Behind the facade of mellow cotswold stone live coldhearted profiteers of austerityyears. Uk filming locations for the bbc television drama series the casual vacancy. Jk rowling and the idyllic village that never was daily. The setting of the casual vacancy is pagford, a village in rural southern england where the haves and havenots, the plummy toffs and the loamy yokels, coexist cheek by jowl.
Rowlings first grownup novel is an impressive foray by the author into the world of contemporary adult literature. Samenvattingcommentaarfilmspecs techniekconclusielezersrecensies. And the empty seat left by barry on the towns council soon becomes the catalyst for the biggest war the town has yet seen. It is decently written, and it does expose a side of small town life that is often overlooked.
Where was the casual vacancy filmed and where is the story set. Jk rowlings the casual vacancy to film in gloucestershire. Casual vacancy village painswick residents claim scandalous show. How does the casual vacancy miniseries differ from the. Rowlings book, on which this bbc tv series is based, the shows story takes place in the fictional english, west country town of pagford. A big novel about a small town, the casual vacancy is j. Jk rowling and the idyllic village that never was daily mail online. The casual vacancy was filmed last summer in a sprinkling of cotswolds villages it was important to make the village of pagford feel as if, if people had been in costume, it could have been. Rowlings characters come across as cardboard cutouts, onedimensional substitutes for the real thing. It was rowlings first publication since the harry potter series, her first apart from that series, and her first novel for adult readership the novel is set in a suburban west country. Rowling is a great storyteller with a clear eye and a warm heart, and the casual vacancy is a moving and immensely pleasurable novel sunday business post ireland the casual vacancy is a brilliant novel, entertaining, intelligent, moving, passionate and hardhitting. Graffiti has been popping up around town, usually of the sexually explicit nature, and theres a growing drug problem.
Filming began in august 2014 in the gloucestershire towns of painswick, bisley, northleach and. The crew film joe hurst arf and brian vernel fats as they walk uphill. Even the situations in the story seem contrived and overly melodramatic there are very few shades of grey here. The casual vacancy official website for the hbo series. Rowling is the author of the bestselling harry potter series of seven books, published between 1997 and 2007, which have sold over 450 million copies worldwide, are distributed in more than 200 territories, translated into 73 languages, and have been turned into eight blockbuster films. The casual vacancy provides an idyllic setting for a seedy and complex story. The main issue driving the election campaign concerns the public housing community, the fields.
A quant english burg named pagford is in the middle of a class and age war. Airing over three weekly 1hour episodes, the casual vacancy starts on sunday the 15th of february 2015 at 9. The series filmed last summer in south west england. The small village of pagford is torn apart by petty jealousies and rivalries, and social and political ambitions. Rich at war with poor, teenagers at war with parents, wives at war with husbands, teachers. The casual vacancy is part shameless in dibleyshire and part mashup of the archers and benefits street. Everyones got skeletons rattling in their cupboards in the small english town of pagford, according to the teaser. Who will triumph in an election fraught with passion, duplicity and unexpected revelations. The casual vacancy is impressively constructed, as rowlings gift for weaving together narrative threads and small details comes to a tightly wound conclusion, in which multiple characters observe and react to a climactic event from different physical angles and emotional stances. The book was published worldwide by the little, brown book group on 27 september 2012. Pagford and sends its residents into a snobbish tizzy was filmed 60.
It has been criticised for torybashing and being politically motivated ahead of the general election, but the residents of the village where the drama the casual vacancy was filmed say the. Pagford is a seemingly idyllic english village with a cobbled market square and ancient abbey, behind the pretty facade however. The mistake ninetynine percent of humanity made, as far as fats could see, was being ashamed of what they were, lying about it, trying to be somebody else. In some instances, the filmed version really is better than the book. Taking the casual vacancy from the page to the screen. The citizens of the small british town of pagford fight for the spot on the. Hbo has been really good about snagging series from across the pond especially series from ricky gervais, so this might be a nice acquisition for the cable network especially since theyve. Pagford is a seemingly idyllic english village with a cobbled. Deadline says the casual vacancy is being eyed to start airing in 2014, but since this is a bbc one production, theres no telling when the show might make its way to the united states. Jk rowlings the casual vacancy, a grim adult novel which she wrote under pseudonym looks at life in a small market town of pagford dominated by grotesque characters like they stepped out of an updated dickens novel. Now that the finished product has been revealed, lets discuss. Bbc one the casual vacancy, behind the scenes in pagford. I wrote about my dream casting when i found out hbo and the bbc were teaming up to film.
