AFTER THOMAS

Contents

Press release 3

Synopsis 4

Keeley Hawes Interview 5-8

Ben Miles Interview 9-10

Sheila Hancock Interview 11-13

Duncan Preston Interview 14-15

Interview with Nuala, James

and Dale Gardner 16-24

Interviews with Executive Producer Beryl 25-29

Vertue, Producer Elaine Cameron and Writer
Lindsey Hill

Cast Biographies 30-33

Production Biographies 34-36

For further information please contact Anya Noakes/Rebecca Dix (publicists for
Hartswood Films) on 020 7483 2005 or e-mail anya@prmatters.biz

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For picture publicity enquiries please contact Shane Chapman, ITV1 Picture Desk on 020
7261 3484 or shane.chapman@itv.com

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 AFTER THOMAS
A true story about an extraordinary friendship
KEELEY HAWES (Spooks, Under The Greenwood Tree, Tipping The Velvet), BEN MILES
(Coupling, Prime Suspect, The Forsyte Saga) and SHEILA HANCOCK star in After Thomas, a
true story of one couple’s struggle to meet the challenges of their child’s autism.

Kyle Graham is scared. Not of monsters under the bed like any average six-year-old, but of just
about everything. And he can’t communicate his fears. His mother Nicola (Hawes) knows that
Kyle wants to be left alone, safe and secure in his autistic world. But she also fears for his
future if he continues to reject all emotional interaction. Her fierce determination to break into
Kyle’s world has placed an intolerable strain on her marriage, as her husband Rob (Miles),
although equally devoted to his son, is frustrated by Nicola’s relentless challenging of Kyle’s
condition.

Into this maelstrom of conflict comes Thomas, a golden retriever puppy. Nothing could prepare
Nicola and Rob for how Thomas unlocks the door to a personality they never knew their son
had. What follows is a fascinating and moving tale of two parents who, at breaking point, find
hope they never dared to dream of. Gritty and real, funny and heart-warming, After Thomas is
an uplifting and moving true story.

Following a six month search and over 150 auditions, six-year-old ANDREW BYRNE makes
his acting debut as Kyle. Sheila Hancock plays Nicola’s mother Pat with DUNCAN PRESTON
(Acorn Antiques, Dinnerladies) as her father Jim and LORRAINE PILKINGTON (Monarch Of
The Glen) as Rob’s friend Rachel.

After Thomas is written by Lindsey Hill, directed by Simon Shore (Things To Do Before You’re
30) and produced by Elaine Cameron (the forthcoming Jekyll for the BBC, Wonderful You,
Border Cafe). The Executive Producer is Beryl Vertue.

With an award-winning portfolio of drama, light entertainment and documentary films,

Hartswood provides programmes for ITV, BBC and Channel 4.
Hartswood's drama and comedy credits include Coupling, Men Behaving Badly, Supernova,
Carrie & Barry, The Savages, Is It Legal?, My Good Friend, Border Café, Wonderful You, The
English Wife, A Woman’s Guide To Adultery and Code Name Kyril. Hartswood have also
produced several critically acclaimed documentaries including Going To Chelsea, Officers and
Gentlemen, The War Behind The Wire and In Love With Elizabeth.

For further information please contact Natalie Cheary, ITV1 Press Office on 020 7737
8676 or Natalie.cheary@itv.com

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 Synopsis

Kyle Graham (ANDREW BYRNE) is scared. Not of monsters under the bed like any average
six year old but of everything. Normal, everyday activities prove terrifying to him. And he can’t
communicate his fears, or share them with friends, because he can’t use language and he has
no friends. Kyle is autistic, a condition it took his parents two desperate years to get diagnosed.
So his day consists of endless traumas and tantrums… and unimaginable stress for his mother
Nicola (KEELEY HAWES).

Nicola knows that the one thing Kyle wants is to be left alone, safe and secure in his autistic
world. But she also knows that if she grants her son this wish, he will have no future. Her fierce
determination to break into Kyle’s world at any cost has placed an intolerable strain on her
marriage. Her husband Rob (BEN MILES), although equally unbending in his love for his son,
is frustrated by Nicola’s relentless challenging of Kyle. Not to mention the loss of the carefree
life he and Nicola once had.

Rob tries everything to convince Nicola that Kyle should go to a boarding school for autistic
children. But Nicola is adamant that he should remain part of society and be taught the skills to
cope with the world around him. When a ‘no-strings attached’ respite is offered by family friend
Rachel (LORRAINE PILKINGTON), Rob is truly torn.

Nicola’s only respite is the unwavering support of her mother Pat (SHEILA HANCOCK) and
father Jim (DUNCAN PRESTON), who dote on Kyle and provide practical support when
needed. Into this setting of seemingly insurmountable conflict comes Thomas, a golden
retriever puppy, named after Kyle’s favourite character, Thomas The Tank Engine. Nicola is
hopeful that Thomas can break into Kyle’s world where everyone else has failed. Little by little,
Kyle begins to show Thomas affection and an understanding of his new dog’s feeling.

By the time Thomas is a fully grown dog, Nicola and Rob are hopeful of a breakthrough where
all other attempts have failed. The unexpected and devastating blow of Pat’s death only
strengthens their resolve. But when Thomas becomes ill, the family fear that the progress Kyle
has made is about to unravel…

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 Keeley Hawes plays Nicola Graham

For Nicola, the care and development of Kyle has overtaken her entire life, particularly as she
refuses time and time again to give up hope on a breakthrough with her son.

‘Nicola is under a great deal of stress coping with Kyle. Although she works a couple of nights a
week as a nurse, she really doesn’t have a life apart from caring for him. Although Rob wants
him to go away to a boarding school for autistic children, Nicola is adamant that she can help
Kyle more herself.’

It was a raw, honest and unsentimental account of Nicola’s fight which attracted Keeley to the
film.

‘I liked the script because it wasn’t sentimental in the way it might have been. It’s not sugary
and, with a TV drama, it could have easily gone down that route. And I read it in one sitting,
which is always a good sign. It’s not good when it takes you three weeks to get through
something! And you care about the characters, which is so important. With any drama, you
have to care about the characters enough to want to stick with the story and see everything
from their point of view.’
"Having a child without a
And the fact that those characters are not only a figment disability is so difficult
sometimes, it’s almost
of a writer’s imagination brings an even greater weight to unimaginable to identify with
the story. people who cope with children
with disabilities.”

‘The fact that Nicola is based on a real woman comes with quite a lot of responsibility. If you
play somebody famous, you sort of feel like you know them anyway, which is an entirely
different kind of responsibility. I know the writer Lindsey (Hill) worked very closely with the ‘real
family’ so a lot of the dialogue has actually been spoken by somebody. That weighs quite
heavily. It gets easier and you think about it less and less as filming progresses, but you always
feel that you want to do the people you are portraying justice. Thankfully, the couple we are
based on are happy with Ben and I, so that’s a relief!’

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As a mother of a five-year-old herself, Keeley found Nicola’s story hugely inspiring – and hopes
parents in similar situations will too.

‘This story really is awe-inspiring. Having a child without a disability is so difficult sometimes,
it’s almost unimaginable to identify with people who cope with children with disabilities. That is
why this is inspiring for other people. It’s not a miracle, it’s not a cure. The story is miraculous
but it’s not saying that everyone with autistic children should go and buy a Golden Retriever.
But it is inspiring that not every story has a bad ending. It’s very hopeful. As naff as it sounds,
this job has made everybody realise how lucky they are. Which is never a bad thing, is it?’

