MARTIN SHAW ON APPARITIONS

Apparitions is the new BBC One series about a Roman Catholic priest, played by Martin Shaw, involved in exorcisms. Here he reveals his thoughts about the series.

What kind of character is Father Jacob?

Jacob is a priest who is just trying to do his job, which is to promote people for sainthood. He is undeniably a good man. His bosses feel that he embraces exorcism but he is actually quite wary of it. He feels so strongly that we are all susceptible to the forces of Satan, that there are times when it is the only option.



What attracted you to the role?

Well I had the original idea to play an exorcist and I've felt for a long time that we need something very different on television. Nowadays it's very difficult to find producers who are willing to take a chance on something that challenges the norm but Tony Wood at Lime Pictures was prepared to take that chance and we've managed to create something that I think viewers will like, but will also force them to think and engage in the programme rather than view it passively.



This is quite a different role to what viewers will know you for, do you enjoy challenging yourself with different characters?

I not only enjoy it but I think it's absolutely vital. It's very easy to forget that acting is actually an art form and you have to train for it. You do need to explore, it's all too easy just to stay in the same place and stay in the comfort zone



Who do you think is the most intriguing character in Apparitions?

I think all of the characters in Apparitions are very complex and multi-dimensional. Michael (Rick Warden) is particularly intriguing because when we first meet him he is so fully possessed that he doesn't actually know who he is any more. His actions, his words – none of it is really him and there are times when he actually wants to be saved from himself. Liam is also an interesting character as initially many people probably wouldn't consider him to be possessed. He represents the anti-religious views of many people and he is a good father, although he is possessed by demons I feel that the audience will empathise with him in a way that just isn't possible with Michael.



How have you found filming?

I've been working with a great cast, crew, producer and director so you can't really ask for better than that. We've all worked incredibly hard to ensure that we do justice to this fantastic script and create something that is believable.



Which scene did you find most difficult/interesting to film?

The exorcism scenes were possibly the most difficult, particularly as in one of them I was connected to a high wire! I had to be thrown across a room and hit a wall with quite a bit of force so we needed the special effects to make it look completely real. The second exorcism was also interesting as everyone involved in the scene was so submerged in the words and the actions that their reactions were almost instinctive – it almost felt like we were doing it for real!



Does religion and spirituality play a part in your personal life?

Religion doesn't play a part in my life but spirituality does. I follow a spiritual path which is right at the centre of my life. I believe in God and I have a huge respect and love for all religions so from that respect it plays a part in my life but not the man-made, ceremonial and controversial aspects of religion.

AARDMAN JOINS UP WITH YOU TUBE

Aardman Animations has joined forces with YouTube to launch a channel called Aardman's Darkside. The channel will show some of the company's more surreal content including The Adventures of Jeffrey, Rex the Runt, A Town Called Panic and Angry Kid. The move follows last month's launch of The Aardman Channel - which offers more mainstream content such as Wallace and Gromit: Cracking Contraptions and Creature Comforts.

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DAILY NEWS
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Vampyr (Masters Of Cinema) Is Released On DVD On 25 August 2008 A new digital transfer of master Danish director Carl Theodor Dreyer's horror masterpiece in its original aspect ratio, which has only previously been circulated incomplete and in tattered prints is presented in the latest film restoration for the first time on DVD in the UK on the Masters of Cinema Series from Eureka Entertainment.

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2 Stories From Armchair Thriller
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Alfred Hitchcock's Sabotage
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Julie Walters (Filth: The Mary Whitehouse Story; Mamma Mia!) is set to star in A Short Stay In Switzerland for BBC One, a drama inspired by the true story of Dr Anne Turner by award-winning writer Frank McGuinness.

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Starting on August 1, Channel 4 is to broadcast a month-long season of shows designed to break new creative talent. Dubbed Generation Next, the season will commence with a broken comedy series called Tonightly. There will also be seven dramas from new writers and directors in a strand called Coming Up and a run of 12 documentaries from emerging film-makers in the First Cut strand. Film4 meanwhile will show films from directors who specialise in low-budget, self-distributed films shot on digital cameras.

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Writer Alan Bleasdale (Boys From The Blackstuff; GBH) has been signed up to write his first drama for the BBC in 22 years. The new project, called Laconia, is a two-part drama for BBC2 based on factual accounts of the attack and sinking of RMS Laconia in 1942. It will be produced by talkbackTHAMES and Teamworx for BBC Wales.

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London's Burning Series 8
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The Barbara Taylor Bradford Collection On DVD 15 September
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ITV Commissions Major New Event Drama Serial From Greenlit Rights iTV has commissioned a major new event drama serial from leading UK producer Greenlit Rights. Called Collision, the 5x60’ series is Peter Fincham’s first new independent drama commission,

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Black Five The Last Days Of Steam
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DAILY NEWS 16/07/08

Annie Leibovitz: Life Through A Lens (Out On DVD 8 September 2008)
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Asterix At The Olympic Games On DVD From 18 August
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New giveaways now live include Saving Grace and The Closer.

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DAILY NEWS 15/07/08

A Year In Tibet On DVD
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Animal Planet September Highlights
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DAILY NEWS 14/07/08

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DAILY NEWS 13/07/08

If you are in the big smoke tomorrow then to celebrate Monday’s release of The Cottage on DVD from 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, Reece Shearsmith (The League of Gentlemen) and Paul Andrew Williams (London to Brighton) will be appearing for a signing at Zavvi on Oxford Street, central London from 6pm 14 July 2008.

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Jon Green, author of (Match Wits with the Kids: A Little Learning with All the Family) and the Icon Books team are planning on giving away 500 free copies of Match Wits with the Kids outside the Department for Children, Schools & Families on Tuesday 15th July. It certainly is a PR stunt that ties in with the advent of the Summer hols but also promotes a really good book to boot!

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Acclaimed expedition leader Sir Ranulph Fiennes, will be signing copies of Portraits of Adventure at its exclusive launch at Stanfords on 21 July, 12.30-1.30pm.

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A new online competition to promote the UK launch of Charlie Bone and the Shadow of Badlock by Jenny Nimmo is now live on www.charlie-bone.com.

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New competitions now live include The Hunt For HMAS Sydney, Charlie Jade, Medium Season Three, Numbers Season Three.

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