After beginning production in 2019 with a star-studded cast, fans finally get their first look at the new BBC Two series, The North Water. The first photos give fans a glimpse of what’s to come in the drama, but also how much it took from the cast and crew to make.
Via Variety, the show is based on the highly acclaimed novel with the same title from Ian McGuire (The Abstainer). The book was named to the New York Times Ten Best Books of 2016. BBC Two tapped acclaimed director Andrew Haigh (The OA) as the man in charge with adapting the novel to the screen. He also will direct the show.
The pictures give fans their first looks at Colin Farrell (The Gentlemen) as Henry Drax, Jack O’Connell (Unbroken) as Patrick Summer, and Stephen Graham (Boardwalk Empire) as Captain Brownlee. Tom Courtenay (45 Years) will also have a prominent role as Baxter and is featured in the released set of photos.
The story, set in the 1850’s, will center around O’Connell’s Summer, an ex-army surgeon who finds work as a ship doctor on a whaling ship that is heading to the Arctic. He soon finds out that the freezing cold weather and rickety, old ship is not all that is in store. A rough crew led by Farrell’s Drax have harrowing secrets that will leave the trip in jeopardy for all.
The characters in McGuire’s story were not the only ones having to deal with the harsh temperatures of the Arctic. The show spent most of their time filming in the actual Arctic, with many scenes being shot in the icy seas north of the Svalbard Archipelago. The production team at one point had traveled as far as 81 degrees north, one of the northernmost places filmed at.
The new photos from the set revealed what the stellar cast will look like as a not so friendly crew of whalers. They also show the feats the production team performed in the chilly Arctic seas. The show, which was made for BBC by Sea-Saw Films, will premiere on BBC Two this fall.