Bring the Drama, a new six-part TV series hosted by Bill Bailey, offers eight aspiring actors the chance to pursue their acting dreams.
👉 Jump To: Where to watch | Meet the cast | Results from the show |
Hosted by actor and comedian Bill Bailey, Bring the Drama is the new six-part series opening up the world of screen drama to eight people who have always dreamt of becoming professional actors but have never had the opportunity.
A cast of eight aspiring actors will be mentored over six weeks by renowned casting director Kelly Valentine Hendry, who has cast shows including Bridgerton, Gangs of London, Ghosts and Broadchurch.
Watch Bring the Drama
After originally airing on BBC Two on Wednesday nights, Bring the Drama is now available to stream via BBC iPlayer.
In each episode, the aspiring actors are welcomed onto some of the real-life sets from celebrated UK dramas such as Peaky Blinders, EastEnders and Silent Witness and tasked with working together to recreate iconic scenes with the real scripts, real cameras and the real time pressures that professional actors face.
Helping them will be the likes of Natalie Cassidy (EastEnders); Genesis Lynea (Silent Witness, Champion); Charles Venn (Casualty, Dream Team); Ed Speleers (Downton Abbey, You) and Rochenda Sandall (Line of Duty, The Rig).
Meet the cast
All eight actors landed their roles in Bring The Drama via an open casting call, chosen from nearly 2000 amateur actors throughout the UK. Selected for their innate talent, none of them have attended drama school or managed to enter the professional acting scene, hindered by various factors and issues with access.
Chris Flynn
23, Warrington
Chris says: “Bring The Drama is about aspiring actors who have struggled to get into professional acting and want to know how to breakthrough.
“Audiences might think it will be easy, you just learn your lines and that’s it but it’s really not. It’s one of the most difficult jobs. You’ve got long hours, you have to learn lines and the movement involved, and especially for me being deaf, I’m having to sign and have dialogue with people, and learn movement but it’s very exciting and encouraging to watch.”
Delasi Zikpi
27, West London
Delasi says: “Bring The Drama is a rollercoaster of emotions that demonstrate the power of what people can achieve when pursuing their dreams and passions! 8 actors with varying degrees of experience are given a crash course into the lives of working actors!
“Audiences can expect to see a journey (for me) from a novice to a much more confident and knowledgeable actor. The show has a very warm feel due to the way we really bonded as a cast.”
George Heron
62, County Durham
George says: “Viewers of the show will share our experience of being thrust into drama school level workshops that then prepare us before being thrust on set on some of the biggest shows on TV.
“The viewer will get to see how auditions are conducted and how the casting director drove us to dig deeper. They will also get to see us working alongside the cast and team of the shows that they are so familiar with.”
Janice Sampson
67, Sheffield
Janice says: “I think audiences can expect to follow 8 people on a journey of self-discovery, as they face the trials and tribulations of working in television.
“At first, I wasn’t going to apply because I believed I would be too old, but then I thought, bugger it, I’m going to give it a go.”
Jordan Skelly
27, Manchester
Jordan says: “Bring the Drama is the first of its kind and unique, combining reality with televised drama. People can expect a deeper understanding of the acting world, a whole cohort of incredible actors all learning about themselves and seeing behind the scenes of the biggest dramas on the BBC”
Lizzie Alabi
26, London
Lizzie says: “Bring The Drama gives opportunities for people from all walks of life a chance to pursue an acting career despite all the barriers. It gives an opportunity to learn more about the industry, meet other like-minded people and meet some amazing industry professionals.
“You can expect to see laughter, tears, hard work and a whole lot of fun from all involved. There are so many surprises from the guest mentors, the amazing set locations and beautiful costumes we all wear.”
Luca Gittens
24, Runcorn (lives in London)
Luca says: “Bring The Drama is a family show for all audiences with such a warm feeling. It’s given individuals, like myself, who have a strong passion and love for acting, a genuine taste of what it’s like working in the industry—from auditioning and being cast to working on real sets with professional television crews and experienced actors.”
Rehanna Bernard
47, West London
Rehanna says: “Bring The Drama is an amazing show that really highlights some of the challenges we face entering the industry and an insight into the hard work actors put into their craft.”
Results from the show
In the final episode, Delasi, Jordan and Rehanna were unveiled as the finalists of Bring The Drama.
The three impressed throughout the competition and were given the chance to take part in a major industry showcase with an audience of top acting agents and casting directors, where they showed their individual filmed monologues.
They have all since secured roles in UK TV shows with Delasi set to appear in an episode of EastEnders, Jordan has been offered a role on BBC’s Waterloo Road, and Rehanna has landed a role for a digital streamer. Delasi and Rehanna have also secured representation with UK agents.
Bring The Drama is available now on BBC iPlayer.
More on: BBC
