Archie (TV series)

British television serial

Archie

Genre| Drama
Created by| Jeff Pope
Screenplay by| Jeff Pope
Directed by| Paul Andrew Williams
Starring|

* Jason Isaacs
* Kara Tointon
* Harriet Walter
* Jason Watkins
* Calam Lynch
* Laura Aikman

Theme music composer| Lindsay Wright[1]
Country of origin| United Kingdom
Original language| English
No. of series| 1
No. of episodes| 4
Production
Executive producers|

* Jennifer Grant
* Dyan Cannon

Producer| Rebecca Hodgson
Production companies|

* ITV Studios
* BritBox International

Original release
Network| ITV
Release| 23 November (2023-11-23) –
13 December 2023 (2023-12-13)

Archie is a 2023 British drama television serial about the life of Cary Grant starring Jason Isaacs in the lead role with Kara Tointon, Harriet Walter, Jason Watkins, Calam Lynch and Laura Aikman.

## Synopsis

[edit]

The series depicts the man originally named Archibald Leach, born into poverty in Bristol in 1904, before he became Hollywood's Cary Grant. Scenes set later, in the 1960s, feature Grant in Los Angeles, unhappy despite international stardom and many hit movies.[2][3][4][5]

## Cast

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* Jason Isaacs as Cary Grant
* Dainton Anderson as youngest Archie
* Oaklee Pendergast as young Archie
* Calam Lynch as Archie
* Harriet Walter as Elsie Leach
* Kara Tointon as young Elsie
* Henry Lloyd-Hughes as young Elias Leach
* Laura Aikman as Dyan Cannon
* Ian Puleston-Davies as Bob Pender
* Ian McNeice as Alfred Hitchcock
* Jason Watkins as Stanley Fox[6]
* Lisa Faulkner as Dorothy
* Niamh Cusack as Alma Reville
* Lily Travers as Grace Kelly
* Lolly Jones as Mae West
* Stella Stocker as Audrey Hepburn
* Christian Lees as George Burns
* Alexandra Guelff as Doris Day[7]
* Ellie MacDowall as Jennifer Grant[8]
* Laura Ferries as Virginia Cherrill

## Production

[edit]

Despite Grant's Bristol upbringing, and the city of Bristol being the setting for large parts of the series, filming actually took place in the city of Liverpool in the summer of 2022. The four part series is written by Jeff Pope.[9] Filming also took place in Manchester and Cheshire in September 2022.[10] Pope interviewed Grant's daughter Jennifer Grant and Grant's ex-wife Dyan Cannon for the production, and both act as Executive Producers. ITV Studios produced with BritBox International as co-producers, and Paul Andrew Williams as director.[11] In September 2022, Harriet Walter was added to the cast as Grant's mother Elsie Leach, and Calam Lynch, Dainton Anderson and Oaklee Pendergast were added as younger versions of Archie. Additional cast members included Jason Watkins, Lisa Faulkner, Niamh Cusack, Kara Tointon, Laura Aikman, Henry Lloyd-Hughes, Ian Puleston-Davies and Ian McNeice.[12]

## Broadcast

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The series became available on 23 November 2023 in the UK, on the streaming service ITVX, and was subsequently broadcast on ITV[13] on 29 & 30 December 2024. The series became available in the USA on the 7 December 2023, on the streaming service BritBox.[14]

## Reception

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News of the production was reported by The Independent as having a positive response by fans.[15]

## References

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1. ^ "Lindsay Wright Scoring ITV's & BritBox's 'Archie'". Retrieved 27 September 2023.
2. ^ "Cary Grant's early years in Bristol to be explored in new ITV drama 'Archie'". ITV.com.
3. ^ "Cary Grant Biopic Series Starring Jason Isaacs In Lead Role Set For ITV & BritBox International". Deadline Hollywood. 8 August 2022.
4. ^ "Cary Grant Biopic 'Archie' Adds Kara Tointon, Harriet Walter, Laura Aikman to Cast". Variety. 30 September 2022.
5. ^ "'Harry Potter' Star Jason Isaacs Thought It Was a 'F—ing Terrible Idea' to Play Cary Grant in TV Biopic 'Archie'". Variety. 23 November 2023.
6. ^ Fear, Helen (22 November 2023). "Archie cast on ITVX: Jason Isaacs looks uncannily similar to Cary Grant, opposite Harriet Walter, Kara Tointon and Lisa Faulkner". Entertainment Daily. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
7. ^ Mangalindan, JP (16 November 2023). "Archie Explores the Grit Behind the Glamour of Cary Grant — Watch the Trailer (Exclusive)". People. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
8. ^ Tariq, Fahad (24 November 2023). "Lewis Capaldi's actor girlfriend shares excitement at starring in new ITV drama". Glasgowlive. Retrieved 25 November 2023.
9. ^ "New ITV biopic about Bristol-born movie star Cary Grant won't be filmed in the city". Bristolpost.co.uk. 11 August 2022.
10. ^ "Harriet Walter, Laura Aikman and Kara Tointon join Jason Isaacs in ITV drama, Archie, the story of Cary Grant's life". ITV.com.
11. ^ "ITV commissions, Archie, to premiere on ITVX, the story of Cary Grant's life". ITV.com.
12. ^ "Killing Eve and Bridgerton stars join Jason Isaacs' ITV drama". Digital Spy. 30 September 2022.
13. ^ "Cary Grant Biopic 'Archie' Set by ITV Studios, Jason Isaacs to Star". Variety.com. 8 August 2022.
14. ^ "Where To Watch Archie, The TV Show About Cary Grant". Screpentant.com. 4 December 2023.
15. ^ ""You will be perfect" fans overjoyed as Jason Isaacs announced to star as Cary Grant". The Independent. 8 August 2022.

## External links

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* Archie at IMDb

*[No.]: Number