Keeley and the rest of the production team were keen to ensure that autism was correctly
portrayed, an objective which required much research and a real insight into the condition.

‘We did a lot of research into autism. I‘ve got several books at home and we went to a school
for autistic children, where we met children who were the same age as my own son. I thought I
was much better prepared for that but I wasn’t. They were gorgeous, those little boys. And all
the older children were so beautifully behaved because they
“It’s only really since the
early nineties that are so well looked after and sort of ‘trained’ in social
people understand the
behaviour – the ones I met were much better behaved than
condition enough to
diagnose it, which is most other kids their age! They were just wonderful,
quite frightening”
wonderful kids. They were so pleased to see us and there
was even a little boy who was given a line in the film. The whole school was standing in the
playground watching us shooting and when the boy had delivered his line and walked off, they
all cheered and clapped. It was just so moving. The job’s been worth it just to have the
experience with those people, to work with them and to meet the children.

One thing I didn’t know before this was that there are so many levels of autism. It’s often hard
to get diagnosed because some of the symptoms are the same as Obsessive Compulsive
Disorder. It’s a really complicated, grey area. Fifteen years ago when Nicola was trying to get
Kyle diagnosed, people didn’t know as much. It’s only really since the early nineties that people
understand the condition enough to diagnose it, which is quite frightening. What on earth was
going on beforehand with the amount of children who had this problem? What help were they
being given? Did people simply think that they were ‘badly behaved’ children? I was watching a

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video of autistic children with my son and he said ‘these children are naughty.’ Because that’s
what they looked like. You can’t explain autism to a five-year-old though really. I know you
should try to explain but personally I don’t think they can take that in. I’m just getting my head
around it.’

And getting their head around autism is something Keeley would like to see more people trying
to do.

‘I think taking anything to an audience so it can be better understood, especially when it’s
something as visible as autism, is a good thing. Thankfully, we are continually being educated
about disabilities and people are more aware of their “There isn’t a scene
behaviour and how they should relate to disabled people. It which wasn’t difficult if
I’m totally honest”
can only be a good thing for people to get a greater
understanding of autism. And I’m sure it will also be quite good for people bringing up autistic
children to see that other people have been through it and come out the other side.’

If the subject matter wasn’t challenging enough, then filming certainly was…

‘Any scenes with children or dogs are very difficult to film! There isn’t a scene which wasn’t
difficult if I’m totally honest. My role with Kyle is very physical a lot of the time. Andrew (Byrne)
is six so he’s not a little toddler. There are scenes where I am struggling with him, like the
opening scenes when I am holding him down in the road. For him it’s exhausting and for me it’s
exhausting. I’ve got no idea how people cope with that all day, every day. They must be so
physically strong as well as mentally. You just feel battered by the end of the day, like you’ve
been on an assault course. Both Ben (Miles) and I have children of our own, which I think was
really important, especially as we are spending so much time with Andrew.’

Yet it is these challenges which make Keeley one of Britain’s most versatile actresses, tackling
everyone from an MI5 agent (in two series of Spooks) to Victorian heroines (Under The
Greenwood Tree, Tipping the Velvet) to modern day versions of Shakespearean characters
Lady Macbeth and Desdemona.

‘I’ve been really lucky with my career so far. I haven’t been pigeon-holed, which sometimes
happens to actors. The exciting thing is having something that you’d have never thought of

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drop on your mat and thinking ‘Oh God, I’d love to do this’. But I can’t complain…I’m even lucky
enough to have done my pocket version of Lady Macbeth!’

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 Ben Miles plays Rob Graham

Ben describes Rob Graham as a man almost mourning his former self…

‘There are two different Rob Grahams. There’s the Rob before Kyle came along: a creative,
fun, humorous, talented, dynamic sort of guy, working in a field that was, at the time, new and
exciting (mobile phones). Then there’s the Rob six years
“There are two different
after having Kyle. He’s tired, and feels slightly hard done by.
Rob Grahams”
He craves and misses the life he had before Kyle. Both him
and Nicola do. Rob is old before his time because their life is so hard. Having to deal with
Kyle’s autism wears them down in every way. He’s a decent guy having to live a very hard life.’

Yet it was the project rather than the role itself which attracted the Coupling star.

‘I was drawn to the subject matter, and I liked the fact that it was a true story. Autism is a
subject not often addressed in drama and it is an ‘authentic script’. It’s not too sentimental or
melodramatic, which is what interested me. I was also drawn to the fact that Keeley (Hawes)
was playing Nicola. I knew Nicola would be in safe hands.’

As well as a script and leading lady he had full confidence in, Ben was attracted to the ambition
of the film as a whole.

‘I think - I hope - audiences realise that life with an autistic child is very hard, but no less loving
for that. And that people with autistic family members are maybe left with some sort of hope,
because it is an optimistic story. It does have a reasonably
“Disability is a fact happy ending in that Kyle does develop and they do begin to
and the less it’s
viewed as a ‘terrible communicate and operate as a normal family, whatever a
thing’, the better it is ‘normal’ family is. They become less dysfunctional. It’s a
for all concerned” hopeful story. I want people to get a brief glimpse into the lives
of people with autistic children and realise that it has
repercussions on every waking moment. We’re all keen to stress, however, that simply getting
a dog isn’t going to solve your child’s autism. This just happened to be a way this family found
to help them.

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There’s also an element of humour, as there is in any sort of dire situation. That’s how human
beings deal with things - they try to laugh at them. So it’s not all “what are we going to do, isn’t
life awful?” Things happen which are funny and mundane. Some people may view it as a
tragedy that their child has autism but I don’t think Rob or Nicola do. That is, again, a good
intention of this film – disability is a fact and the less it’s viewed as a ‘terrible thing’, the better it
is for all concerned.’

The fact that Rob is based on a real person – and one who had been involved in the
development of the script – was both a challenge and a relief to Ben.

‘You do feel a sense of responsibility playing a ‘real person’. You’re daily trying to avoid the
melodramatic. Lindsey (Hill, writer) and Simon (Shore, director) were very good at tweaking
dialogue if it didn’t fit the actors’ speech idiom. They weren’t nailing us down to the script if it
didn’t fit with the way we speak. I do feel a great responsibility to try to present the story as real
and as transparent as possible. To not make any fancy turns or anything, because it’s not
about that. The story’s more important.’

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 Sheila Hancock plays Grandma Pat

The role of Pat – Nicola’s mother - is a fundamental one in the story, as Kyle’s no-nonsense
grandmother so often proves to be the rock which keeps Nicola anchored.

‘Certainly in the true story, I’m told, ‘Pat’ was absolutely invaluable to ‘Nicola’. I think in a
situation like this any mother would be.

Pat handles Kyle very well, and she doesn’t put demands on him in the way that a mother has
to. She has the easy route of doing simple things with Kyle. She’s quite gutsy and firm, and
very understanding and honest. She’s obviously deeply
“With the various things I
concerned because it’s a horrible situation to be in, in that A - have been through in life,
the people who you most
her grandson is poorly, and B – she has to watch her
value are not the people
daughter coping with the situation. If you’re sensible, you who whimper all over
you…”
don’t interfere. You are just there as a support, which is what
Pat tries to do and is why she and Nicola are so close. She never really gives advice - she just
listens and observes. She’s utterly practical and I admire that because, with the various things I
have been through in life, the people who you most value are not the people who whimper all
over you, but the people who say ‘right, it’s time you ate’.’

