The Power of Parker: release date, cast, interviews, plot, trailer and all about the comedy set in 1990
The Power of Parker is a BBC1 comedy set in Manchester during the last days of Margaret Thatcher's Conservative government in 1990. It sees Game of Thrones star Conleth Hill play a businessman whose life is spiralling out of control.
Penned by Sian Gibson and Car Share writer Paul Coleman, and formerly called Undoing Martin Parker, the six-part series follows Martin Parker, an ambitious self-made impresario who appears to have it all. Diane, played by Rosie Cavaliero, is Martin's long-suffering wife.
Sian Gibson who, as well as co-writing the series also stars as a local hairdresser who's having an affair with Martin. She says: “Luckily my fashion sense hasn’t changed since 1990 so it was a dream to be reliving my youth and dusting off my crimpers with this amazing cast and wonderful team.”
So here's everything you need to know about The Power of Parker on BBC1...
The Power of Parker release date
The Power of Parker is a six-part series that launches on BBC1 on Friday July 28 at 9.30pm and all 6 episodes will be box-setted on BBCiPlayer in 2023. We'll update with any US or international air dates for 2023 when we hear.
Is there a trailer for The Power of Parker?
Yes a trailer for The Power of Parker has now been released by the BBC, and as you can see below Martin Parker's life in 1990s Manchester was pretty eventful. Take a look below...
The Power of Parker plot
The Power of Parker follows Martin (Conleth Hill), a self-made businessman described as having ‘the ambition of Alan Sugar and the swagger of Kilroy Silk’. He owns a chain of electrical stores and appears to live the high life. But, in reality, he’s swimming in debt and his complicated private life is about to catch up with him.
Soon all those who Martin has screwed over to satisfy his constant need for money, sex and success may end up having the ultimate revenge. Times are changing and there are many people out there who are only too happy to plot his downfall, including his wife Diane (Rosie Cavaliero), father-in-law Dougie (George Costigan), mobile hairdresser Kath (Sian Gibson) who has been Martin's lover for decades and Kath’s best friend Gladys (Sheila Reid) whose hair she does as the local care home.
The Power of Parker cast — Conleth Hill on playing Martin Parker
Conleth, who plays greedy and ruthless businessman Martin Parker, says: "Martin Parker is a man of his time - he has a successful business, a beautiful wife and home, great suits and cowboy boots. He seems to be on top of the world, but as the first episode unfolds, we realise his dodgy dealings and his love life are beginning to catch up with him. I think it’s evident as you watch the series that he loves Kath, and he only finishes with her because of the money and the flat being too expensive to keep on. But he has a responsibility to Di and his kids as well, so it’s complicated. To maintain the kind of lifestyle that Martin has, I think there has to be a lot of denial for him to get through the day! I think right up until he comes undone, he’s thinking “it’s going to be all right, I’ve always sorted things out before and I will again.
"Working with Rosie and Sian is fantastic. What was really enjoyable was watching the scenes that I hadn’t been in, that they’d done together. I just think they’re so funny and brilliant. The whole cast was a wonderful ensemble. ‘It didn’t feel like a period piece to me even though it’s set in the 90s, because I was alive at that time. But I realised halfway through filming that some of the younger cast members weren’t even born then! Every now and again, you get these smacks in the face that remind you how old you’re getting!’
* Irish actor Conleth Hill is best known for his role as bald eunuch Lord Varys in Game of Thrones but also starred in the Agatha Christie adaptation Why Didn’t They Ask Evans? on BritBox earlier this year, plus ITV drama Holding. He’s also been in Derry Girls, Holding, Magpie Murders, Suits and Dublin Murders. Conleth has also appeared in films such as Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, Goodbye, Mr Chips, Britain’s Got the Pop Factor and Keith Lemon: The Film.
Sian Gibson on playing hairdresser Kath
Sian Gibson, who plays mobile hairdresser Kath in The Power of Parker, says: "‘Kath works as a mobile hairdresser in a retirement home. She loves her job and gets to spend her day gossiping with the residents and her best friend Gladys, played by Sheila Reid. She’s an eternal optimist, full of life and definitely wears her heart on her sleeve. She’s not had the most blissful upbringing, and is prepared to fight for what she wants - and she also loves a bit of double denim!
"We chose to set this in the 90s because I liked the idea of making something nostalgic with lots of big hair, shoulderpads and a cracking soundtrack. However, for our story, the time period was the perfect setting for Martin Parker. In a pre-digital age, with no Google, texting, or email trails, it would have been much easier to hide his secrets! For the scene where I fought with Rosie, our fight co-ordinator made us do stretches first, because she said we’d feel it the next day - and we really did! Any scene I film with Rosie is easy, we get on so well - we just had a laugh and really got into it!
