An Englishman in New York goes into production

21/08/2008

Sex in the City star Cynthia Nixon is to swap her Blahniks and Cosmos for avant-garde performance art.

As An Englishman in New York goes into production, Sex in the City star Cynthia Nixon joins the cast on location in the Big Apple. Picking up where the 1970's classic The Naked Civil Servant left off, John Hurt will reprise his seminal role as Quentin Crisp for ITV1. Setting off on the journey of a lifetime to the Big Apple, the out-spoken Crisp is immediately embraced by New Yorkers and before long is being wined and dined by celebrities in every corner of the city.

No stranger to the streets of Manhattan, Nixon will take the role of Penny Arcade, the performance artist and playwright who formed a close bond with Crisp in his latter years. The two created the long-running performance/interview piece, The Last Will and Testament of Quentin Crisp.

Also joining the cast is up and coming American actor Jonathan Tucker (Veronica Must Die, The Black Donnellys,) who stars as Patrick Angus, the young artist who befriended the English eccentric, Denis O’Hare (Brother’s and Sisters, Charlie Wilson’s War, Michael Clayton) as magazine editor, Phillip Steele and Pushing Daisies’ Swoozie Kurtz, as Crisp’s American agent, Connie Clausen.

Executive Producer James Burstall of Leopardrama said: "Choosing to shoot the film in New York was a risky decision as the drama industry works very differently in the US from the UK. But the huge amount of strategic planning and the leap of faith are delivering a first rate calibre of cast. There is a real buzz about the project in Manhattan as Quentin was a much loved and notorious figure - everyone has an anecdote to tell about him. And we've been touched by the number of friends and admirers of his (some of whom he never knew) who have wanted to help with the project in myriad different ways."

Laura Mackie, Director of Drama at ITV, said: “We are delighted to be making another film about Quentin Crisp given The Naked Civil Servant was such a landmark film for ITV. It’s a real thrill and honour to be bringing an actor of John Hurt's stature back to the channel to reprise such an iconic role. This is largely down to the quality of Brian Fillis' wonderful script, which completely captures the extraordinary and outrageous character of Quentin Crisp.”

For more information contact Alex Wells on alex.wells@itv.com
For pictures contact Pat Smith on patrick.smith@itv.com