Russell Tovey would “love” to revive prison drama Banished on another channel – but he thinks it’s too late
#BringBackBanished, hold out hope...
Period Australian penal colony drama Banished was a hit with fans last year, who were devastated when the Jimmy McGovern-scripted series was ignominiously cancelled after just one series.
Not resting on their laurels, the fans created a campaign to revive the show called #BringBackBanished, and now it turns out that their goals have a significant supporter – series star Russell Tovey, who played convict James Freeman throughout the show’s run.
“Yes, I’d love it,” Tovey told RadioTimes.com backstage at MCM comic-con, where he was appearing with former Being Human co-stars Aidan Turner and Lenora Crichlow.
“That was an incredible job. It was an expensive show, you take everyone out to Australia for like 5 months, and I feel like it would’ve been brilliant to do it again. I’m quite sad.”
And while Tovey says he still holds out hope for a return in the vein of cancelled-then-revived drama Ripper Street, he thinks we may be too late to see another trip to the crime-ridden New South Wales community.
“Hopefully another channel will do it, but I don’t know if the time, the window for that opportunity has passed,” he said. “Ripper Street happened quite soon after, you know, so…maybe one day.”
Still, Tovey says he knew exactly who to blame for the show’s cancellation – a certain Ross Poldark, played by his friend and former co-star Aidan Turner.
“I mean, I think we’re overshadowed by another costume drama of the same period,” he joked, gesturing towards Turner. “That’s fine. I’m glad we’re friends, ‘cos if we weren’t…”
“But I’m really happy that Poldark has been so huge and such a success,” he deadpanned. “I’m really REALLY thrilled about that.”
“Cheers!” Turner replied.
No hard feelings, we hope…
Authors
Huw Fullerton is a Commissioning Editor for Radio Times magazine, covering Entertainment, Comedy and Specialist Drama.
