BBC Radio Kent

BBC Radio Keut. The Pat Marsh Show - Iuteniew with Pat Marsh, l April 13,2005 >

Richard Armitage talks iii some depth about Sorth and South, and also a little about The Golden Hour. Tliis was part of tlie publicity for the release of the Sorth and South DVD

PM: No w. set agamst the backdrop of Yictonan Engłand’s mdustnal north. Richard Amutage heads qual-ity cast in the passionate love story North & South. It's out now on DVD and Richard is here with us today. BBC Radio Kent. Welcome to ycm.

RA: Thank you veiy much

PM: So. you played the handsome cotton-mill owner John Thomton

RA: Yeah

PM Why do you think the senes was such a success"¹

RA: Very good quesbon. I thmk it's a gieat book and I thmk that it wasnt a pamcularly well-known book. I think, 1 mean. it has it’s. you know. it has its fans. but I think there’s something to do with the mdustrial landscape and the. the attenbon to the wodong classes and the way that they. the workmg classes. are deseloping in the story that 1 think quite a lot of people related to.

PM It s set what. in the 19^0, centuiy. is it?

RA: Yes. its set in 1850. wluch xs the sort of the beight of the mdustnal revolunon when Manchester as a cotton producing area was actually boommg and. and it. tt kind of give. it gave Bntain its economy and it was the beginnings of trade unionism and all that sort of thmg So that's the. the kind of backdrop for. for the story.

PM How much of this knowledge did you have. Richard, before you. you started the project. because you seem to know a heli of a lot. (laugbs)

RA: 1.1 land of studied social econonuc history for O’ level. that was about it. so I kmd of knew what a spmnmg Jenny was and things hke that. but I kind of went back to my history books and. and land of did morę research as well because it is really mteresting and it's where my family roots. and I thmk a lot of people in this country, tkeir. therr kmd of roots. sort of sprane from. So I kind of felt that I owed it to. myself to. to really know. you know. the history

PM: Tbere is a tendency. isn’t tbere. to overplay this sort of thmg though because. you know. it can easily tum into a 'Aey. it's gnm up North drama’.

RA: Yeah. I mean that. that infomiauon isn't to be played at all I think thats just something that the actors have. well tbey don't even bave to know that but I wanted to know that. but then you. that's just. you know. the background knowledge and then primarily it's the love story that s, that's the mterestmg story thafs be-mg told.

PM What sort of guy is John^-’ I mean. be seems quite obsiously verv charismatic. but qurte a tougb fel-low?

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