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Season 1, Episode 1
Fantasy drama, starring John Simm as a detective who ends up in a coma while pursuing a serial killer - and when he comes round, he finds he has somehow been transported back to 1973. As he attempts to uncover what has happened to him, he must also contend with the macho behaviour of his Sweeneyesque colleagues, as well as a murderer whose crimes are oddly similar to the one he was investigating in his own time
General
Movie/Drama
Cast & Crew
John Simm
(Actor)
.. Sam Tyler
Philip Glenister
(Actor)
.. Gene Hunt
Liz White
(Actor)
.. Annie Cartwright
Dean Andrews
(Actor)
.. Ray Carling
Marshall Lancaster
(Actor)
.. Chris Skelton
Archie Panjabi
(Actor)
.. Maya Roy
Tony Marshall
(Actor)
.. Nelson
Sam Hazeldine
(Actor)
.. Colin Raimes
Henry Cox
(Actor)
.. Young lad
Caroline Harding
(Actor)
.. Raimes' lawyer
Parvez Qadir
(Actor)
.. Raimes' psychiatrist
Orla Cottingham
(Actor)
.. Raimes' social worker
Tom Charnock
(Actor)
.. Police officer
Christopher Harper
(Actor)
.. Neil
Richard Sinnott
(Actor)
.. TV presenter
Jane Riley
(Actor)
.. Dora Keens
Mags Gannon
(Actor)
.. Mrs Raimes
Rae Kelly
(Actor)
.. June
Claire Parker
(Producer)
Bharat Nalluri
(Director)
Matthew Graham
(Writer)
More Information
Did You Know..
John Simm
(Actor)
.. Sam Tyler
Born:
July 10, 1970
in
Leeds
Best Known For:
Playing Sam Tyler in Life on Mars
Early-life:
Born John Ronald Simm on July 10, 1970, in Leeds. He was raised in Nelson, Lancashire, and attended Edge End High School. He's the eldest of three children. His father Ronald, a local musician, taught him how to play the guitar and together they toured the region's working men's clubs. In 1986, aged 16, John enrolled at Blackpool Drama College, and two years later moved to London to study Stanislavsky's acting methods at London's Drama Centre.
Career:
Simm made his TV debut in a 1992 episode of Rumpole of the Bailey. He also appeared in Heartbeat, TV movie Meat, Dalziel and Pascoe's first drama A Pinch of Snuff, Cracker and the film Boston Kickout. Simm became a familiar face thanks to acclaimed series The Lakes. He went on to appear in such projects as Human Traffic, 24 Hour Party People, Spaced, White Teeth, State of Play and Sex Traffic. Simm's performance as troubled cop Sam Tyler in BBC hit Life on Mars made him a household name. Since then he's appeared in Doctor Who, Mad Dogs, The Village, Mad Dogs and Prey. While continuing his work as an actor, during the 1990s he was also a founder member of the rock band Magic Alex.
Quote:
On why he chose to make Life on Mars: 'The mad twist at the start appealed to me. I thought, if I can make that believable I can make anything believable.'
Trivia:
He's also played alongside his friend, Echo and the Bunnymen star Ian McCulloch, on albums and live on stage.
Philip Glenister
(Actor)
.. Gene Hunt
Born:
February 10, 1963
in
London
Best Known For:
Playing gruff copper Gene Hunt in Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes.
Early-life:
Philip Haywood Glenister was born on February 10, 1963, in London. Showbusiness was in his blood from an early age, especially as his father, John, is a TV director and his elder brother Robert is an actor. He went to Hatch End Comprehensive School, worked as a film publicist, and later studied at the Central School of Speech and Drama for three years, before appearing in 1990 stage play Mad Forest.
Career:
Glenister's first professional role was as Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet at the Lyceum, Edinburgh. He went on to star in Jonathan Harvey's acclaimed play Beautiful Thing at the Bush Theatre in London. On TV, Glenister honed his craft in Minder, Love Hurts, True Love, The Perfect Blue and Sharpe. However, it was roles in Clocking Off, The Hunt, State of Play and Island at War that boosted his profile. On the big screen he has appeared in ID, Calendar Girls, Kingdom of Heaven and Bel Ami. Award-winning BBC drama Life on Mars and its follow-up Ashes to Ashes turned him into a cult hero. He has also starred in the film Tuesday, and on TV in Cranford, Demons, Big School and Mad Dogs. He hosts the series For the Love of Cars.
Quote:
'The celebrity stuff really isn't me. I'm interested in the work: good writing, getting the part and the character right, pleasing the audience.'
Trivia:
In 2008, he published a book on 1970s and 80s culture called Things Ain't What They Used to Be.
Liz White
(Actor)
.. Annie Cartwright
Born:
November 05, 1979
in
Rotherham, South Yorkshire
Best Known For:
Playing Annie Cartwright in Life on Mars.
Early-life:
Elizabeth White was born on November 5, 1979 in Rotherham, South Yorkshire. She moved to Devon at age nine and then to Liverpool years later, when she went to train at the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts. Her earliest TV roles were in episodes of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet and Always and Everyone in 2002.
