The Last Post is penned by the Bafta-winning writer Peter Moffat (Criminal Justice, Silk), the six-parter is set in 1960s Yemen and is based on Moffat’s childhood memories of his father’s career as an officer in the Royal Military Police and his mother’s struggle between being what the army required her to be and what she wanted to be.
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The job of the RMP is two-fold: they are half soldiers and half policemen who face constant threat just as the 1960s and sexual liberation are getting into full swing.
Get to know the cast below…
Jessica Raine as Alison Laithwaite
Fiery, flirty Alison is struggling to fit into her prescribed role of The Doting Wife to Lieutenant Ed Laithwaite. She is restless, scandalous, direct and becoming more and more estranged from her husband – mostly because she is unfaithful and drinks enough gin to sink a small ship. Alison uses her playfulness as a mask for her inner sadness and dissatisfaction.
Where do I recognise her from?
Raine is best known for her portrayal of Jenny Lee, the main character in the first three series of Call the Midwife. She also played Jane Rochford in Wolf Hall, Jules Sutter in Fortitude and Annie Quaintain in Jericho.
Stephen Campbell Moore as Lieutenant Ed Laithwaite
Lieutenant Laithwaite is an outsider and a bit of a tortured soul. He is ambitious and angling for a promotion but his progressive ideologies and unconventional approach are problematic for the army, which is hesitant to reward him.
Where do I recognise him from?
Campbell Moore was on our screens very recently as Charles, the troubled friend in The Child in Time alongside Benedict Cumberbatch. You might have also seen him in The History Boys in 2006 as the young teacher, Irwin. Since then, Campbell Moore’s notable roles have included Ashes to Ashes and The Wrong Mans.
Jeremy Neumark-Jones as Captain Joe Martin
Captain Joe Martin is a new arrival amongst soldiers who have gotten well-used to life in Aden. Though young, he is very driven and keen to assert his authority – over both his troops and his new wife.
Where do I recognise him from?
The Last Post marks Neumark-Jones’ first big television role, but eagle-eyed viewers might have spotted him in last year’s BBC1 drama One of Us as Adam Elliot, one half of the couple found brutally murdered in the first episode.
Jessie Buckley as Honor Martin
Honor arrives in Aden full of excitement about married life. She is upbeat and frivolous – the antidote to her serious husband. Honor is also fascinated by Alison and ready to eb led astray by her, much to Joe’s disapproval.
Where do I recognise her from?
Buckley is best known for playing Marya Bolkonskaya in the BBC adaptation of War & Peace and Lorna Bow in Taboo. She first became famous after coming second in the 2008 Oliver! themed talent show, I’d Do Anything.
Amanda Drew as Mary Markham
Mary is the perfect, sensible wife to Major Harry Markham. She is fiercely loyal and righteous and puts service above everything else. She is a bit of a “mother hen” character and worries about Alison’s tendency to self-destruct.
Where do I recognise her from?
You might know Drew from her regular appearances on EastEnders between 2006 and 2008 as Dr May Wright. Other notable roles include Annie in The Passing Bells and Cate Gillespie in Broadchurch.
Ben Miles as Major Harry Markham
Major Markham is the man in charge. His soldiers mean everything to him but he’s also a family man and struggles to juggle the two. This is a man who feels the weight of the world on his shoulders.
Where do I recognise him from?
Ben Miles played Peter Townsend in Netflix’s The Crown – the RAF officer who had an illicit, scandalous affair with Princess Margaret. He was also in Steven Moffat’s noughties comedy Coupling – which was inspired by Mofatt’s own relationship with his wife, Sue Vertue.
Tom Glynn-Carney as Lance Corporal Tony Armstrong
Tony is a boy in a man’s world. He is scatty and forgetful, but kind-hearted and very eager to please his seniors. He’s a romantic, too, and has a crush on a local Aden girl.
Where do I recognise him from?
Glynn-Carney made his big screen debut this year in Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk however his only television role before The Last Post was in two episodes of Casualty in 2013. One to watch.
Essie Davis as Martha Franklin
Martha is a war reporter sent to Yemen to ride along with the troops. She causes quite a stir on arrival in episode two.
Where do I recognise her from?
You might have seen Davis in Game of Thrones last year as Lady Crane, the leading actress in Izembaro’s Braavosi theatre troupe. She was also in one episode of Philip K. Dick’s Electric Dreams, Human Is, as Vera.
from Radio Times https://ift.tt/2LpLzky
