''The Living and the Dead'' is a British six-episode

supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...

horror television series created by

Ashley Pharoah Ashley Pharoah (born 13 September 1959) is a British screenwriter and television producer. He is best known as the co-creator/writer of the successful drama series ''Life on Mars'', which began on BBC One in 2006, and creator/writer of the fami ...

. The plot revolves around Nathan Appleby (played by

Colin Morgan Colin Morgan (born 1 January 1986) is a Northern Irish actor. He is best known for playing the title character in the BBC fantasy series '' Merlin'' (2008–2012), Leo Elster in ''Humans'' (2015–2018), and Billy Clanton in Kenneth Branagh’s ...

) and his wife, Charlotte Appleby (played by Charlotte Spencer), whose farm is believed to be at the centre of numerous supernatural occurrences.

Cast

Main cast

as Nathan Appleby, a pioneering Victorian psychologist who moves to his family's estate in

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

and encounters disturbing events * Charlotte Spencer as Charlotte Appleby, a pioneering photographer who accompanies her husband to try to turn the farm's fortunes around *

Nicholas Woodeson Nicholas Woodeson (born 30 November 1949) is an English film, television and theatre actor, and Drama Desk and Olivier award nominee. Early life Woodeson was born in Sudan and lived in the Middle East as a boy. He started performing at prep sch ...

as Reverend Matthew Denning

Supporting cast

* Isaac Andrews as Charlie Thatcher *

Elizabeth Berrington Elizabeth Berrington (born 3 August 1970) is an English actress and graduate of the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art; she is best known for her roles as Ruby Fry in '' Waterloo Road'', Paula Kosh in '' Stella'', Mel Debrou in ''Moving Wall ...

as Maud Hare * Sarah Counsell Lizzie Merrifield *

Robert Emms Robert Emms (born Robert James MacPherson; 20 May 1986) is an English film, stage and television actor, known for portraying Pythagoras in the BBC One fantasy-adventure series ''Atlantis'', and Leonid Toptunov in HBO's Miniseries ''Chernobyl'' ...

as Peter Hare * Amber Fernée as Bathsheba Thatcher * Joel Gillman as Jack Langtree *

Tallulah Haddon Tallulah Rose Haddon (born 9 September 1997) is a British actress, drag and performance artist, and model. Early life She is the daughter of artist Laura Godfrey-Isaacs and architect Glen Haddon. She attended the private Emanuel School in Batter ...

as Harriet Denning *

Kerrie Hayes Kerrie Hayes (born 13 March 1987)Profiles – Kerrie Hayes – hellom ...

as Gwen Pearce *

Liam McMahon Liam McMahon (born 1976) is a Northern Irish actor. His work includes roles in ''Hunger'', ''The Secret (2016)'' and ''Without You (2011)''. He won critical acclaim for his role in the 2008 film ''Hunger'', which was directed by '' Steve McQueen ...

as Tinker *

David Oakes Rowan David Oakes (born 14 October 1983) is a British actor. He is best known for his roles in the series ''The Pillars of the Earth'', '' The Borgias'', '' The White Queen'', ''Victoria'', '' Vikings: Valhalla'', and for his discursive Natural ...

as William Payne * Marianne Oldham as Mary Denning * Harry Peacock as Smith *

Chloe Pirrie Chloe Pirrie (born 25 August 1987) is a Scottish actress. She has played main roles in the 2014 miniseries '' The Game'', the 2012 film ''Shell'', and the 2015 television film ''An Inspector Calls''. She has also appeared in the 2016 miniseries ...

as Lara *

Pooky Quesnel Joanna Gabrielle "Pooky" Quesnel (born 30 April 1966) is an English actress, screenwriter and singer. Early life Quesnel was born and raised in Eccles, Greater Manchester, Eccles, Lancashire, along with her five siblings. Her father was born in ...

as Agnes Thatcher *

Malcolm Storry Malcolm Storry (born 13 January 1948) is an English actor with extensive experience on stage, television, and film. Amongst many roles, he is perhaps best known for 'Yellin' in ''The Princess Bride'', HM Customs Chief Bill Adams on '' The Knock' ...

as Gideon Langtree *

Steve Oram Stephen John Oram is an English actor, comedian, writer, and filmmaker. He is known for his role in the 2012 film ''Sightseers'', which he also co-wrote. Life and career Oram was born in Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire, England. He started as a ...

as John Roebuck

Production

Development

The series was created by ''

Life on Mars The possibility of life on Mars is a subject of interest in astrobiology due to the planet's proximity and similarities to Earth. To date, no proof of past or present life has been found on Mars. Cumulative evidence suggests that during the ...

