{"id":18308,"date":"2023-03-02T09:26:37","date_gmt":"2023-03-02T14:26:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev2.worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/russell-t-davies-boards-bbc-viagra-drama-men\/"},"modified":"2023-03-02T13:47:54","modified_gmt":"2023-03-02T18:47:54","slug":"russell-t-davies-boards-bbc-viagra-drama-men-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/russell-t-davies-boards-bbc-viagra-drama-men-up\/","title":{"rendered":"Russell T Davies Boards BBC Viagra Drama Men Up"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The BBC has commissioned the new feature-length drama <em>Men Up<\/em>, inspired by the true story of one of the world&#8217;s first medical trials for the drug that became Viagra.<\/p>\n<p>The project is produced by Quay Street Productions and Boom for BBC One and iPlayer in a co-commission with BBC Wales. Matthew Barry (<em>Industry<\/em>, <em>Chilling Adventures of Sabrina<\/em>) is writing, with Russell T Davies executive producing (<em>Nolly<\/em>, <em>It\u2019s A Sin<\/em>, <em>Doctor Who<\/em>).<\/p>\n<p>Years before the little blue pill changed the lives for millions across the globe, a group of ordinary middle-aged Welsh men underwent the extraordinary, taking part in one of the first clinical trials for an unknown drug which later became Viagra. The cast includes\u00a0Iwan Rheon (<i>Game of Thrones<\/i>,<i> Misfits, Riviera<\/i>), Aneurin Barnard (<i>Dunkirk<\/i>,<i> The Pact<\/i>), Alexandra Roach (<i>Killing Eve<\/i>,<i> Sanditon, No Offence<\/i>), Phaldut Sharma (<i>Sherwood<\/i>,<i> Romantic Getaway<\/i>), Paul Rhys (<i>A Discovery of Witches<\/i>,<i> Rellick<\/i>), Steffan Rhodri (<i>House of the Dragon<\/i>,<i> Temple<\/i>), Mark Lewis Jones (<i>Gangs of London<\/i>,<i> The Phantom of the Open<\/i>), Joanna Page (<i>Gavin &amp; Stacey<\/i>,<i> Dolittle<\/i>), Alexandria Riley <i>(The Pembrokeshire Murders<\/i>,<i> The Pact), <\/i>Nathan Sussex (<i>It\u2019s A Sin<\/i>,<i> Hollyoaks<\/i>), Lisa Palfrey (<i>Sex Education<\/i>,<i> COBRA<\/i>), Dyfan Dwyfor (<i>A Very English Scandal<\/i>,<i> Requiem<\/i>) and\u00a0Katy Wix (<i>Ghosts<\/i>,<i> Stath Lets Flats<\/i>).<\/p>\n<p>The executive producers are Nicola Shindler (<i>Nolly<\/i>, <i>It\u2019s A Sin<\/i>,<i> Happy Valley<\/i>) and Davina Earl (<i>Safe<\/i>,<i> Come Home<\/i>) for Quay Street Productions; Rachel Evans (<i>35 Diwrnod\/35 Days, How This Blind Girl\u2026<\/i>) for Boom; Barry, Davies\u00a0and Rebecca Ferguson for the BBC.<\/p>\n<p><em>Men Up<\/em> has received Welsh Government support via Creative Wales and is produced in association with Cineflix Rights as exclusive worldwide distribution partner.<\/p>\n<p>Barry said: \u201cWho knew that one of the first Viagra trials in the world took place in 1994\u2026 in Swansea!\u00a0I\u2019m beyond delighted to be working with Nicola, Russell and the entire team to bring this extraordinary tale to the screen.\u00a0People hear the word impotence, and they wait for the punchline. But this story is about so much more.\u00a0And with\u00a0an incredible Welsh cast, led by Iwan Rheon and\u00a0Alexandra Roach, I\u00a0can&#8217;t wait to\u00a0bring it to the screen.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Earl, executive producer for Quay Street Productions, said: \u201c<em>Men Up<\/em> is one of those truly remarkable true stories that is a joy to be able to bring to the screen.\u00a0 This is the type of story that we love at Quay Street\u2014one of heart, soul, complex characters, with humor and drama at the center. With Matthew Barry\u2019s fantastic script coupled with our stellar cast, audiences are in for a treat.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Evans, executive producer for Boom, added: \u201cThis little-known story deserves to be shouted from the rooftops, and Matthew Barry\u2019s deft writing has brought a human, hilarious slice of Swansea in the \u201990s to life. Boom is delighted to be co-producing with Quay Street Productions to feature the Welsh men and women who pioneered the use of a drug which became known right across the globe.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lindsay Salt, director of BBC Drama, said: \u201c<em>Men Up<\/em> is a little-known chapter of our history, beautifully told across 90 minutes of poignant, funny, and life-affirming television. It\u2019s no surprise that Matthew\u2019s charming and intelligent script has attracted such a strong ensemble of acting talent, and I cannot wait to see them bring his words to life.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>BBC Cymru Wales\u2019 head of commissioning, Nick Andrews, said: \u201cIt&#8217;s almost too extraordinary to be true. And yet it is! Matt Barry&#8217;s exquisite script has brought to life a precious true story, a social history,\u00a0that will leave you punching the air with the sheer joy and triumph of it all. A truly Welsh story with global impact.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Gerwyn Evans, deputy director of Creative Wales, said: \u201cThis production is bringing high-quality jobs, skills development and fair work to the local area, including trainee placements as part of the Economy Futures Fund.\u00a0 I&#8217;m delighted to see this remarkable story from Swansea get the recognition it deserves. Supported by a cast of stellar Welsh actors, I look forward to seeing this little-known story brought to life when it arrives on our screens!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The BBC has commissioned the new feature-length drama Men Up, inspired by the true story of one of the world&#8217;s first medical trials for the drug that became Viagra.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":350,"featured_media":18309,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pmpro_default_level":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[70],"tags":[6156,6157,237,769,201,1806,6158,6159,6160,6161,1307,6162,4269,2525,6163],"class_list":["post-18308","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-top-stories","tag-alexandra-roach","tag-aneurin-barnard","tag-bbc","tag-bbc-iplayer","tag-bbc-one","tag-bbc-wales","tag-boom","tag-iwan-rheon","tag-matthew-barry","tag-men-up","tag-nicola-shindler","tag-phaldut-sharma","tag-quay-street-productions","tag-russell-t-davies","tag-viagra","pmpro-has-access"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.7 - 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