Sharon D Clarke has praised the behind-the-scenes ethos of Mr Loverman, explaining that she has "never" worked on a set as diverse as the one for the new BBC drama.
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Mr Loverman, which is a BBC adaptation of Bernardine Evaristo's novel, tells the story of Barrington Jedidiah Walker (Lennie James), who has been married to his wife Carmel (Clarke) for five decades, but things aren't quite as they seem.
Carmel believes Barry has been having an affair, and while she's right, she doesn't realise that the actual truth is he has been in love with his best friend Morris (Ariyon Bakare) - and has been since they were teens.
With the series now available on BBC iPlayer and the first two episodes airing on BBC One tonight, Clarke has reflected on working on Mr Loverman, and told RadioTimes.com: "I have never, ever in my entire working career, worked on a set that was so diverse. Every department in Mr Loverman was diverse, absolutely, on every level.
"And I've never had that on any job ever in my entire life. It can be done and it can be done to its highest level, pulling together from all walks of life, gender, sexuality, everything. All of life is there in Mr Loverman. More sets like that please."
Sharon D Clarke as Carmel Walker in Mr Loverman. BBC
Co-star Lennie James echoed Clarke's sentiments, adding that it is also "really important" there are more diverse sets even when the "subject doesn't necessarily focus or is centred around a particular racial group".
"It was just across the board," he added. "And all of that happened relatively easily and at no point did we lower our standards."
"If you're from one of the marginalised communities and you're writing stories, you tend to be funnelled into writing stories that people think will be made, and you end up making the same story over and over again," James told RadioTimes.com.
"But one of the things that I love about Mr Loverman is, and I've got nothing against the stories I'm going to say that it's not like, but it's not a 'no Blacks, no Irish, no dogs' story, which has become an archetype of the stories that we've told through generations, mostly because it's one that is perceived to be something that's understandable to the wider community."
All episodes of Mr Loverman are now streaming on BBC iPlayer. The first two episodes will air on BBC One at 9pm on Monday 14th October, with the remaining episodes airing weekly.
Katelyn Mensah is the Entertainment and Factual Writer for Radio Times, covering all major entertainment programmes, reality TV shows and the latest hard-hitting documentaries. She previously worked at The Tab, with a focus on reality TV and showbiz news and has obtained a BA (Hons) in Journalism.
Abby Robinson is the Drama Editor for Radio Times, covering TV drama and comedy titles. She previously worked at Digital Spy as a TV writer, and as a content writer at Mumsnet. She possesses a postgraduate diploma and a degree in English Studies.
