Tag Archives: prosthetics.

Thanks For The Warm Up: The Paralympics on C4

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Wednesday August 29th – Sunday 9th September

After years of working and waiting, countless months of heady anticipation, weeks of building excitement, and a not-too-shabby test event, the Paralympics have finally arrived. For 12 days, viewers of Channel 4 will witness unfettered sporting brilliance, courage, talent, triumph and tragedy, as dreams are made and broken in the cauldron of top class competitive sport.

The London 2012 Paralympic Games will be the biggest event in Channel 4’s history. Close to 500 hours of live coverage will be broadcast during the twelve days of the London 2012 Paralympic Games, marking the most extensive Paralympic Games coverage ever broadcast in the UK.

Multiple channels and platforms will broadcast live sport on Channel 4, More4 and online at Channel4.com. Three further live streams will feature uninterrupted live coverage of events from across the Paralympic Games, on-air from early morning through to late evening.

The Channel 4 presenting team for the Paralympic Games will be a ground-breaking line-up featuring top sports broadcasters, former Paralympians and new disabled talent. Half of the presenters and reporters covering the Games for Channel 4 will be disabled. Eight of the on-air team have come through our nationwide talent search carried out in 2010 to find the best new disabled presenters.

Viewers will also find their enjoyment of the sports on offer enhanced by Lexi, a graphic system that will explain the classification system involved in Paralympic sport. Lexi is made up of graphics which broadly illustrate disability types within sporting classes.

The London 2012 Paralympic Games will be the biggest, and hopefully the best, in history. Thousands of remarkable athletes will perform in some amazing venues in front of passionate and knowledgeable crowds. Watch it all on Channel 4, and enjoy an extraordinary swansong to this once-in-a-lifetime summer of sport.

Paralympic Games Breakfast Show

A surprising, inspiring and eclectic mix of the best of Paralympic sport served up daily from 7 until 9.15am.

Hosted by Kelly Cates and Rick Edwards the show covers the very best of all the great moments of the Games. There are live injects from the main venues, analysis of the triumphs and heartbreak and close-up features of the lives of the superhumans we’re all watching. The Breakfast Roadshow is trekking across the country every morning shining a light on the home-town unsung heroes who’ve helped the athletes achieve their dreams.

In the studio we’re investigating cybernetics, prosthetics and all manner of Paralympic paraphernalia. The audience is invited to join in via tweets, texts and all forms of social media and there’s a wide range of studio guests.

Morning
Jonathan Edwards and Daraine Mulvihill introduce an action-packed morning of sport from the Olympic Park. Among the sports regularly featured are Athletics, Swimming, Equestrian and Table Tennis. From the pressure of the heats, to the drama and excitement of the finals, we’ll be on hand to bring you closer to the competitors as they bid for Paralympic glory.

Afternoon
Comprehensive coverage of the afternoon action from the London Paralympics where Cycling and Equestrian take centre stage, alongside team sports like Wheelchair Basketball, Wheelchair Rugby and 5-a-side and 7-a-side Football.

Arthur Williams and Georgie Bingham are your hosts for this inspiring sporting extravaganza, bringing you the personalities behind the athletes and getting under the skin of the Games.

Teatime
At 5.30pm every evening of the Paralympics make a date with the big finals at the Aquatics Centre. The world’s finest swimmers hold centre stage in this hour with as many as seven gold medals up for grabs before 6.30. Athletics kicks in soon afterwards as do the team sports such as Wheelchair Basketball and Sitting Volleyball. Clare Balding and Ade Adepitan present the best of the action.

7.30 Peak
The day’s action at the Paralympics reaches its climax through the evening with more gold medals on offer between now and 10.30 than at any other time of the day. The swimming finals continue in the Aquatics Centre; the track finals come thick and fast in the Olympic Stadium; and the team sports – Wheelchair Basketball and Rugby among them – are guaranteed to provide bone-crunching moments. The presenters are Clare Balding and Ade Adepitan.

THE LAST LEG with Adam Hills
Adam Hills presents an alternative review of each day at the London 2012 Paralympic Games, showing all the best gems of action and taking a sideways look at the intricacies of disability sport. Adam will be joined each night by his eagle-eyed sidekick Josh Widdicombe, as well as guests from the worlds of sport and entertainment, to pore over the golden moments, confront some of the widely held views associated with Paralympic sport, and answer the questions you were always afraid to ask.

