Phil Trethowan: Human Resources
Posted on Friday 21 January 2011
A former bus depot on Barry Island – hardly where you’d expect to find a ghost, a vampire and a whole collection of werewolves. But that’s where the new series of Being Human was shot last summer, following the show’s relocation from Bristol at the end of the second season. Paul Simpson visited during the penultimate week of shooting in September, and caught up with producer Phil Trethowan to set the scene for the new year…
Q: In story terms there’s a good reason for our heroes to move from Bristol to Cardiff, but why was it done in real life – to be part of the BBC Wales team in Cardiff?
Phil Trethowan: "It was both, to be honest. We were aware at the end of series one that things were gravitating towards Wales, and that the BBC saw that as the home for drama. We were fine with that, as long as we were able to storyline it. The worst case scenario is things suddenly relocate and you’re scrabbling to explain why you’ve moved with hindsight. We were given plenty of time, so we could storyline it properly.
At the end of series two, we leave the guys in the middle of nowhere, capable of going anywhere, and in story terms, they wouldn’t want to go into Bristol anyway. Mitchell has his private reason, because of the Box Tunnel Massacre, and it wouldn’t have felt right for the guys to go back to their house, because they’ve just lost Annie – and that was Annie’s house. It would feel almost macabre staying there with Annie gone, as was the status at the end of series two.
We used the move positively to give the show a new lease of life – not that it needed it, but what the heck? If you’re going to move, then do it with style, go for a bigger set and have fun with it. We totally embraced it..."
Being Human Series 3 begins on 23 January 2011 (BBC Three).
Premieres on BBC America on Saturday, February 19, 2011.
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