An intriguing departure for the worldfamous author who recently completed the beloved harry potter series, the casual vacancy is the entertaining and captivating tale of the. The first novel jk rowling wrote after the harry potter series, the casual vacancy, follows a local council in the fictional town of pagford. Here is a quick, comprehensive guide to the good and not so good people of pagford. And the empty seat left by barry on the parish council soon becomes the catalyst for the biggest war the town has yet seen.
J k rowling left crying her eyes out at bbcs new casual. Shifting her attention to adult audiences, the casual vacancy begins. A casual vacancys quintessential rural retreat pagford is made up of elements of popular tourist tourist spots bisley, minchinhampton, northleach, painswick and burford. The official website for the casual vacancy on hbo, featuring full episodes online, interviews, schedule information and episode guides. Rent the casual vacancy 2015 starring rorry kinnear and michael gambon on dvd and bluray. Rowlings 500page book into a threehour miniseries flummoxes the casual vacancy, a project made with considerable ambition and lyricism, yet which feels scattered and. Rent the casual vacancy 2015 on dvd and bluray dvd. Pagford is charming, but what lies behind the pretty facade is a town at war. The lives of people living in the english village of pagford are turned upside down as several citizens fight for a position on the parish council following a mysterious death. The plot centres on fictitious pagford, a seemingly idyllic english. Rowlings the casual vacancy, the harry potter authors first adult novel. A casual vacancys quintessential rural retreat pagford is made up of.
However, the emotional impact of this sequence is undercut somewhat by the ambiguity of. Cast list for the casual vacancy 2015 bbc tv drama series starring michael gambon, keeley hawes, rory kinnear, julia mckenzie and rufus jones. Directed by jonny campbell and written by sarah phelps, the series premiered on 15 february 2015 on bbc one in the united kingdom and on 29 april 2015 on hbo in the united states. With silas carson, joe hurst, michael gambon, rory kinnear. Her writing in the casual vacancy might be as lively as it ever was, but when the minutiae here include a multipage history of pagford yarvil property lines, i wondered if i. Jk rowling promotes the casual vacancy with harry potter hint the author told a packed house in new york of the existence of a box containing the very notebooks in which the boy wizard was born. The citizens of the small british town of pagford fight for the spot on the parish council. The casual vacancy has too many characters, and not a single one has any redeeming qualities worth mentioning. The casual vacancy deals with hard issues that both england and the rest of the word are facing today. A comprehensive guide to the main characters in jk rowlings the casual vacancy. Oscars best picture winners best picture winners golden globes emmys san diego comiccon new york comiccon sundance film festival toronto intl film festival awards central festival central all events.
Like olive, the casual vacancy starts off feeling like a character piece more than a morality tale and ends up too much like the latter. The casual vacancy is a 2015 british miniseries based on the novel of the same title by j. The casual vacancy, behind the scenes in pagford the. The casual vacancy cast list bbc tv series telly chat. The author behind everyones favorite boy wizard is getting a small screen adaptation of the casual vacancy, which was her first nonharry potter novel released in 2012, courtesy of hbo and bbc. Casual vacancy miniseries to film in gloucestershire, u. Find out how the fictional village of pagford was created. A synopsis for the show reads, the casual vacancy centres on pagford, a seemingly idyllic english village with a. The casual vacancy centres on pagford, a seemingly idyllic english village with a cobbled market square and ancient abbey.
Thats the way it always has been and should remain, argues dogooding solicitor barry fairbrother rory kinnear at a parish council meeting very much voicing the. There are elements that are relevant to many people in small communities around the world. Michael gambon and julia mckenzie in the casual vacancy 2015 the. The radio times writes that 200 locals are expected to be extras in the show, featured alongside veteran actors. The casual vacancy was filmed last summer in a sprinkling of cotswolds villages it was important to make the village of pagford feel as if, if people had been in. The problem with the casual vacancy is that the vast cast of characters and all their machinations leave little room for character development. Rowlings 2012 novel, is set to begin filming in gloucestershire, u. Rowlings newly released book, the casual vacancy, that sums up the tone of this novel perfectly. The production team working on the casual vacancy got in touch with creative england when they were looking for a double for the fictional town of pagford. Rowlings the casual vacancy is now a miniseries, exploring life in the village of pagford where everyone has something to hide. The radio times writes that 200 locals are expected to be extras in the show, featured alongside veteran actors michael gambon, keeley. The writer and director of the bbc one dramatisation of the casual vacancy reveal how they adapted jk rowlings first adult novel for the small screen.