"Another day that really sticks out is when I was filming a scene in Kath’s flat, with Conleth and Rosie. The three of us got such bad giggles it was embarrassing - and the more we tried not to laugh, the worse it became. We ended up all having to film the scene separately - we got split up like naughty schoolchildren!"
* Sian Gibson won our hearts as the lovable Kayleigh in Car Share, with Peter Kay. She also plays Gemma in Murder on the Blackpool Express, Dial M for Middlesbrough and Murder, They Hope. Sian was Cinderella in the After Ever After movie and has also starred in The League of Gentlemen, Inside No.9, Death in Paradise and The Reluctant Landlord.
Rosie Cavaliero on playing Martin’s wife Diane
Rosie Cavaliero, who is playing Martin's wife Diane, says: "‘Diane is a wife and mother with a strong personality who loves her kids. She hasn’t really had her own career, but supports Martin with his, and she’s ambitious for their children. She likes the financial security Martin provides, so she can have a lovely house, kids at private school, a nice car and smart clothes.
"She isn’t very happily married, as she is bullied by Martin and undermined by him on a daily basis. She is fond of her father Dougie, but is embarrassed by his shabby appearance. She wants everything “just so”, but ultimately her life is a bit empty, and she knows it. Diane has buried the past, and she doesn’t want to face up to the truth. But despite her pride and her upwardly-mobile intentions, she has a kind heart and is very funny.
"Conleth and Sian are both hilarious, so hysteria was always lurking during filming. I basically spent most of the shoot laughing! I loved the dinner party scenes in episode five, we had lots of brilliant actors in that day, and it was like a trip down memory lane - I felt like I was in an episode of [1980s yachting drama] Howards’ Way! I was young in this period, but when we started filming I realised I was actually playing someone who was my mother’s age at that time - that was really interesting, and slightly weird. My mum didn’t have such big hair as Diane, but she had a lot of friends who did!’."
* Rosie Cavaliero recently starred in the new series of the sitcom Code 404 alongside Stephen Graham and Daniel Mays. She plays Mrs Braithwaite in the BBC's latest adaptations of Worzel Gummidge and has also starred in Black Narcissus, The Witchfinder, Hold The Sunset, Gentleman Jack, Unforgotten and Cleaning Up. She’s also had movie roles in the films Jane Eyre, Vera Drake and Little Dorrit.
Sheila Reid as Kath’s friend Gladys
We don't yet know a lot about Sheila's role in The Power of Parker other than she plays Kath's best friend Gladys. Sheila of course is best known for her iconic role as mouthy gran Madge Harvey in the ITV comedy series Benidorm. She’s had a hugely successful career, starring in series such as Call The Midwife, Doctor Who, Casualty, Doctors and Humans. Sheila played Mildred alongside Sian Gibson in Dial M for Middlesbrough and Mrs Donovan in All Creatures Great and Small.
George Costigan as Martin’s father-in-law Dougie
George is playing Diane's father Dougie in The Power of Parker He's previously starred in hit TV shows including Gentleman Jack, Happy Valley, Line of Duty and London’s Burning. He first hit fame in the 1980s when he played Bob in the classic British movie Rita, Sue and Bob Too and he also starred in hit films Shirley Valentine and Calendar Girls. George has also been in Emmerdale, The Bill and Casualty.
Behind the scenes, locations and more on The Power of Parker
Filming on the six-part series took place in Manchester in 2022 and 2023. Undoing Martin Parker was commissioned by Jon Petrie, Director of Comedy for BBC One and BBC iPlayer. It is co-created and written by Paul Coleman and Sian Gibson, produced by Gill Isles, executive produced by Kate Daughton for Boffola pictures and Head of BBC Comedy Tanya Qureshi and will be co-produced with Lookout Point.
Writer Paul Coleman says: “Thrilled to be writing this series and working with such a wonderfully talented cast, who are all helping us shine a much needed light on the themes of family feuds, revenge and top-loading VCRs.”
Jon Petrie, Director of Comedy, says: “Sian and Paul have created an irresistible gang of comedy characters and a world packed with joyful nostalgia. The quality of their writing is matched by a fantastic cast and we’re incredibly excited to introduce Martin Parker and bring this lovable rogue to BBC audiences in 2023.
"The actors loved going back to 1990. The writers as well. They all love a lot of nostalgia, retro jokes and stuff. So there's a lot of that in this comedy. It's an interesting period of time, with the downfall of Thatcher. You know, you sometimes see stuff earlier in the 1980s, but the early 1990s is quite an interesting time. It's good fun, especially seeing adverts and things from that era on screen."