Like the rest of her co-stars, Sheila was drawn to the subject matter rather than the part,
particularly the fact that it was an authentic and personal take on autism.

‘It was the project more than the part which attracted me. I actually thought it was worth doing
because autism is a difficult area and it seemed to me that the script covered it so well. It really
demonstrates the awful dilemma and the effect that it has on a family to have a child who is so
unable to communicate and so unable to express love. Autism is very different for different
children but this child finds it very difficult to actually love a person, as opposed to an object.
And I think that is possibly the worst factor of this particular child’s autism.

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It always irritates me when writers talk about being domestic as though it’s an insult to hurl at
women to belittle them. Writers try to deal with big subjects but actually the domestic is a huge
subject because the family is a microcosm of the whole world. And in a way dealing with this
sort of thing is what life is about, because life is bloody difficult. Being a parent is not a bed of
roses by any means. I think this story demonstrates that really well.

One of the questions I asked when I was approached about the film was ‘have the family given
their blessing?’, which they had. I wouldn’t do anything like this if I thought there might be any
offence taken by it. But I don’t feel I have to do an impersonation of the woman I am playing. I
have never met her and never will (the real Grandma ‘Pat’ has passed away) - I have only the
lines on the page to work with. But as long as the family is happy with it, that’s all that matters.’

Unlike some actors, Sheila has grown to love working with children following years of happy
experience with them playing the infamous orphanage owner Miss Hannigan on the West End
stage.

‘I did Annie for a long time so I am quite used to working with children. And I like working with
them! From the start I said to the rest of the cast ‘you know, its going to be one of those things:
if the kids and the dogs get it right, then it’s a wrap and there’s no
“I found myself
remembering how saying ‘can I go again?’ from us!’ I remember when I first did
utterly impotent I felt Annie I didn’t like the idea of kids going on the stage, as I thought
watching the
suffering of my own they should be at school and leading perfectly normal lives. But
daughter and the surprising thing is that I think working in this business teaches
grandson”
great discipline. Acting is a very disciplined profession. I don’t
think people realise that but it’s true: you have to hit your mark, you have to be there on time,
you have to act when you’re needed – it’s quite a complex thing for a child to realise that.’

Sheila also found filming quite poignant as elements of the situation mirrored her own
experience as a grandmother…

‘I sometimes found filming quite upsetting because I have had a grandson who was
desperately ill (Sheila’s grandson Jack suffered, and recovered, from a brain tumour at the age
of six). Occasionally when I was watching and observing, I found myself remembering how
utterly impotent I felt watching the suffering of my own daughter and grandson.

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But a grandmother’s role is very lovely. I love being a grandmother, because you don’t have
any of the hideous decisions about schools and all those sorts of things to make. You get the
best bits. I find increasingly that I have a special role in that my grandchildren can confide in me
things they can’t confide in their mum and dad. And that’s lovely.’

Sheila’s love of children has prompted her and daughter Abigail to set up a charity in the
memory of veteran actor John Thaw, their much-loved husband and father who tragically lost
his fight against cancer of the oesophagus in 2002.

‘My daughter and I set up the John Thaw Foundation to help children in any kind of distress. As
I get older, I am hugely aware of what painful lives some children lead. Not only because of an
illness like autism, which is extremely painful for children, but also
“I think there’s a
children who have suffered the most appalling abuse and
basic dislike of
backgrounds. So I am very pleased to be involved in anything that children in this
country.”
sheds some kind of light on that suffering. I think we sometimes
misunderstand children. We can blame them and think they are little savages - giving them
warnings and moving them on in the streets. I think there’s a basic dislike of children in this
country. I like children enormously and I find it sad that to see that attitude.’

As well as her charity work and acting, Sheila is also kept busy writing the follow-up to her
hugely successful book The Two of Us, a candid, moving and ultimately critically acclaimed
account of her life with John.

‘I’m writing a second book, a travel book. It’s a special sort of travel book, as it’s a personal
journey as well as a physical one. So I have got a lot of travelling ahead of me. I am very, very
busy, put it that way!’

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 Duncan Preston plays Grandpa Jim

Grandpa Jim is both the perfect father and grandfather – a kind, sensible soul who does not
judge and is always on hand to play with Kyle and raise a smile to Nicola’s face, in between
being gently henpecked by his wife…

‘Pat wears the trousers in this relationship - she tells him what to do and he does it! Even so,
you sense he has a bit more power than he lets on. He’s his own man really. I think Sheila
(Hancock) is perfect casting. We’ve had a few laughs playing Mr and Mrs!’

Although Duncan fell in love with the script immediately, he “‘I just looked at Keeley
on the very first day and I
was rather taken aback by the fact that he was finally old
thought about what a
enough to play a man with a grown up parent for a daughter! wonderful woman Nicola
was”

‘It was quite a shock because I’m playing a granddad for the first time! I did have to have five
minutes on my own to get my head around the fact that at last I’m playing granddads…I’m at
the end of the career now, there’s only a great-granddad to go!

All that aside, I read it and I thought ‘my God, this is going to have the nation in tears’. It’s so
moving, even just to read. We were all struggling at the read-through! It’s not a huge part for
me but I just wanted to be involved with it. It’s one of the best scripts I’ve read.’

Duncan was particularly moved by the part of Nicola, and found he and Keeley even shed a
few tears of their own on set.

‘I just looked at Keeley on the very first day and I thought about what a wonderful woman
Nicola was. The most moving scene is where Pat dies. Both Keeley and I were in tears. Even
then that was Keeley’s story more than mine. I was just around really.’

Duncan hopes that audiences will be moved enough to understand more about autism than the
little which has gone before in film and television, something which puts a huge responsibility
on the cast.

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‘I don’t think most people know enough about autism, and this might just teach them a bit. If
you say autism, everybody thinks of the film Rainman, and that is
“Any actor would give
their eye teeth to play really not what this is about. This is a real life trial of an autistic
those parts because child and how that affects his parents. But it isn’t sentimental and
they’re so real.”
it mustn’t be.

Any actor would give their eye teeth to play these parts because they’re so real. If Andrew
(Byrne) knew how much pressure he had on his shoulders, I don’t think he’d be able to do it.’

Despite the weight commanded for the performances, the addition of canine ‘actors’ on the set
often lightened the mood.

‘We’ve had some great moments with the dogs. We were down in Broadstairs filming on the
beach one day and we were trying to get the dog into the sea. He thought it was a bit cold so
he was stalling, understandably! But also on the beach were three other retrievers plucking up
the courage to get into the sea. It was like an audition. They were saying, ‘Look I can do it. If
chicken drawers over there won’t do it, I’ll do it’!

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 Interview with
Nuala, James and Dale Gardner
Nuala and James Gardner – on whom Nicola and Rob Graham are based - live in a seaside
town in Scotland with son Dale, who is now 18, and their six-year-old daughter Amy. Both Dale
and Amy were diagnosed with autism as toddlers, with Dale’s diagnosis being a long, arduous
task at a time when autism was not widely understood. After Thomas is the story of Dale’s
remarkable development through his bond with their pet dog Henry, named after his favourite
engine in Thomas The Tank Engine but renamed Thomas in the film. Dale is now undertaking
an NC (National Certificate) in Childcare following voluntary work with children through a
Barnardos special needs playscheme. He is unrecognisable from the boy he was during the
period the film depicts – the confident, mature and friendly teenager who plays guitar in a band
and works voluntarily with young Scouts is testament to the incredible impact Henry had on his
life.

The story of that impact first came to writer Lindsey Hill’s attention when the family entered
their Golden Retriever into a competition.