'' and '' Ashes to Ashes'' co-creator

. Pharoah's creative partner

Matthew Graham Matthew Graham is a British television writer, and the co-creator of the BBC/Kudos (production company), Kudos Film and Television science fiction series ''Life on Mars (UK TV series), Life on Mars'', which debuted in 2006 on BBC One and has re ...

was initially attached to the series, but withdrew prior to its production to work on ''

Childhood's End ''Childhood's End'' is a 1953 science fiction novel by the British author Arthur C. Clarke. The story follows the peaceful alien invasionBooker & Thomas 2009, pp. 31–32. of Earth by the mysterious Overlords, whose arrival begins decade ...

'' for

SyFy Syfy (formerly Sci-Fi Channel, later shortened to Sci Fi; stylized as SYFY) is an American basic cable channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. Lau ...

. The series is directed by

Alice Troughton Alice Troughton is a British film and television director known for her work on ''Doctor Who'' and its spin-offs. Career From 2006 to 2010, Troughton directed episodes of each of ''Torchwood'', ''The Sarah Jane Adventures'', and ''Doctor Who''. ...

and Sam Donovan.

Casting

On 5 June 2015, Colin Morgan and Charlotte Spencer were announced to join the cast.

Filming

''The Living and the Dead'' production was based in the Bottle Yard Studios in

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, England. The primary filming location was

Horton Court Horton Court is a stone-built 16th century manor house in Horton, near Chipping Sodbury, South Gloucestershire, England. It is a grade I listed building. The house was built in about 1521 by Rev. William Knight (d. 1547), Prothonotary ...

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

. The six-part

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...

TV Series began rehearsals on 29 July 2015, and shooting commenced in the

West Country The West Country (occasionally Westcountry) is a loosely defined area of South West England, usually taken to include all, some, or parts of the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, and, less commonly, Wiltshire, Gloucesters ...

on 3 August 2015, with an official announcement about the series on 7 August 2015. Filming concluded on 18 December 2015. On 12 August 2016, BBC had officially stated that the series would not be renewed for a second series.

Music

Bristol-based duo

The Insects Startled Insects, later known as The Insects, are an instrumental English pop-jazz band. History Startled Insects began around 1983 in Bristol, England, as a collective of three producers/multi-instrumentalists, Tim Norfolk, Bob Locke and Rich ...

were commissioned to write the score for the series. The first episode features the traditional song " She Moved Through the Fair" sung by

Elizabeth Fraser Elizabeth Davidson Fraser (born 29 August 1963), is a Scottish singer, songwriter and musician. Hailing from Grangemouth, Scotland, she is best known as the vocalist for the pioneering dream pop band Cocteau Twins who achieved international ...

, plus the Anglican hymn "

Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise "Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise" is a Christian hymn with words by the Free Church of Scotland minister, Walter Chalmers Smith, usually sung to the tune, "St. Denio", originally a Welsh ballad tune, which became a hymn (under the name "Pale ...

" at the

plough A plough or plow ( US; both ) is a farm tool for loosening or turning the soil before sowing seed or planting. Ploughs were traditionally drawn by oxen and horses, but in modern farms are drawn by tractors. A plough may have a wooden, iron or ...

man's funeral. Another recurring song is "The Reaper's Ghost", composed by

Richard Dyer-Bennet Richard Dyer-Bennet (6 October 1913 in Leicester, England – 14 December 1991 in Monterey, Massachusetts) was an English-born American folk singer (or his own preferred term, "minstrel"), recording artist, and voice teacher. Biography He was b ...

in 1935.

Episodes

Reception

Review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

gave Series 1 an approval rating of 83%, with an average rating of 6.33 out of 10 based on 12 critics. The site's critical consensus is, "This throwback to classic gothic tales of yore is ideal viewing for audiences seeking a spooky sit without intense jolts and shocks."

References

External links

* *
Scripts for Season 1Interview with Ashley Pharoah by Montse Bru
{{DEFAULTSORT:Living And The Dead 2016 British television series debuts 2016 British television series endings 2010s British drama television series 2010s British mystery television series Fiction set in 1894 Television series set in the 1890s Television shows set in Somerset English-language television shows BBC Cymru Wales television shows BBC television dramas 2010s British television miniseries British horror fiction television series Period television series Occult detective fiction Television series about ghosts 2010s British horror television series