Reporters, Commentators and Analysts
The presenting team will be joined by reporters discovered during Channel 4’s search for disabled talent in 2010; including former Paralympic swimmer Rachael Latham, sports reporter and wheelchair basketball player Jordan Jarret-Bryan, former carpenter Martin Dougan, researcher Liam Holt, sports journalist Alex Brooker, and para-equestrian rider Diana Man. The reporting team will also include renowned broadcasters such as Sonja McLaughlan, Ned Boulting and Adam Darke.

A hugely experienced commentary and analysis line-up will include John Rawling and Rob Walker as well as former Paralympic sprinter Danny Crates, former Paralympic wheelchair racer Jeff Adams and former British sprinter Katherine Merry on athletics; Bob Ballard and Paul Noble alongside former swimmers Giles Long and Karen Pickering at the aquatics centre; Phil Liggett and Jon Norfolk in cycling; Ronald McIntosh and Dan Johnson on basketball; Andrew Cotter and Justin Frishberg for wheelchair rugby; Don Parker on table tennis; Tony Jones for football; Simon Golding on volleyball, powerlifting and fencing; Neil Adams and Simon Jackson on judo; and Chris Dennis covering Tennis.

Live Streams:
Three further live streams, C4 Paralympics Extra 1, 2 and 3, will feature uninterrupted live coverage of events from across the Paralympic Games, on-air from early morning through to late evening. The three streams will be broadcast on Sky, Freesat and Virgin Media (numbers to follow)

Jon Snow’s Paralympic Show
In the run up to the London 2012 Paralympic Games, Jon Snow will present a nightly show, starting on Monday 20th August at 7:30pm.

Well-known celebrities and faces from the world of sport and entertainment join Jon Snow’s live nightly weekday countdown to the eagerly anticipated London 2012 Paralympic Games; the biggest event in Channel 4’s history. Jon invites viewers to join in the wave of enthusiasm and excitement, as over 4000 elite disabled athletes descend on London. During the week presenter Clare Balding, leaves the comfort of the TV studio to try her hand at equestrian dressage with the man who dominates the medals in this sport – Paralympic gold medallist Lee Pearson. Comedian Jimmy Carr visits Headley Court, the MOD’s rehabilitation centre, where rower Captain Nick Beighton and some of his Paralympics GB teammates spent time after returning with horrific injuries from Afghanistan. Martine Wiltshire, 7/7 London bombing victim, explains why the number seven has become a good omen as she gets ready to compete in the women’s sitting volleyball competition. Sue Kent, the only massage therapist in the UK qualified to ply her trade using only her feet, practises on Olympic champion and Channel 4 Paralympic sports presenter Jonathan Edwards, before heading into the Paralympic village to look after the athletes. And Ade Adepitan, checks out The Village, where over 4000 athletes are staying for the Paralympic Games. As a Paralympian himself, will he find the accommodation and surrounding areas accessible and up to scratch? Exec Prods: Michelle Fobler and Gareth Rees; Prod Co: Boomerang

Jon Snow’s Paralympic Show, week nights from Monday 20th – Tuesday 28th August at 7:30pm.

Andrew Tiernan {Frost Interviews}

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I recently had the pleasure of working with one of Britain most hard working and talented actors, Andrew Tiernan, on Jason Croot’s new film Le Fear, Le Sequel. He was kind enough to give Frost an interview, and it’s a stunner.

You are in “Prisoners Wives” the new BBC Drama, what was it like working on that?

All credit to the Production as they took a risk with me, as usually I’m the Bad guy, so this time I’m on the other side of the law playing DS Hunter who is investigating the murder that Gemma’s (Emma Rigby) husband Steve (Jonas Armstrong) has been accused of. The Directors and Producers wanted an edge to this guy and they knew I could bring that to the role, which was great for me. I had to get my head into Cop mode, as I haven’t done that for a very long time, in fact since “Prime Suspect” when I was a young copper with Helen Mirren and Tom Bell. Hopefully I’ve done a good job. But that was easy as Julie Geary’s writing is fantastic.

You played Ephialtes, in Zack Snyder’s “300”, how did you manage to put in such a good performance under all of that prosthetic?

It’s great because you don’t get recognized. I have always tried to transform myself for each role. The prosthetics was like a mask that I could manipulate with my facial muscles, but I had to exaggerate my expressions to move the inch thick prosthetic. I enjoy mask work, so that wasn’t the hardest thing for me to do. When you’re trying to transform yourself without the use of prosthetics, that is the challenge. I’ve fluctuated my weight and appearance over the years to fit the roles, I was influenced by Robert De Niro when he put a ton of weight on for “Raging Bull,” but it’s quite a dangerous thing to do and not everyone in the business appreciates it, some have thought that I’ve just let myself go, so I doubt I’ll be putting on the pounds again anytime soon, unless it is under prosthetics.