Nuala: ‘I entered what I thought was just a small competition through Winalot dog food. You
had to write about why your dog was a ‘real life champ’ and so I wrote about the impact Henry
had made on Dale. We won the competition and, subsequently, were approached by Pet
Power with Anthea Turner. Pet Power was an amalgamation of heart-warming stories about the
impact animals had had on people’s lives. We were a small aspect of that, with a 15 minute
piece which briefly covered our story. Lindsey was one of the many thousands who watched it,
and she could see that there was more to the story and got in touch with us. Initially, there was
a double edged sword of excitement and reservation. However, ‘There must be over
from that very initial conversation, a nine-year relationship with 100 different traits
that people with non
Lindsey was formed.’ autistic children
wouldn’t pick up on’ -
James
James: ‘I was amazed that somebody would be that interested in
our story to be honest. I’ve seen people do amazing things with children, so I felt humbled that
people thought our story was worth telling. The process of the script coming together was
great, the way Lindsey, Nuala and myself worked together to get all the little details in. The

17
actual portrayal of the autism in the script is really good - there must be over 100 different traits
that people with non autistic children wouldn’t pick up on.’

Nuala: ‘Ten drafts later, working sometimes intensively when there was interest [from the
television industry] and less so when there were plateaus, we got to this point. For nine whole
years, Lindsey was committed and stuck to our story. Meanwhile, we were all getting on with
our lives, with Dale growing up and Amy being born. Ironically, we now feel it’s the perfect time
to tell the story. I don’t think it would have had the impact it will have now all those years ago,
mainly because of the young man Dale has turned out to be.’

Nuala and Jamie’s daughter Amy was diagnosed with autism early, mainly because her
parents were so adept at recognising the signs and insisting on testing. And, despite raised
awareness and medical progress, the Gardners feel that autism is still a struggle to get
diagnosed. In fact, 40% of all children with autism wait more than three years for a clear
diagnosis (source: NAS)

Nuala: ‘It saddens us to say that it’s 12 years between Dale and Amy, which is a very long
time, and although things have improved, we feel it hasn’t gone far enough. To be quite truthful,
if Dale had not existed in our family, we would have gone down a similar path with Amy that we
went down with him. Dale, we felt, should have been easy to diagnose, with classic, severe,
textbook autism. And he wasn’t for two years. With Amy being more moderate and more ‘able’,
she was almost at a disadvantage with the diagnosis process because she was too ‘good’. We
can only take from that process that there are certain children who aren’t severe enough on the
surface to get diagnosed, which is very worrying.

With both Dale and Amy, we’ve proved that it is vital that they get early intervention. Amy would
have been almost four before she got a diagnosis if Dale did not exist. That’s frightening.
Autism societies are having to hammer home what is the most crucial point with any of these
children, at any level – and it’s early intervention. The waiting lists and processes to get there is
the most frustrating part during those vital first couple of years, as the autism is getting a
chance to become ingrained in a child. It can really get a hold on them. Thankfully, Dale did
exist, but I think it’s awful that you have to have one autistic child to be given consideration for
fast tracking on another.’

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Although statistics show that more children are autistic now than ever before, awareness of the
condition is clearly a major factor in the figures, although Nuala believes that the MMR (the
combined vaccine against measles, mumps and rubella) may also be contributing to the rise…

James: ‘The way the medical profession diagnose it now with Autistic Spectrum Disorders
rather than simply ‘autism’ makes it easier to put a label on the condition. Before it was an “on
or off” thing, whereas now it’s a sliding scale. There are also more diagnostic centres, which
makes a difference. When Dale was diagnosed, we had to travel to Nottingham to see a
specialist.’

Nuala: ‘You also have the controversial factor of MMR. Although there has been a lot of work
on that, we feel – as do a lot of parents - that the work is unfinished. Maybe there is some kind
of underlying factor which, together with a hereditary factor, triggers autism in some children.
There is this absolutely horrific surge of autism in the figures over the past few years and it
makes you wonder. Amy had regressive autism (ie. she wasn’t born with symptoms). I’m not
anti-vaccine at all, but deciding whether she should have combined or single vaccinations was
the hardest, most stressful decision I’ve ever had to make in my life. There was no way we
could deny the fears with MMR, so we felt more comfortable going down the single vaccine
route. We went ahead in view that there was an outbreak of measles locally at the time – Amy
had the measles vaccine at 14 months, after which she had a severe reaction, including a full
rash and fever. She had the mumps and rubella vaccines at six month intervals afterwards.
Amy was developmentally thriving with language until just after her rubella jab, when she
started to regress. She went from 100% switched on to 20% switched on. She literally
regressed, which is typical of the children where MMR is thought to be a contributary factor. We
feel in hindsight that it maybe her immune system was compromised or some other underlying
cause triggered it. It's too late now but we can't help thinking how she would have developed
without the vaccines.’

Both Nuala and James hope that raised awareness will benefit other parents of autistic
children, in that they will have to spend less time explaining why they cannot control their
distressed child in a public place. The couple remember several situations with Dale where
they were berated for his behaviour and accused of being incompetent parents by people for
whom autism was nothing more than an excuse for a spoilt child.

19
Nuala: ‘In the society we live in a lot of people can see an autistic child and perceive it as a
spoiled child. And, to all intents and purposes, it looks like that. But with films like After
Thomas, you would hope they would have a second look before making a judgement. If they

‘I had to use the have a good look, they may realise that the child is screaming but
phrase ‘handicapped there isn’t much language. That’s not a tantrum - that’s a child
child’, because it was
the only one that petrified and frustrated. With Dale, I had to constantly apologise and
rang a bell with explain his autism. I had to use the phrase ‘handicapped child’,
people’ – Nuala
because it was the only one that rang a bell with people. When I
said ‘autism’ people said ‘what’s that?’ With Amy I’ve managed only three or four times in three
years where I’ve been in a situation where I’ve had to explain. Thankfully, when I did explain it
was autism, I didn’t get the blank expressions I used to get’

James: ‘Even if just one person thinks ‘oh, I saw that After Thomas – maybe that’s what was
wrong with that wee boy I saw” then it’ll be worth it. It used to happen a lot with Nuala and her
mum in town. Dale would freak out in the shopping centre and a crowd of people would gather
round, just like in the opening scene of the film. Invariably, there would be a few good people
who understood that something was not quite right and would help. But people always have
their opinions. Once we were in a cafeteria having our lunch, when Dale decided to lie on the
floor. We had the choice to move him there and then and deal with the tantrum or to be
practical and leave him till we’d finished our lunch and then move him and deal with tantrum.
There’s the calm before the storm– it’s just this silence – and then it happens. You know it’s
going to happen either way, so we thought we might as well finish our lunch first. A man had
been watching, so when we picked Dale up, maybe two minutes later, he followed us into the
car park to tell us what he thought. People staring is hard enough, but when you get people
passing comment on something they know nothing about, it’s very hard to stomach. I explained
Dale’s autism but he wasn’t interested in listening. He didn’t apologise - he just turned and
walked away, shaking his head.

I think Lindsey has summed up the attitude of quite a majority of the public with that one
woman in the first scene (who is disgusted with ‘Kyle’s’ behaviour). It’s not like a child with
Downs Syndrome or cerebral palsy where you can see something is wrong. Autistic children
invariably look fine. When Dale’s autism was at its worst, Rain Man had been out a couple of
years earlier. So when people were staring at his behaviour, I’d just say to Dale, “right Rain
Man, it’s time to go”. Whether it was appropriate or not, I don’t know. But it just acted as a

20
reference people could understand. I used to get people asking if they could take Dale down
the bookies because of the scene in Rain Man where he beats the casino. They didn’t
understand really.’

