The “Bodyguard” is a really successful, British TV series, that also aired on Netflix, gaining in that way more popularity.
Let’s find out more about it!
- Bodyguard is a British police political-thriller television series.
- It was created and written by Jed Mercurio.
- It was produced by World Productions as part of ITV Studios for the BBC.
- The six-part series centres around the fictional character of Police Sergeant David Budd , a British Army war veteran suffering from PTSD, who is now working for the Royalty and Specialist Protection Branch of London’s Metropolitan Police Service. He is assigned as the principal protection officer (PPO) for the ambitious Home Secretary Julia Montague, whose politics he despises.
- David Budd is portrayed by Richard Madden.
- Julia Montague is portrayed by Keeley Hawes.
- The series comments on many issues regarding the controversy around government monitoring of private information and its regulation, and also on PTSD.
- The series began broadcasting on BBC One on 26 August 2018.
- It managed to achieve the highest viewing figures for a new BBC drama in the multichannel era and the highest BBC viewing figures since 2008..
- The BBC commissioned the series from the then-independent World Productions in 2016.
- Since ITV Studios Global Entertainment acquired the company in 2017.
- They have handled international distribution for the series.
- Netflix agreed to a distribution deal to broadcast the show outside the United Kingdom and Ireland.
- The series was met with critical acclaim, particularly for Madden’s performance.
- The series received numerous award nominations including the Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Drama, with Madden winning the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama.
- At the 71st Primetime Emmy Awards, the series was nominated for Outstanding Drama Series.
- iewing figures for the series were high, with 10.4 million people watching the final episode live.
- In preparation for her role as Julia Montague MP, Keeley Hawes watched a lot of media coverage of then British Home Secretary Amber Rudd (2016-2018).
- She later met in a restaurant and was pleased to hear that she’d enjoyed the show
- Keeley Hawes was on location in Greece filming another series, during which time ‘Bodyguard’ opened to rave reviews on TV back home in the UK.
- It wasn’t until she returned to London and brought her children to nearby Thorpe Amusement Park- where fans instantly recognized her on the park rides-that she fully realized the popularity of the series.
- She had not anticipated that ‘Bodyguard’ would become arguably the biggest hit of her career.
- Despite British gun laws, it is actually a common place for some soldiers who have returned from a war zone to illegally purchase a firearm. Especially those suffering from acute forms of PTSD. It is often times the only way they feel safe even out of a war zone.
- Sophie Rundle (Vicky) and Matt Stokoe (Luke) are a couple in real-life
- BBC journalists including Andrew Marr, John Pienaar, John Humphrys and Laura Kuenssberg appeared as themselves.
- The train scenes in the first episode were filmed on the Mid-Norfolk Railway
- The series was largely filmed on location in London, including the Whittington Estate for Budd (Richard Madden)’s flat and Battersea for Montague (Keeley Hawes)’s flat.
- The events in the series are set during October and November of 2018, as the legislation being pushed through parliament by the Home Secretary is entitled RIPA 2018, and multiple shots of documents, phone call records, computer screens, etc. clearly show the date
- As of 2020, in the international distribution version (of series 1), the final graphic for each episode’s production company credit and copyright reads “World Productions for BBC”, as originally broadcast, on BBC One, and then cuts to the retro-fitted standard “itv studios global entertainment” animated logo.
- Vincent Franklin “Mike”, perhaps confusingly, had previously played the unconnected “spin doctor” Stewart Pearson, in the political satire series “The Thick of It”. However, as he plays the characters completely differently, and visually they dress differently, it may take some viewers a while to realise that its the same actor that they recognise from the other series.
