Additional casting has been announced, and a first look image released for multi-BAFTA Award-winning writer Russell T Davies and multi-BAFTA Award-winning executive producer Nicola Shindler’s brand new 3-part drama for ITVX and ITV, "Nolly." The show has been commissioned by ITV’s Head of Drama, Polly Hill, and will premiere on ITV’s brand new, free streaming service ITVX in 2023 before transferring to linear transmission months later.
The drama is the first production from Shindler’s new production company Quay Street Productions, which is part of ITV Studios. The first glimpse of Academy Award-nominated and BAFTA-winning actor Helena Bonham Carter as Noele “Nolly” Gordon has been released as filming on the series commences. Augustus Prew joins the cast as Tony Adams, Nolly’s Crossroads co-star, devoted friend, confidante, and her occasional chauffeur. Emmy and BAFTA-winner Mark Gatiss join as inimitable entertainer Larry Grayson, who also shared a close and enduring friendship with Gordon.
The series is produced in association with and distributed internationally by ITV Studios. "Nolly" is the 11th collaboration between Russell T Davies and Nicola Shindler. The partnership is known for producing relevant, timely. Emotionally charged dramas, having previously created hit series including "It’s A Sin," "Years and Years," "Queer As Folk," "Casanova," "Cucumber," "Banana," "Bob & Rose" and "The Second Coming."
The director is BAFTA-winner Peter Hoar. ITV’s Head of Drama, Polly Hill, will oversee production of the drama from the channel’s perspective. The series is executive produced by Nicola Shindler, Russell T Davies, and Peter Hoar. Series producer is BAFTA-winner Karen Lewis. The series will be produced by Quay Street Productions, the first drama under Nicola Shindler’s new production banner with ITV Studios.
Richard Lintern is Ronnie Allen, who played Crossroads’ suave hotel manager David Hunter. Antonia Bernath is Jane Rossington, who starred in Crossroads as Jill Richardson, Meg’s daughter. Clare Foster is Sue Lloyd, who played Barbara, wife of hotel manager David. Chloe Harris is Susan Hanson, who played Crossroads fan favorite Miss Diane. Lloyd Griffith is Paul Henry, who for over a decade played Crossroads’ handyman Benny. Con O’Neill also joins the cast as Jack Barton, producer of Crossroads, Tim Wallers plays Barton’s boss, and ATV’s Controller of Programming, Charles Denton. Bethany Antonia joins the cast as Poppy Ngomo, a young actor thrown into the world of Crossroads.
Noele (or Nolly to her friends) was a legend in her own lifetime. As flame-haired widow Meg Richardson in the long-running soap opera Crossroads, she was one of the most famous people in Britain. Then in 1981, at the height of the show’s success and the peak of Nolly’s fame, she was axed without ceremony, without warning, and with no explanation. With the boss’s words “all good things must come to an end” ringing in her ears, Noele Gordon found herself thrown out of the show that was her life for over 18 years. "Nolly" brings the true Noele Gordon once more into the spotlight. The Queen of the Midlands, a star who could be harsh, haughty, and imperious, grandly sweeping into rehearsals from her Rolls Royce, was a hardworking actress who was fiercely loyal and loved by cast and crew alike. And at last, the biggest question of all can be answered – why was she sacked? Nolly reveals the truth, the consequences, and the legacy of that terrible day.
"Nolly" is a bold exploration of how the establishment turns on women who refuse to play by the rules, the women it cannot understand, and the women it fears. And it is a love letter to a legend of television and to the madcap soap she starred in; Nolly is an outrageously fun and wildly entertaining ride through Noele Gordon’s most tumultuous years and a sharp, affectionate, and heartbreaking portrait of a forgotten icon.
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