As well as an understanding of autism among the general public, James and Nuala also feel
the film has a responsibility to the autistic community, a challenge it has more than risen to.

Nuala: ‘There are two audiences – there are the families who are affected by autism and
there’s everyone else outside that. I hope we’ve raised awareness appropriately of how hard
and how stressful it is living with a child with autism and how it affects the whole family, but that
we’ve also given hope to the audience living with autism. Dale was a bad case and he’s come
a long way. We want to say one thing to parents of autistic children – empower yourself.
Parents should be radically active with their child, and not be afraid to stand on their toes to
really aggressively work with that child and with the system. It’s hard going but Dale’s the proof
that it can be done. I think with any disability and any child, the key thing is to never give up
hope. Because I could have easily given up with Dale and his life would have been very, very
different.’

James: ‘I would like parents to take a lot of hope away from the film. Because when your child
gets diagnosed, nobody actually says “you can keep working on it and it will improve and
improve”. Dale is an example of that – he’s gone to mainstream school and now he’s off to
college, despite being told at the beginning that he would need to spend his childhood in
‘special’ schooling. That’s got to give a lot of hope to people, I think. There are times when it
gets you down. Luckily with us, it tended to happen on different days, so if I was having a bad
day then Nuala would tend to be fine and vice versa. The film shows that you do have to keep
plugging away in a system that isn’t very good at looking after children with autism. I would
have loved to have seen it myself, a drama like this, back in those days. We did visit people
and see children improving but not to the degree that Dale has.’

A key turning point in Dale and his parents’ lives was the day Henry joined the family,
particularly when he got ‘his voice’. As shown in the film, James used the voice to talk Dale
down from a night-time tantrum, something he and Nuala could not do alone. It was the first
time Henry broke into Dale’s world, and the start of an incredible process of therapy.

21
Nuala: ‘I’ll never forget that night as long as I live. We were so used to seeing Dale in a tantrum
state - this time it had been caused by the word ‘proud’. That was the thing that was so hard
because he had very little language. We had to watch what we said and the tone and sequence
we said it in. ‘Proud’ was a trigger because he had no concept of the word - it was a case of
“how dare you introduce this concept of proud” – and he was on the ceiling. I’d been sitting
astride Dale for about an hour because he was just so, so distressed and I had to hold his head
to stop him from banging it. I thought I’d just have to sit on him for hours until he got exhausted
and burnt out as usual. Henry was lying beside Dale - he could sense when Dale was upset. I
said “even the dog looks worried” and that just triggered Jamie. He just took this initiative and
said “Hello Dale, this is Henry. Please don’t do this, I’m very worried”. And Dale just said “oh,
alright, sorry Henry”. And he literally just threw me off him and went out to play with Henry.

It would have been a one-off, because we didn’t quite click onto the enormity of it. But an hour
later, we said ‘let’s get bedtime battles over with’. Bedtime battles was a nightly routine - it
could take anything up to two hours. It was actually Dale who initiated Henry’s voice the second
time - Jamie was asking him to go up to the bedroom and he said ‘no, speak like Henry’. I know
now that he’d found a comfortable indirect means to communicate with us. Dale couldn’t dress
himself and we used to have to hold him down to get his jammies on but this time ‘Henry’
asked Dale to go and put his jammies on. And he went. And we sat, rooted to the chair, gob
smacked, when he came down for the first time ever with his jammies on. He’d managed to do
up two buttons - we didn’t know he could do buttons! Maybe he hadn’t had the motivation or
the will to do the buttons before. That night, instead of two hours it took ten minutes. It was like
a miracle.’

James: ‘I don’t even know why I did it. I’d used the voice before, but not to talk to Dale. It never
occurred to me that it might help. We did check it out with speech therapists to make sure that
what we were doing wasn’t counterproductive. But they just said “if it works, go for it”.

Henry died at the grand old age of 12, leaving the family devastated. As Henry’s health
deteriorated with old age, James and Nuala soon bought another dog, who Dale was adamant
would be named Henry too. The first Henry was promoted to Sir Henry, which he will from now
on be known in the Gardner household.

22
Dale: ‘I couldn’t see my friends the day after Sir Henry died. I was just paralysed in my bed with
upset. There’s so many ways I could describe him. He was just really friendly and sociable. He
was a very gentle dog and he had that wise look on his face which made me really comfortable
with him. You could see all of this from his eyes. He was always seeking attention and he made
me feel confident and secure. I liked it when people admired him and would talk to me about
him. But I’m getting on with Henry really well too. When I’m in my room he comes up and sees
me. We’ve really bonded well.’

All three of the family members portrayed in the film – Nuala, played by Keeley Hawes; Jamie,
played by Ben Miles and Dale, played by Andrew Byrne – are delighted with the actors’
interpretation of them.

Nuala: ‘I’ve always just loved Keeley as an actress. We all loved Spooks and if there’s anything
with Keeley in it, I’ll usually make it my business to watch it. So when I
‘With the best will
heard she was playing me it was a major compliment. I was honoured
in the world, you
that an actress of her calibre was interested in the part. And since have to be a
mother to play
meeting her and seeing her at work, I just think she is Oscar material!
that part like
I find it quite spooky because her portrayal is so, so good. I know that Keeley did’ -
Nuala
my friends are going to die when they see how accurate it is! She’s
got me totally to a tee. She’s shown that, even though I am emotionally drained and stressed to
the limit, I’m not an emotional wreck. From the brief meeting I had with her, I could see that she
had great empathy and a genuine interest in doing our story, particularly being a mother
herself. One of the things I felt from the beginning was that, with the best will in the world, you
have to be a mother to play that part like she did.’

James: ‘I think Ben’s really nailed the humour that got us through it. I’d seen Coupling so I was
pleased with him playing me. There’s a scene at the start, when ‘Rob’ drives up to the house
and has to compose himself for a minute. There was this look and you can see he’s thinking,
“what am I going into?” That would happen quite a lot. Some days I would go in and Dale had
had a good day and everything was fine. Other days all hell had broken out and things weren’t
quite so cosy. Ben really brought that back to me in that one look. He was spot on.’

And when it comes to Andrew, everyone was bowled over by the talented six year old…

23
Nuala: ‘I’ve got two Achilles heels – one for golden retrievers and one for Andrew Byrne! He
just has such great facial expressions. A lot of autistic children have these blank facial
expressions, - they communicate through their eyes - and Andrew has got these piercing blue
eyes which are perfect for that. He is a beautiful child and the portrayal is astounding. I just
cannot believe he got to the level Dale was on and managed this spookily accurate
performance. A wee star is definitely born.’

Dale: ‘It’s a really good performance. Meeting him was good - I thought he was a great wee
boy and I was impressed that he was excited about meeting me. He did a drawing for me,
which I will always keep, and I gave him a drawing of Henry as well, which I signed.’

Watching After Thomas for the first time was a strange experience, but one that made the
family incredibly proud.

