The cast has been announced for Russell T Davies’ new Manchester drama, Tip Toe.
Alan Cumming (The Traitors, Glenrothan) is Leo, the vivid, funny and dynamic, owner of a bar called Spit & Polish in Manchester’s Gay Village, while David Morrissey (Sherwood, Daddy Issues) is Clive, Leo’s unsmiling and troubled next-door neighbour.
“The best things in life are worth waiting for, and the best people,” said Cumming.
“Russell T Davies and I have been trying to work together for over 20 years. Now, not only are we working together but doing so with one of my dearest, oldest friends, Dave Morrissey, and in a piece of work I think is so brilliant and prescient and necessary. I don’t say this lightly, but this is truly an honour.”
Morrissey added:
“I’m delighted to be working with Russell again, and also to be working with Alan who has been a great friend of mine for over 40 years but we’ve never had the chance to work together. It’s a privilege to be with them both on this astonishing piece of work”
The 5-parter will follow Leo and Clive, who have lived next door to each other in Manchester for almost 15 years.
But just as life should be settling down, the world around them is growing more tense. Words become weapons, opinions become radicalised, and gradually, two neighbours become deadly enemies in a tense, suburban thriller which challenges everything considered to be safe.
The series is described as “an urgent tale that brings a spotlight to bear on the prejudices which are creeping back into our lives.”
Also joining the cast are Pooky Quesnel (The A Word, Moonflower Murders) as Clive’s wife Marie; Jackson Connor (Phoenix Rise, Masters of the Air) as Clive’s youngest son George; Joseph Evans (The Map That Leads To You, CC Emily) as George’s older brother Saul; Elizabeth Berrington (Lost Boys & Fairies, Last Night In Soho) as Leo’s best friend Stephanie; Iz Hesketh (Renegade Nell, Hollyoaks) as Zee; and Shakeel Kimotho (La Cage Aux Folles (Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre)), CATS (International Tour) as Hanna, who both work at Spit & Polish.
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Luyanda Unati Lewis-Nyawo (Wednesday, Devs) is the bar’s manager Judy; Paul Rhys (Saltburn, Napoleon) is Melba, a Canal Street fixture, Charlie Condou (Doctor Who, Unforgotten) is Leo’s ex-husband Curtis; and Denise Welch (Waterloo Road, Coronation Street) is Diane.
Russell T Davies’ most recent Channel 4 drama, It’s A Sin, became the broadcaster’s biggest ever instant boxset on streaming.
Tip Toe will be produced by long-time Russell T Davies collaborator Quay Street Productions (part of ITV Studios), with Nicola Shindler, Russell T Davies, Peter Hoar and Alan Cumming serving as Executive Producers. The series will be produced by Phil Collinson, Directed by Peter Hoar and is cast by Andy Pryor.
Gemma Boswell is the Commissioning Editor at Channel 4.