You are a successful Actor, but still do your own projects, why?

It’s all about the work. It’s what I’ve always wanted to do. I wanted to have some kind of control over my work at some point. What people forget is that it’s the Writer and Producers who are in control we can only perform what is written on the page. And when we’re not doing those jobs, we’re waiting around for work, it can send most Actors insane, so I try to keep myself busy between jobs.

Tell us about the short film you’ve recently directed; “Flush”:

“Flush” came about after the writer; Kevin O’Donohoe, told me about an experience he had with some Estate Agents. One of the estate agents asked to use the toilet in his flat and was in there for an unexpectedly long time and managed to stink the place out. He thought that the guy had done it deliberately, so he decided to get his own back and came up with this very funny little script. We made it Independently, I got Shona McWilliams and Simon Balfour in to help me produce it. We’ve just finished Post-Production and we’ve entered it into some film festivals, we’re very excited about it. We’re planning to do some Feature Films later in the year with the same Production Team and a new script by Kevin called “UK18” a Political Drama set in the near future.

How did you get started as an actor?

I was into films from an early age and would visit the local cinema on my own, The Grove. I’d watch all the Ray Harryhausen adventures and then I managed to see some of Peter Bogdanovich’s films, such as “Paper Moon” and “What’s up Doc?”. So I suppose the bug started there, and eventually I decided it was something I wanted to do as a Career. I started working at the Midlands Art Centre after joining the Youth Theatre there, then ended up at the Drama Centre London.

Who/what is your inspirations?

If you’d asked me a few years ago, I would have said De Niro and Scorsese, but I think really it is people like Powell and Pressburger, Nicholas Roeg, Lindsay Anderson and Ken Russell who inspire me, and always have. I also have an admiration for Polanski’s films, one of the very first films I remember seeing was “Repulsion” when it was screened on television and it freaked me right out.

What is your favourite film?

At the moment, I would have to say it’s Ken Russell’s “The Boy Friend”. It was such a shock when he passed away, but I had managed to finally get the film on DVD the week before his passing. And it’s just as wonderfully spectacular as when I first watched it, what a genius. But there are so many films that I love, that I have a top 40 in my head every week. Though there are certain ones that always top the list and not necessarily everyone’s favourites.

How has the industry changed for Actors?

Since I joined the industry rather a lot has changed. When I first started there was a lot more opportunities and a lot more Drama was made for TV. But also there was a lot more Theatre Companies, we thought cuts were bad back then, but now it’s unbelievable. But on a positive note, technology has improved such that Artists can develop and produce their own independent work a lot easier than back then. And it’s possible for that work to be seen in different markets.

What are your opinions on reality TV?

Unfortunately, I think that it’s had a knock on effect in our industry and not just the fact that there’s not enough Drama being produced, but reality TV is very cheap for the Networks to produce and people seem to want to watch it. It’s a very sad time, as I think that when we look back at this period, we will think, where were the great British TV Drama Writers that we used to produce like Alan Bleasdale, Dennis Potter or Peter McDougall? The Networks should really pump more of the money they make from this cheap stuff into quality writing and drama, instead of squeezing the budgets. But we as Artists can’t rely on them anymore, we have to do it ourselves if we have a story to tell and find our own ways to distribute it.

What do you think of celebrity culture? What harm does it do?

Recently I was having a conversation with a Young Actor and we were chatting about the business and I mentioned that I’d worked with Simon Callow, the renowned Theatre Actor and Writer. He must have misheard me, as suddenly he shrieked in excitement “You know Simon Cowell!?!” I can forgive him for not knowing who Simon Callow is, but that reaction to the possibility that I could introduce him to Simon Cowell was deeply concerning. And I am seeing it more and more. Actors who manage to get themselves roles on Productions and the next step for them is a Celebrity Dance Show or the Jungle one. Shows where you have swallow things in order to gain more celebrity status. How ironic is that!? I think what this culture of celebrity has done has made some people very ignorant and obsessed with materialistic things. I think what will happen is when people think back to the noughties, no one will be remembered for any kind of Art or Music, the era will be remembered for the Wars that took place and the Banking Crisis. And just for the record, I don’t know Simon Cowell.

What next?

We are going to change things.

Links:

IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0862907/
Official Website: http://web.mac.com/andytiernan/Andrew_Tiernan
Flush FB Page: http://www.facebook.com/Flush2012

Photo credit; Marac Kolodzinski