Nuala: ‘It was weird, but it was pleasantly weird. Our biggest anxiety was: ‘please get this right,
and do it justice’, so watching it was more of a happy experience than anything else - I was
very proud and reassured by the way everything was so accurate. Even before then, visiting
the set was so reassuring - we could see what was unfolding and we were very comfortable.
The whole nine years, the whole plodding away at it, was worth it. Obviously, it was upsetting
as well to relive parts of the experience, like my mother dying for instance. I went through an
emotional rollercoaster and nothing could have avoided having those wounds reopened. No
amount of white wine could avoid me being upset and reliving what I saw on screen. Funnily
enough, the first tear I had was for the early scene of Dale locking me in the cupboard. I
remember vividly being in that cupboard and what it was like. Keeley was just exceptional.
That’s when I knew that they’d hit the mark and were going to deliver.’

Dale: ‘It was very strange, though at times I pretended it wasn’t me so it made it easier to
watch. It was strange going onto the set because I remember little bits of it. I remember a lot
from the film - locking my mum in the cupboard, wrapping the blanket around Henry, the time I
took Henry into school. It helped me remember how bad I was – I saw how severe my autism
was. Ben was very good at playing my dad - he brought out my dad’s humour in the film. And
Keeley was really good at the shouting!’
‘I feel honoured
and I just want
the story to bring
hope wherever it
can’ - Dale
24
The Gardners are now bracing themselves for the transmission of After Thomas…

Nuala: ‘I think we have been so well prepared that by the time it does go out we will have got it
into perspective and will be able to manage it and enjoy it for what it is. It’s so different to the
first time, with Pet Power, which resulted in lots of publicity about us. I’m totally calm this time. I
think being able to see it a few times has anaesthetised us a little. Say, for instance, I’d only
seen it once, then I don’t think we’d be able to cope nearly as well. We do have to watch it and
watch it so that we are prepared. And I hate getting my picture taken, so I’m delighted it’s
Keeley this time around in the pictures!’

Dale: ‘It’ll feel weird. Because it feels weird now when people are talking about autism and how
they’ve done something about it. I hope it does benefit a lot of people out there. I hope it raises
awareness. I feel honoured and I just want the story to bring hope wherever it can.’

25
 Interviews with Executive Producer Beryl Vertue,
Producer Elaine Cameron and Writer Lindsey Hill

After Thomas is the first one-off drama script from former insolvency lawyer Lindsey Hill. She
explains how she came across this moving true story:

‘One evening early in 1997, I caught an episode of Pet Power and saw the Gardner family’s
story. I sat there with tears rolling down my face; I too had a golden retriever puppy - who was
lying at my feet - so I knew just how special they could be and what incredible bonds you can
develop with them. About an hour later I had a ‘light bulb moment’. If the story could move me
like that, what effect might it have on other people?

‘I had a ‘light bulb

‘When I finally got to talk to the family, they were unbelievably open moment’. If the story
and candid. They had thought about it long and hard and decided could move me like
that, what effect
that if it could possibly help other families, they would love to work might it have on
with me on bringing their story to a wider audience. At this point other people?’ –
Lindsey Hill
Dale was a little boy, and they invited me to visit them at their home
in Scotland. They had two conditions: that I stay at their house rather than in a hotel and that I
take my dog too. In the end I went up twice, staying for ten days in total.’

As happens so often in film and television, there followed a period of “development hell” - until
producer Elaine Cameron of Hartswood Films heard about the script, read it and loved it. A
mother of two herself, Elaine explains why the script appealed so much:

‘After Thomas is about maternal love, about a mother’s selflessness in trying to give her little
boy a normal existence, and how a dog was the final key in the lock and helped her do that.

Like many people, the first question I asked was whether autism is hereditary. But it isn’t that
simple. I quickly learnt that siblings suffering the symptoms are rare, and that there is a huge
spectrum of people with autism: at one end are the children who might be dyspraxic, which
means they are often clumsy, have little sense of their own bodies, are sometimes incontinent
and therefore have to wear nappies until quite a late age and have very little language. To the
outside world they appear severely disabled. At the other end, you have people who suffer

26
from Aspergers syndrome; sufferers carry on in normal society. To all intents and purposes
they just seem slightly odd – self absorbed, lacking in social skills and empathy, not able to
read emotions.

But this was a story about one family, and we wanted to concentrate on their personal
experiences.’

Elaine was keen to meet the family, and so she and Lindsey flew up to Scotland to meet them.

‘By this point Dale was functioning rather well. I didn’t have much first hand experience of
autism, but after the trip I had the most amazing insight into just how hard it is to look after an
autistic child. It takes all your energy and can put a real strain on a marriage. Nuala and
James felt that it could help other families to realise that this is one of the possibilities when you
have an autistic child. It can make you closer or drive you apart. I did notice that quite a lot of
the people we met when we were filming at the school for autistic children were single parents.
But Nuala was full of wonderful, life enhancing stories, and I could see Lindsey noting each
one. The difficult part was to take all these anecdotes and pull them into a coherent narrative,
which she’s done brilliantly.

Then finding our ‘Kyle’ was a real challenge. Kyle is very, very young, and we didn’t want
someone who was nine playing a six-year-old. It might have helped us get around a few of the
filming laws about the number of hours a child can work, but a nine-year-old has lost that
innocence and is more self-aware. We wanted something a lot more real and spontaneous.
We also wanted to ensure he enjoyed the experience – you’d be surprised how many children
turn up for an audition and clearly don’t want to be there. The other thing we had to get
absolutely right was the tantrums - before Henry arrives this whole world that we enter is about
a child who cannot express anything and is terrified of everything and the only way he can
communicate is by having what we think of as a toddler tantrum. So we needed a child who
had no inhibitions.

Casting Director Pippa Hall (Nanny McPhee, The Chronicles of Narnia) saw more than 200
boys to get Kyle absolutely right. They not only had to have a tantrum and learn two pages of
dialogue, but also interact with my dog, who came in for the final round of auditions. We wanted
to weed out anyone who was allergic to or terrified of dogs. Andrew Bryne just loved the dog,

27
and has one of his own. This is his first acting role, although Pippa had worked with his older
brother, as the two boys had been in the same Saturday morning theatre group. Andrew was
just a natural actor, and the fact that his brother enjoyed acting so much worked in our favour!
There’s a stillness about Andrew – those piercing blue eyes. He’s an extraordinary looking boy.
There’s something about his appearance that feels slightly other-worldly and we all saw that
quality of being slightly removed from reality.’
‘There’s something
about Andrew’s
appearance that feels Executive Producer Beryl Vertue adds: ‘With such a good script,
slightly other-worldly
and we all saw that we were able to attract a wonderful cast. Not only are they great
quality of being slightly actors, but somehow they seemed to exactly fit as the family – just
removed from reality’ –
Elaine Cameron as one would imagine.’

‘Thomas’ was filmed at three different stages: eight weeks, 12-14 weeks and nine months, as
Elaine explains:

‘We had two dogs to play the younger puppies. They were siblings, but one of them was quite
sleepy and the other quite lively, so depending on the scene we could use them accordingly.
That old adage about never working with children and animals certainly rang true! The problem
with children and animals, of course, is that the best scene will always depend on their
performance rather than the adult actors!’

Some of the filming took place on location in schools for autistic children. These had to be very
carefully planned in advance, as Elaine explains:

‘We filmed in two schools. One of the things autistic children hate is any sort of change, so
Andrew had to visit them before filming began and meet the children in character. For him to go
in as Andrew and then as ‘Kyle’ would have been odd and may have upset them. We went in
on a weekly basis preparing this class of quite able autistic children. It was helpful that they
were, in fact, because ‘Kyle’ is meant to be the worst in the class. But there was a lot of
ground-work to do. We had to provide the teacher with photos of the entire crew and other cast
members. These were pinned up on the wall with our names for weeks before we began
filming. We had a reduced crew, but even that was quite big for a little classroom. We had to
think of the smallest things; weeks in advance we had sweatshirts made, all the same colour
with identical logos. The teacher washed them and they got used to wearing them, so that on

28
the day they would feel familiar and comfortable in them. We also took our dog in to meet the
children, which they loved.’

