James Nelson-Joyce is set to star alongside Sean Bean in the BBC's upcoming Liverpudlian gangster drama This City Is Ours.
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The pair are no strangers to working together, having appeared in prison drama Time's first season back in 2021.
Nelson-Joyce opened up about what it was like reuniting for This City Is Ours, and how different the filming experiences were.
"Sean’s just a gentleman. When we were on Time [season 1], every day he’d be like, 'Oh no, not you again.' But on this, we were very lucky with the producers we had and the directors," he explained. "We’re all mates."
Sean Bean in BBC One drama Time. BBC/James Stack
He added: "It did help that for the first four weeks of filming, we were in Spain in this complex together and we all built up this familial relationship so quickly. There was already a respect there from me to Sean. How can you not admire him?"
Bean plays crime boss Ronnie Phelan, while Nelson-Joyce plays his mentee, and enforcer, Michael Kavanagh.
They're both considering leaving their life of crime, the former to retire, the latter for love, a move which we're certain will test their father/son bond.
"It was easy to portray that father figure [dynamic] with him," Joyce explained. "The writing does it all for you. Me being in awe of him, from James to Sean, helped with the performances, I think."
David Craig is the Senior Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest and greatest scripted drama and comedy across television and streaming. Previously, he worked at Starburst Magazine, presented The Winter King Podcast for ITVX and studied Journalism at the University of Sheffield.
