Series 1 (Class)
This page still mainly deals with series 1 as something which is upcoming. At this point, this article needs rewriting to be more of an overview. See Series 1 (Doctor Who) for comparison.
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The first series of Class was streamed on BBC Three in 2016 and later aired on BBC One in 2017. This was the fifth Doctor Who television spinoff after K9 and Company, Torchwood, The Sarah Jane Adventures, and K9 and the first spinoff to premiere online rather than on a traditional television channel. It introduced the Coal Hill Academy teacher Miss Quill (Katherine Kelly), and her students Charlie Smith (Greg Austin), April MacLean (Sophie Hopkins), Ram Singh (Fady Elsayed), Tanya Adeola (Vivian Oparah), and Matteusz Andrzejewski (Jordan Renzo). The Twelfth Doctor, who was previously a caretaker at Coal Hill in Doctor Who, also appeared in the first episode, For Tonight Me Might Die, and was played by Peter Capaldi.
Class was created by Patrick Ness, who previously wrote the tie-in short story, Tip of the Tongue, for the fiftieth anniversary of Doctor Who. Ness revealed there would be "no Clara" and that Class would "definitely air in America".[1] In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Ness said he has been asked to bring various parts of Doctor Who back since the series was announced, but he wants to create something new. He also confirmed the Weeping Angels would not feature in the series.[2] However, a Weeping Angel made an appearance on the last episode of the series.
The first episode was shown at the Class World Premiere in Shoreditch in London on 20 October 2016.[3]
Class was first uploaded to BBC Three's streaming service on 22 October 2016, with its first two episodes, exactly 10 years after the airdate of Torchwood's first two episodes, Everything Changes and Day One. A BBC One airing followed in the United Kingdom in January 2017.
Cast
- Charlie Smith - Greg Austin
- April MacLean - Sophie Hopkins
- Ram Singh - Fady Elsayed
- Tanya Adeola - Vivian Oparah
- Miss Quill - Katherine Kelly
- Matteusz Andrzejewski - Jordan Renzo
- The Twelfth Doctor - Peter Capaldi
Recurring
- Corakinus - Paul Marc Davies
- Varun Singh - Aaron Neil
- Jackie MacLean - Shannon Murray
- Vivian Adeola - Natasha Gordon
- Mr Armitage - Nigel Betts
- Dorothea Ames - Pooky Quesnel
- Coach Dawson - Ben Peel
- Miss Shah - Pooja Shah
- Huw MacLean - Con O'Neill
Guest
- Rachel Chapman - Anna Shaffer
- Kevin Williams - Alex Leak
- The Inspector - Jami Reid-Quarrell
- Jasper Adeola - Kobna Holdbrook-Smith
- Rannus/Kharrus - Kelly Gough
- Voice of Rannus - Neil McCaul
- Voice of the Prisoner - Ferdy Roberts
- Ballon - Chiké Okonkwo
- Quill Goddess - Spencer Wilding
- Chair of the Governors - Cyril Nri
Production
The series was filmed from 4 April 2016 to 2 September 2016. The three first episodes in the series were directed by Ed Bazalgette, who directed the Doctor Who episodes The Girl Who Died and The Woman Who Lived. Philippa Langdale and Wayne Che Yip directed two episodes each, whilst Julian Holmes directed the finale.
Blair Mowat composed the score for the series.
The working title of the first episode of the series was The Prom.[4]
Television stories
# | Title | Writer | Director | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | For Tonight We Might Die | Patrick Ness | Ed Bazalgette | Guest appearance from the Twelfth Doctor. First appearances of Charlie, April, Ram, Tanya, Matteusz and Miss Quill. First appearance of the Shadow Kin and Corakinus. |
2 | The Coach with the Dragon Tattoo | Patrick Ness | Ed Bazalgette | Death of Mr Armitage. |
3 | Nightvisiting | Patrick Ness | Ed Bazalgette | The Lankin takes the form of Jasper Adeola, Rachel Chapman and Orla'ath. Matteusz moves in with Charlie. |
4 | Co-Owner of a Lonely Heart | Patrick Ness | Philippa Langdale | Part one. Return of Corakinus. First appearance of Huw MacLean. April develops Shadow Kin powers. |
5 | Brave-ish Heart | Patrick Ness | Philippa Langdale | Part two. April and Ram travel off-world. Charlie almost uses the Cabinet of Souls. Corakinus severs the anchor, making April lose her powers. |
6 | Detained | Patrick Ness | Wayne Che Yip | First trip off Earth all together: outside of time and space. |
7 | The Metaphysical Engine, or What Quill Did | Patrick Ness | Wayne Che Yip | Miss Quill gets her arn removed. Takes place during Detained. |
8 | The Lost | Patrick Ness | Julian Holmes | Introduction of Room M17 and the Chair of the Governors. Return of the Shadow Kin. Corakinus kills Varun Singh and Vivian Adeola. Charlie uses the Cabinet of Souls to kill off all the Shadow Kin, destroying the Underneath. April's consciousness is transferred to Corakinus' body. First appearance of the Weeping Angels in Class. |
Future of the show
On 7 September 2017, Radio Times spoke to BBC3 controller Damian Kavanagh about a future return of Class, in which Kavanagh said: "No, no. There was nothing wrong with it, I thought Patrick [Ness] did a great job, he explored an amazing world. In honesty it didn’t really land for us on BBC3; some shows don’t and I have to make decisions about what we’re going to do from a drama point of view, and what we did after Class was Clique which worked really well for us."[5]
Digital distribution
Simultaneously with more traditional channels of distribution, series 1 of Class was made available for purchase on several online streaming platforms, also in some countries outside the initial broadcast range. Generally, the episodes were made available online on the same day they were premiered on BBC Three. Series 1 was available on:
iTunes store cover
Aliens and enemies
- Shadow Kin
- Coach Dawson
- The Inspector
- Leaf Dragons
- Lankin
- Killer petals
- The Prisoner
- Arn
- Lorr
- Quill
- Weeping Angels
Novels
- Joyride by Guy Adams
- The Stone House by A.K. Benedict
- What She Does Next Will Astound You by James Goss
Footnotes
- ↑ Patrick Ness (1 October 2015). Patrick Ness' Twitter. Twitter. Retrieved on 5 October 2015.
- ↑ Megan Lewis (8 October 2015). Doctor Who spin-off Class boss Patrick Ness aims to 'shock you with something new'. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on 8 October 2015.
- ↑ 6 Things You Need to Know About Class. BBC. Retrieved on 22 October 2016.
- ↑ https://twitter.com/bbc_class_fans/status/726092526311104512
- ↑ http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2017-09-07/doctor-who-spin-off-class-cancelled/