The First Images From 'Rivals' are a Look at the World of 1980s England's Elite
David Tennant as Tony Baddingham in "Rivals"
(Photo: Disney+)
Disney+ may be the home of family-friendly TV in the States, but the U.K. arm is less bound by such values. See the current highly anticipated series Rivals, an adaptation of Jilly Cooper’s best-selling 1988 novel of the same name. It is based on the second in her Rutshire Chronicles series that earned her the nickname “Queen of the Bonkbuster.” Despite the mid-1980s fashions, the cast definitely lives up to the archetypes one would expect to find in such a series in the first-look images the streamer has released.
The series was initially commissioned back in August 2022 by Disney for its UK version of the streamer and is expected to come to the States under the Hulu tile on Disney+ and the Hulu standalone app. Cooper’s Rutshire Chronicles spans ten books published between 1986 and 2016. It follows the story of the rivalry between two aristocratic family scions, Olympian-turned-politician Rupert Campbell-Black and television executive Tony Baddingham, set in the 1980s era of the English upper class in the fictional county of Rutshire.
Baddingham runs an independent TV station called Corinium, a rival to the BBC, and a very thinly veiled take on what eventually became ITV. Though the story is fiction, there are enough real-life details seeded throughout the series that fans will have a fun time picking out what’s based on real-life facts and what is drawn from the whole cloth.
Alex Hassell as Rupert Campbell-Black in "Rivals"
(Photo: Disney+)
David Tennant (Good Omens) stars as Lord Baddingham, a role that feels somewhat against type for him in an exciting sort of way, opposite Alex Hassell (The Tragedy of Macbeth) as his rival Black. (Who are both extremely extra if these photos are anything to go by.)
Aidan Turner (Poldark) plays TV presenter Declan O'Hara, a rising star who is convinced to leave the BBC for Corinium by Babbington, while Danny Dyer (EastEnders) is Freddie Jones, a self-made electronics millionaire whose new money status means he has little access to the elites of Rutshire society.
Aidan Turner as Declan O'Hara in "Rivals"
(Photo: Disney+)
The series cast also includes Nafessa Williams (Twin Peaks) as Cameron Cook, a ferociously talented American TV executive brought to England by Tony to produce Declan’s new prime-time talk show; Katherine Parkinson (Doc Martin) as Lizzie Vereker, a romantic novelist suffering from a distinct lack of romance in her life and Bella Maclean (Sex Education) as Taggie O’Hara, Declan’s tender-hearted yet strong-willed eldest daughter and unexpected temptation for Rupert.
The wider ensemble includes such familiar faces as Claire Rushbrook (Sherwood), Annabel Scholey (The Sixth Commandment), Victoria Smurfit (Bloodlands), Oliver Chris (The Crown), Lisa McGrillis (Deadwater Fell), Emily Atack (Dad's Army), Rufus Jones (Four Lives), Luke Pasqualino (Shadow & Bone), and Catriona Chandler (Pistol).
Bella Maclean as Taggie O'Hara in "Rivals"
(Photo: Disney+)
Here's the series description.
Set in affluent 1980s England where two powerful men and neighbors – Olympian turned politician Rupert Campbell-Black and television exec Tony Baddingham – have a longstanding rivalry that finally comes to a head. As tensions rise and rivalries deepen, there are spilled secrets, forged alliances, and snatched liaisons that draw wives, lovers, colleagues, friends, and families into their battle.
The series is written by Dominic Treadwell-Collins (A Very English Scandal) and Laura Wade (The Riot Club), backed by a full writers' room that includes Sophie Goodhart (Sex Education), Marek Horn (Wild Swimming), Mimi Hare & Clare Naylor (The Accidental Husband), Dare Aiyegbayo (The Dumping Ground), and Kefi Chadwick (Avoidance). The lead director is Elliot Hegarty (Ted Lasso), with Dee Koppang O’Leary (The Crown) and Alexandra Brodski (Somewhere Boy) also helming episodes
The drama is being produced by Happy Prince, which is part of ITV Studios, with Treadwell-Collins, Wade, and Hegarty listed as executive producers along with author Jilly Cooper, Alexander Lamb, Felicity Blunt, and Lee Mason for Disney+.
Rivals doesn't have a release date yet on either side of the pond --- or an American distributor for that matter, though it's excellent odds this one will make it's way to the U.S. on Disney-owned streamer Hulu.
