season 3 media page. Interviews with the cast and some video I can't access (FFS BBC!) Available on BritBox if you're in the US. Episode 1 airs this Sunday.

Here's David's interview to save you a click (there's another photo of him there but you'll see it elsewhere I'm sure!)

Can you tell us what’s happening in the series when we meet Bobby Bailey?

The series is set in and around a young offender institution where my character, Bobby, is an officer. We follow what’s happening to him both at the prison and in his home life. We also follow what’s happening to some of the inmates and find out about why they’re there and what’s going on in their lives. Something happens towards the end of the first episode and Bobby’s left in a position where he knows more than the authorities do. He has to reckon with himself as to whether it’s right to be honest and truthful or defend his mate.

Bobby is a complex character – can you tell us a bit more about him?

Bobby is written very obliquely and sparely in some ways. You build up who he is by lots of micro experiences of him. He’s very different at work to how he is at home. He’s holding secrets at work. He’s someone who, in some ways, has atrophied. His life was in a routine that he wasn’t particularly interested in challenging, but he has been forced to challenge it by circumstances, both domestic and professional. He’s forced into moments of crisis that he did not go looking for and doesn’t particularly thrive in, yet he is forced to move. I think that’s what Jimmy has always been famous for, he puts ordinary people in moments of extremis and sort of lets them be, lets them unfold. That’s what his work has always been for me, it’s the human experience kind of twisted and tested. That’s why a prison environment is such fertile ground for him because it’s people in a very unique, very difficult, very extreme situations. It’s like he gets humanity and puts it on a slow simmer and sees what happens. That’s certainly what’s happening to Bobby throughout this, the heat is just gradually being turned up and there’s nothing he can do to turn it back down again. From an acting point of view, that’s what’s appealing and exciting. That’s what draws you to a project like this. You’re telling a story that feels very relatable and rather panic inducing!

Do you think that Bobby is a good person?

I think he’s a very human person. He’s very explicable and easy to identify with. Sometimes he’s a very good man and sometimes he’s quite flawed. I think he has some very good intentions, but he’s also quite compromised. It’s very difficult to answer whether he’s good or bad – he's both, like all of us.

Time tells the human story of the people in these institutions, do you think things are elevated in a young offender institution?

Each series of Time has been very much its own thing – apart from Siobhan’s character, there isn’t really a link between the series other than it’s about life in prison – a male prison, a female prison, and now a young offender institution. They’re both similar and very different. The prison system is a necessary part of the justice system, but it’s often regarded as imperfect, and yet those working within it often have the best intentions. Clearly when you’re dealing with young men, boys, who are being excluded from society, being locked away, it’s particularly difficult to consider. They've done some very serious things and they’re paying the price for that, but I think it’s always important that, as a society, we look at what we’re doing – whether we’re doing the right thing and what it does to the boys we lock away.

Why is setting this story inside a young offender institution a compelling choice?

There’s something about it being boys who are not yet men, who are all potential, and that potential being incarcerated. There’s something very galling about that. It’s quite scary because there’s a lot of energy in that moment in a young man’s life, in a boy’s life. It’s all that potential and it’s bottled and contained, which doesn’t feel right somehow. There’s a real sense of danger in that.

The young actors are brilliant – can you talk about the dynamic working with them?

I think one of the most exciting things about this is some of the young actors that Amy Hubbard, our casting director, and Paul Whittington, our director, have found. It was a big old search and they found some actors who have quite a lot of experience, some lads who are absolutely brand new to it, others who are looking to go to drama school – all different stages of an acting career, yet they’ve come in with such enthusiasm and energy. They’re all so committed and full of life. Working in and amongst them has been quite humbling for me. It’s very moving to see what they’re all bringing to it, they’re all very individual. I think this is one of those series people will look back on in 20, 30 years – I’ll be long gone, I’ll be dust - but you’ll be going: ‘oh my god, that’s where he started! And him, and him, and him!’ I feel very proud to be standing alongside them. That will be the beating heart of the show, their performances.

How has it been working with Siobhan?

I’ve been a fan of Siobhan for years. We'd never worked together, our paths may have vaguely crossed at a do or something, but to get to work with her and to get to know her... She’s everything you hope she will be – as an actor, she’s sublime, and as a human, she’s hilarious. Siobhan Finneran, doesn’t disappoint. You can have that, Siobhan, you can put that on your CV!

I am picturing Jilly Cooper and Celia Imrie having some interesting conversations over a few glasses of wine lol...

In my APHuG class there’s this guy that looks like David Tennant. He was eating alone at lunch so we invited him to our group and I told him he looked like David Tennant. I’m in idiot who can’t interpret what people are thinking so idk if he thought it was funny but I think he smiled. That is my story. Thank you for your time.

:)

Between the delicious beginning and ending there is also a bonus of some very cool music ;-)

(I don't need to add the punchline, do I? ;-) 🍴

Hi everyone, i wanted to share this small story.

So, a few years ago i watched around the world in 80 days. I'm italian btw. And of course i watched the episode set in Italy. And i was so happy seeing two of my favorite actors together - David and the italian guy. I thought the kid that played his son was so lucky. Like, David literally tells him "if you were my son i would be very proud of you". A few months ago i was talking with my friend and she mentioned her sister who does theatre. She said that at her acting school there's some guy that brags about having starred in a few tv shows. I was like meh, ok. Then i came across his instagram. He's that kid. He lives in my small town. And he got to act with David Tennant. I am stunned, and a bit jealous honestly lol.

A question, likely to the brits here: just how common is it to have DT voice an ad in the UK? Because from my very limited experience with UK advertising he seems to show up in the most random places, sometimes I have to do a double take bc *how did this happen*?

From what I see in US ads (not from there either) pretty famous people there show up in big car ads and such, marketed specifically with their name/face. With DT (and maybe normal in the UK?) it can be a random insurance or grocery thing with no name mentioned at all

Hi ! I was wondering if anyone knew of an ISO file version of the Staged DVDs ? I have the S1/2 DVD, but no DVD player, and haven't managed to get my hands on the S3 DVD yet. I was looking for a way to have the DVD experience, but without a player.

Anyone with an ISO file, hit me up !

Have a lovely day :)

Made this myself and felt that others may appreciate this flag

Dan Levy x David Tennant collab? YES, PLEASE!! 🙏