‘The school we shot at is a day school for children between the ages of four and 18. The
location was beautiful - there were lots of facilities, wonderful teachers and autistic children
doing lots of extracurricular activities - when we arrived they were playing drums and singing.
Lindsey and I were very keen that the children should not be actors but real autistic children
who would enjoy the whole experience of taking part in the filming. There are a couple of little
speaking parts in the film for older children, so the drama teacher got together a group of half a
dozen boys for us to meet and they were all so good. It was an incredible place, really
impressive – which was important. You have to understand why ‘Rob’ would suggest sending
their son off to a residential school at such an early age, and it does all make sense. Before we
went to the schools, we had to clear the scripts through the board of governors and parents.
They were absolutely unanimous that the script paints a realistic picture of what it’s like to live
with an autistic child.’

Jim Taylor, headmaster of the Struan School for autistic children and portrayed in the film as
John Havers by Clive Mantle (Casualty) says: ‘I loved the drama! I have a history of not
watching programmes like this on TV and usually end up switching off. I was totally captivated
by it and thought that it was of very high quality. I think it gives a
very positive message to all parents and will also be useful for ‘We are very aware that
families with autistic
professionals to see. What amazes me is just how good the wee children will be watching.
guy [Andrew] is. As well as reminding me of a young Dale, it is a We have a real
responsibility to get it
fantastic portrayal of autism. I was really happy with how the right’ – Beryl Vertue
school pupils were portrayed too.’

Beryl is delighted that the film might go some way towards helping people have some
understanding of autism and the problems associated with it: ‘I hadn’t realised how many
different forms autism can take or just how many children have it – and how very difficult the
lives of the families who look after them can be. It was really brought home to me when I saw
just how much preparation had to take place before we could go and film in the schools, which
demonstrated how autistic children just can’t cope with sudden change, however small. ’

29
I am full of admiration for Dale and his parents. I was standing with the family when we were
shooting a scene and I thought how strange it must feel for the teenage Dale to be watching
himself as a six year old child. It has been thrilling to see how pleased they are with the drama.
We are telling a true story, and are very aware that families with autistic children will be
watching. We have a real responsibility to get it right whilst, at the same time, making a good
drama. So it is satisfying – and a certain relief – that they were so pleased when they saw the
final film.’

Elaine concludes: ‘I’m quite often drawn to novels about grief, for some obscure reason; I find it
a really fascinating area. Yet sometimes when I watch a sad drama I feel manipulated. I think
Lindsey has written a meticulously researched script with tremendous integrity, and even
though it’s incredibly moving and a real tear jerker, I don’t feel annoyed that I’m crying. The
story told in After Thomas is real and true and ultimately full of hope.’

30
 CAST BIOGRAPHIES
Keeley Hawes plays Nicola Graham

Film credits include:

A Cock and Bull Story, Chaos and Cadavers, Complicity, The Last September, The Avengers

Television credits include:

Under the Greenwood Tree, The Best Man, Macbeth, A Murder Is Announced, Sex and Lies,
The Murdoch Mysteries, A Knight’s Tale, Tipping The Velvet, Spooks, A Is For Acid, Me & Mrs
Jones, Lucky Jim, Othello, Murder In Mind: Sleeper, Hotel, Wives and Daughters, Blonde
Bombshell, The Cater Street Hangman, Our Mutual Friend, The Beggar Bride, The Moonstone,
Karaoke

Ben Miles plays Rob Graham

Film credits:
V For Vendetta, Click, Three Blind Mice, Affair Of The Necklace, Keep The Aspidistra Flying,
Wings Of The Dove, Brixton, Getting It Right, Love And Sex

Television credits include:

Under The Greenwood Tree, Mr Harvey Lights A Candle, Coupling, Spin, A Thing Called Love,
Hustle, Prime Suspect, Love Again, The Project, Ed Stone Is Dead, The Forsyte Saga, Holby
City, Cold Feet, The Innocent, Rough Treatment, Reach For The Moon, Wonderful, The Life
And Crimes Of William Palmer, The Round Tower, Melissa, Is It Legal?, Measure For Measure

Theatre credits:
Richard II, Hand In Hand To The Promised Land, The Cherry Orchard, The London Cuckolds,
Mary Stuart, The Tower, The Miser, Two Gentlemen Of Verona, Macbeth, Trelawney Of The
Wells, Fuente Ovejuna, The Winters Tale, Hamlet, Romeo And Juliet, Have, Ispanka, The
Tempest, A Woman Of No Importance, Scars, Chiefly Yourselves.

Sheila Hancock plays Granny Pat

Film credits include:

Yes, Hold Back The Night, Love And Death On Long Island, A Business Affair, Three Men And
A Little Lady, Making Waves, The Universe Of Dermott Finn, Buster, The Love Child, The Clot,
The Anniversary

Television credits include:

Bleak House, Featherboy, Grumpy Old Women, Fortysomething, Bait, Bedtime, Love Or
Money, Russian Bride, Eastenders, Alice In Wonderland, Close Relations, Kavanagh QC, The
Buccaneers, Gone To The Dogs, Gone To Seed, Royal Enclosure, Dr. Who, Jumping The
Queue, The Rivals, The Daughter In Law, Entertaining Mr Sloane

Theatre credits include:

The Anniversary, The Arab Israeli Cookbook, Under The Blue Sky, In Extremis, Vassa, Then
Again, Lock Up Your Daughters, Harry And Me, Gypsy, The Way Of The World, A Judgement

31
 In Stone, Prin, The Bed Before Yesterday, The Cherry Orchard, The Duchess Of Malfi, The
Winter’s Tale, Titus Andronicus, Peter Pan, A Delicate Balance, All Over, The Deep Blue Sea,
The Two Of Us, Entertaining Mr Sloane, Sweeney Todd, Annie, Absurd Person Singular

Duncan Preston plays Grandpa Jim

Film credits:
Porridge, Milk, A Passage To India

Television credits include:

Gentry, Buddy, Holed, Hunter’s Walk, Happy Since The Time I Met You, Victoria Wood As
Seen On TV, Acorn Antiques, Wood & Walters, Pat & Margaret, Dinnerladies, Surgical Spirit,
Holby City, Midsomer Murders, The Bill, My Family, Heartbeat, Casualty, Peak Practice, Dalziel
& Pascoe, Randall And Hopkirk (Deceased)

Theatre credits include:

Acorn Antiques: The Musical, Hamlet, Romeo And Juliet, Macbeth, Pillars Of The Community,
A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Malcolm, Ashes, Clever Soldiers, Debutante Ball, Of Mice And
Men, A Streetcar Named Desire, Loot, Guys And Dolls

Lorraine Pilkington plays Rachel

Film credits include:
In A Day, Rabbit On The Moon, My Kingdom, Breathtaking, Human Traffic, Durango, The
Boxer, The Nephew, Gold In The Streets, The Last of the High Kings, The Cake, The
Disappearance of Finbar, All Things Bright & Beautiful, L’Irelandaise, The Miracle

Television credits include:

The Clinic, Are You Looking At Me, Pulling Moves, Waking The Dead, Monarch of the Glen,
Four Fathers, Her Own Rules, Runway One, West End Girls, Extra Extra

Theatre credits include:

Trust, The Risen People, The Plough and the Stars, Drama At Inish, The Iceman Cometh, On
The Outside/On The Inside

Kate Fleetwood plays Kate

Film credits include:

77 Beds, Vanity Fair, A Changed Man, Pure, Beautiful People

Television credits include:

Foyle’s War, After Thomas, Blade Camp, Midsomer Murders, Murphy’s Law, Spine Chillers,
Silent Witness, The Bill, Doctors, Dalziel And Pascoe, Urban Gothic: The End, Eastenders.