Career:
In 2003, White appeared in the TV series Teachers. Her first feature film role came the year after in Vera Drake (2004) and she also appeared in TV series A Thing Called Love. She played Annie Cartwright in two seasons of BBC drama Life on Mars from 2006 until 2007 and then played Jess Mercer in The Fixer in 2008. White then went on to appear in episodes of Agatha Christie's Marple, Doctor Who, Line of Duty and New Tricks as well as the films Franklyn (2008), The Woman in Black (2012), U Want Me 2 Kill Him? (2013) and Pride (2014). She also played Lizzie Mottershead in Our Zoo. More recently, she has had roles in The Halcyon, Call the Midwife and Ackley Bridge.
Quote:
On keeping a private personal life: 'I like to be invisible anyway but I think it's a wise choice for an actor. The less people know about you as a person, the more they can believe you as someone else.'
Trivia:
She teaches yoga.
Dean Andrews
(Actor)
.. Ray Carling
Born:
August 06, 1963
in
Rotherham
Best Known For:
Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes.
Early-life:
Dean was born in Rotherham on August 6, 1963. His parents were publicans. He spent 20 years singing at holiday resorts and on cruise ships before his big break came when he successfully auditioned for a part in Ken Loach's The Navigators (2001), a film set in Sheffield.
Career:
Andrews went on to pick up guest roles in the likes of Buried, Clocking Off, No Angels, Casualty, Wire in the Blood and Shameless before landing his dream part as Ray Carling in the critically acclaimed Life on Mars. He played Carling in two series of Life on Mars and three series of spin-off show Ashes to Ashes. Since then, Andrews has rarely been off TV screens. He has starred in Marchlands, The Case, Being Eileen, Vera and Last Tango in Halifax.
Quote:
'I've been so lucky in my career as I was a late starter and I owe it all to film director Ken Loach.'
Trivia:
In 2013, he got to sing in his first stage play, Victoria Wood's That Day We Sang at the Royal Exchange in Manchester.
Marshall Lancaster
(Actor)
.. Chris Skelton
Archie Panjabi
(Actor)
.. Maya Roy
Born:
May 31, 1972
in
London
Best Known For:
The Good Wife.
Early-life:
Archana Kaur Punjabi was born on May 31, 1972, in London to a Punjabi Sikh family from what is now Pakistan. She graduated from Brunel University in West London in 1996, with a degree in Management Studies. Archie always knew she wanted to become an actress. It was only when Nick Berry from EastEnders replied to her letter asking for advice that she started trying to find an agent. Her first casting call was for EastEnders - to play Ricky Butcher's girlfriend. She was recalled but never got the part.
Career:
Archie landed a supporting role in the 1999 comedy film East is East, and followed it up with several small TV roles, as well as the smash comedy flick Bend it Like Beckham. Her first Hollywood role was in 2005 as a British diplomat in the Oscar-winning The Constant Gardener in 2005. In the same year she won the Shooting Star Award for her role as the title character in Yasmin at the Berlin Film Festival, and in 2007, she appeared with Angelina Jolie in the movie adaptation of A Mighty Heart. Her performance earned her The Chopard Trophy for a Breakout Performance at the Cannes Film Festival. She joined the cast of critically-acclaimed legal drama The Good Wife in 2009.
Quote:
'I am always on my feet and always a little nervous, which I think is a good thing. It's always better to be a little paranoid, my mom always said.'
Trivia:
In 2010, Panjabi won an Emmy Award for The Good Wife.
Tony Marshall
(Actor)
.. Nelson
Born:
May 14, 1974
in
Manchester
Best Known For:
Playing Noel Garcia in Casualty.
Early-life:
Tony was born in Manchester on May 14, 1974. He made his TV debut in 1989 as a waiter in the TV drama Saracen. Minor roles followed in The Paradise Club, Second Thoughts, Only Fools and Horses and Nelson's Column.
Career:
Marshall had a recurring role on All Quiet on the Preston Front and went on to make guest appearances in the likes of Faith in the Future, The Bill, The Queen's Nose, Doctors, My Family, Judge John Deed and Holby City. He played the bartender Nelson in Life on Mars. His big break came in 2008 when he began playing receptionist Noel Garcia in Casualty.
Quote:
On his Casualty character: 'He's a chancer! Cheeky, up for a laugh - looking out for ways to make money.'
Trivia:
Away from acting, Marshall enjoys classic cars, football and comedy DVDs.
Sam Hazeldine
(Actor)
.. Colin Raimes
Henry Cox
(Actor)
.. Young lad
Caroline Harding
(Actor)
.. Raimes' lawyer
Parvez Qadir
(Actor)
.. Raimes' psychiatrist
Orla Cottingham
(Actor)
.. Raimes' social worker
Tom Charnock
(Actor)
.. Police officer
Christopher Harper
(Actor)
.. Neil
Richard Sinnott
(Actor)
.. TV presenter
Jane Riley
(Actor)
.. Dora Keens
Mags Gannon
(Actor)
.. Mrs Raimes
Rae Kelly
(Actor)
.. June
Claire Parker
(Producer)
Bharat Nalluri
(Director)
Matthew Graham
(Writer)
