2.1 DVD commentary

[lwhite53]

Info from 2.1 dvd commentary:
-Total rebuild of grid set in new location for s2 and majorly different: much larger, 3 pods (2 in old grid), office computers went from PC to Mac (better design look), added the forgery suite.
-New location used for Tom's house (actually 3 different new locations) -- couldn't use the same location as in s1 because they kept putting the owner's cat out in the garden as Matthew was allergic. Owners weren't keen to have them back!
-New location for Danny and Zoe's flat -- "bears no resemblance" to the old one.
-New look for costumes in s2 (after the clean up from 1.6 was completed) -- brighter and more trendy.
-Opening explosion in the ep -- digital bricks -- CGI.
-Camera in constant motion for first 10 mins of ep to keep audience off-balance re where did explosion really take place.
-Sam's intro into all of the chaos was a deliberate move.
-First 12-14 mins of this ep finished the s1 story arc.
-Actor playing Gradic famous in Serbia; all the other Serbian actors in ep were from Britain.
-Cufflinks, decoding program and using advertisements to pass messages -- based on real tradecraft info from advisors.
-COBRA = Cabinet Office Briefing Room A -- large room with painting of a horse.
-2nd COBRA scene (@ time 49.15) -- they needed an extra COBRA shot but nothing had been written for it, so Peter Firth totally ad libbed the whole scene -- "events considered too sensitive, etc."
-The shooting scene with Gradic's men and special forces (@time 50.45) was done totally with lighting and sound effects. Owners didn't want any shooting going on in the location.
-The helicopter used to transport Gradic belonged to Mohammed El Fayad -- a big fan of the show, he lent them the Harrod's heli.
-Tom, Danny and Zoe walking away from helicopter at end of ep mirrors the same three walking away from car at the end of 1.1.
-Lots of discussion about whether the ep should have ended with the helicopter scene -- decided to go with emotional ending vs. style ending -- wanted a quiet ending to focus on the end of Tom and Ellie's relationship.
-Teaser for 2.2 provoked a lot of reaction and large number of complaints, even before ep actually aired.
-Locations:
@4.55, grid evacuation: back courtyard of Freemason's Hall.
@11.22, Zoe meeting Ellie and Tom: front lobby of Freemason's Hall.
@18.30, Zoe and friend get off bus: exterior of Ellie's restaurant (closed down before start of s2).
@26.23, Serbian Embassy in 2.1 becomes Turkish Embassy in 2.3, flipped around.
@43.50, MOD mole interrogation: Mason Building in Portland Place, London (same location used as mosque in 2.2).
@46.20, fake COBRA meeting: Brockett Hall.

[Nia M]

That's some pretty impressive ad-libbing from Peter Firth then!

Thanks for this!

[Silktie]

Where do you get the time?! I can barely manage the two episodes each week. Thanks so much, your notes help me decide which episodes' commentaries I should bother to listen to.

[lwhite53]

It's like doing homework . . . and I swore to myself that I'd never do that again! Oh well, all in a good cause.