Theatre credits include:

Hercuba, Othello, A Midsummer Nights Dream, Love’s Labour Lost, Mariana Pineda, Tender,
Medea, Two Noble Kinsmen, The Tempest, Nativity, Ghosts, Arabian Knights, Romeo And
Juliet, Comic Mysteries, Swaggers, Twelfth Night, Love Is The Drug

32
 Clive Mantle plays John Havers
Film credits include:
Party Party, Alien 3, Orchard End Murder, Foreign Body, Without A Clue, Mack The Knife, The
Secret Life of Ian Fleming, White Hunter Black Heart

Television credits include:

Robin of Sherwood, Hello Mum, Bloomin Marvellous, Casualty, Holby City, Forty Something,
Second Nature, Heartbeat, Nothing But The Truth, Minder, Jane, Dempsey and Makepeace,
The Lenny Henry Show, Hard Travelling, Scoop, Airbase, Smith and Jones, Wyatt’s
Watchdogs, Club X, F.L.I.P., Chelmsford 123, Shelly, One Foot In The Grave, Bottom, Boon,
Drop the Dead Donkey, Framed, Dogboy, WYSIWYG, A Bit Of Fry and Laurie, Jo Brand
Through The Cake Hole, The Vicar of Dibley, The Good Book Guide

Theatre credits include:

The Price, A Streetcar Named Desire, The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, Robin Hood,
Coming Clean, Educating Rita, The Pocket Dream, The Play What I Wrote, Of Mice and Men,
Trolius and Cressida

Susan Porrett plays Chris

Film credits:
About A Boy, The Parole Officer, The Escort, Plunkett And Macleane, The Saint, Harmfulness
Of Tobacco, Madame Sousatka, The Whistle Blower, A Private Function, The Company Of
Wolves, Sir Henry At Rawlinson End, Full Circle, One Of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing

Television credits include:

Foyles War, Midsomer Murders, Judge John Deed, Days Like These, How Do You Want Me?,
The Bill, Big Women, Hetty Wainthropp Investigates, Cold Lazarus, Middlemarch, Gallowglass

Theatre credits include:

Rookery Nook, Romeo And Juliet, Present Laughter, Ion, Hay Fever, Habeus Corpus, Jamaica
House, A Dream Of People, The Art Of Success, Macbeth, Worlds Apart, They Shoot Horses
Don’t They, Anthony Trollope, Scrape Off The Black, A Month In The Country, Don Juan

Noma Dumezweni plays Paula Murray

Film credits:
Dirty Pretty Things, Rugby Road, Macbeth

Television credits:
After Thomas, Daniel Cares, Together, Little Miss Jocelyn, Silent Witness, Holby City, People
Like Us, Eastenders, The Knock

Theatre credits:
Breakfast With Mugabe, President Of An Empty Room, A Raisin In The Sun, A Midsummer
Nights Dream, The Master And Margarita, Skellig, Nathan The Wise, The Coffee House, Ali

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Baba And The Forty Thieves, Anthony & Cleopatra, Much Ado About Nothing, Dream In The
Wasteland, The Bogus Woman, The Blacks, Macbeth, Know Your Rights

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 PRODUCTION BIOGRAPHIES

Beryl Vertue OBE – Executive Producer

One of Britain's most respected producers, Beryl Vertue has an enviable track record of
international success. Originally she was an agent for renowned comedy writers Spike Milligan,
Eric Sykes, Ray Galton and Alan Simpson and Johnny Speight, and comedy stars Tony
Hancock and Frankie Howerd. In the sixties she formed Associated London Films. There she
was Associate Producer on The Spy With A Cold Nose, Executive Producer on the silent
comedy The Plank starring Eric Sykes and Tommy Cooper, followed by the feature film
versions of Till Death Do Us Part, Steptoe And Son, Up Pompeii and a score of comparable
films.

In 1967 Robert Stigwood invited Beryl to join his company where she became Deputy
Chairman and pioneered the original concept of selling basic television formats to Europe and
America. Two such formats became big hits in the USA - Till Death Us Do Part became
Norman Lear's long-running series All In The Family, whilst Steptoe And Son became Sanford
and Son. Beryl then produced several star-studded Movies of the Week for all three American
Networks including The Entertainer starring Jack Lemmon and Cat & Mouse starring Kirk
Douglas, the first television roles for both movie stars. She also produced the Beacon Hill
series, based on Upstairs Downstairs, for CBS, and Almost Anything Goes, based on It's a
Knockout, for ABC. Beryl's early British producing credits include the series The Prime of Miss
Jean Brodie and, one of her favourite achievements as executive producer, the film Tommy
starring Jack Nicholson, The Who, Elton John, Eric Clapton and Tina Turner.

In 1999 Beryl was made a member of the Royal Television Society Hall of Fame. Women in
Film and Television honoured her with an award in the same year for "Outstanding
Contributions to the Industry". She was Chairman of PACT for three years and received an
OBE in the 2000 New Year's Honours List for Services to Independent Television Production.
In 2004 she was given a Fellowship from the RTS and also received a BAFTA, the Alan Clark
Award for Outstanding Contribution to Television.

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 Elaine Cameron – Producer

Elaine has been with Hartswood Films since 1992, following a brief stint in advertising and 18
months with Palace Films, where she worked on various television projects, including one with
writer Alan Plater and one with acclaimed director Ken Loach.

At Hartswood, Elaine has worked on a variety of productions including A Woman's Guide To

Adultery, My Good Friend and The English Wife. This autumn she will co-produce Jekyll, a
drama series for the BBC starring James Nesbitt.

Elaine script-edited six series and two Christmas specials of Men Behaving Badly and three
series of Is It Legal?, as well as editing the best-selling book The A-Z Of Behaving Badly and a
Men Behaving Badly book.

Elaine also co-produced the television dramas Wonderful You for ITV and Border Café, written
by Tim Firth (Calendar Girls), for the BBC.

Lindsey Hill – Writer

Lindsey began her working life with a ten-year career as a solicitor, specialising in insolvency and
fraud related litigation. Following the tragic suicide of a man forced into bankruptcy by one of her
clients in 1994, Lindsey gave up private practice in order to focus on her writing career.

Since then she has written Follow The Money, Partner’s In Law, Silent Witness, Common Law,
Eastenders and Madson II, all for the BBC; Implicated for Channel 4 and Family Affairs and Wing
& A Prayer II for FIVE.

Simon Shore – Director

Simon Shore studied film at the Royal College of Art, where he made several short films,
including La Boule, which won a BAFTA award and was short-listed for the Student Oscar.

His work since has included the documentary Eton: Class Of ’91, the television dramas Henri
and The English Wife, and feature film Things To Do Before You’re 30, starring Dougray Scott,
Emilia Fox and Billie Piper.

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Simon’s first film, Get Real, won Audience Awards at the Edinburgh, Dinard and Sydney Film
Festivals and was selected for the Sundance Film Festival. He is currently writing an original
screenplay in French.

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