British/Canadian Co-Production from Big Talk
(U.K.) and Shaftesbury (Canada)
to
Premiere on Global in Canada, ITV
in the UK and Fox in the US in 2016
Series Hails From Executive Producers David
Titcher, David
Hoselton,
And House Creator and Executive
Producer David Shore;
Stephen Hopkins Joins as Series
Director
TORONTO, June 24, 2015 /CNW/ - Michael Weston (Six
Feet Under, House) and Stephen
Mangan (Episodes) have been cast in the lead roles of
Houdini & Doyle, a mystery adventure drama series
scheduled to debut on Global in 2016. Inspired by true
events, the series will draw heavily on the rich history of the
period. Two great men of the 20th Century – Harry Houdini (Weston),
master magician, escape artist and paranormal debunker; and Sir
Arthur Conan Doyle (Mangan),
prolific writer, creator of "Sherlock
Holmes" and paranormal aficionado – grudgingly join
forces to investigate unsolved and inexplicable crimes with a
supernatural slant in collaboration with New Scotland Yard.
The 10-episode drama was ordered straight to series for ITV in
the UK and Global in Canada and
licensed in the US on FOX. Award-winning director, Stephen Hopkins (24,
Californication), will be directing the series.
Also joining the cast is breakout Canadian actress Rebecca Liddiard (Between, MsLabelled) as
Constable Adelaide Stratton, whose
character is the first female constable ever to work for
the London Metropolitan Police
Force.
"I've long been intrigued by both Houdini and Doyle; men who
were ahead of their time, each fascinating in their own right. But
the idea that these two, seemingly so different, could have been
friends is almost too perfect." says David
Shore, Executive Producer. "In Michael and Stephen, we have
found two incredible actors that embody the intelligence, humor and
mystique of these men, who even when viewed through the lens of
history, are larger than life."
American television and film actor Michael Weston will play the role of Harry
Houdini. Weston is best known for his roles on House and
Six Feet Under. He has also appeared on Elementary,
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, The Office and
Burn Notice among others. His feature film
credits include Garden State, Wish I Was Here, The
Dukes of Hazard and Coyote Ugly.
Stephen Mangan is an English
actor, best known for his television roles on Episodes,
Green Wing and I'm Alan
Partridge. He is an acclaimed stage actor, having been
Tony-nominated for his portrayal of Norman in The Norman
Conquests on Broadway. Mangan made his feature film debut in
the hit movie Billy Elliot,
appearing most recently on the big screen in Ron Howard's Rush.
Produced in association with Shaw Media, Houdini &
Doyle is a UK/Canada
treaty co-production from Big Talk (U.K.) and Shaftesbury
(Canada) in association with Shore
Z Productions. The series is executive produced by David Shore, David
Titcher (The Librarians) and David Hoselton along with Kenton Allen, Matthew
Justice, Luke Alkin for Big
Talk and Christina Jennings,
Maggie Murphy, and Scott Garvie for Shaftesbury. The series is
distributed by Sony Pictures Television.
SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:
Twitter:
@Global_TV
@ShawMediaTV_PR
@GlobalTV_PR
Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/globaltelevision
Global Television is a Shaw Media Network.
About Shaw Communications
Shaw Communications Inc. is
a diversified communications and media company. Shaw serves 3.2
million consumers and businesses through a reliable and extensive
fibre network. Shaw provides consumers with broadband Internet,
WiFi, Digital Phone and Video services. Shaw Business provides
businesses with Internet, data, WiFi, telephony, Video and fleet
tracking services, and ViaWest provides collocation, cloud and
managed services. Shaw Media provides Canadians with engaging
programming content through one of Canada's largest conventional television
networks, Global Television, and 19 specialty networks, including
HGTV Canada, Food Network Canada, HISTORY® and Showcase. Shaw is
traded on the Toronto and
New York stock exchanges and is
included in the S&P/TSX 60 Index (Symbol: TSX – SJR.B, NYSE –
SJR). For more information about Shaw, please visit
www.shaw.ca.
About Shaftesbury
With offices in Toronto and Los
Angeles, Shaftesbury is an award-winning creator and
producer of original content for television and digital platforms,
sold in 120 countries worldwide. Shaftesbury's slate includes
David Shore's new
series, Houdini & Doyle, for Sony Pictures
Television, Shaw Media, ITV and Fox; horror anthology series
Slasher for Chiller and Super Channel; nine seasons of
Murdoch Mysteries for CBC, UKTV and ITV STUDIOS Global
Entertainment; and hidden camera comedy series Fool Canada for CBC, starring Will Sasso. Shaftesbury's digital studio,
Smokebomb Entertainment, produces convergent experiences for
television and branded entertainment projects including the
hit YouTube series Carmilla, funded by the U by
Kotex® brand; and fashion-focused series
MsLabelled for Shaw Media and
Schick® Quattro for
Women. Shaftesbury/Smokebomb recently launched shift2, an
innovative brand agency that targets millennials on YouTube. Visit
us online at http://shaftesbury.ca.
SOURCE Global Television