A new Channel 5 drama filmed in Hexham is set to receive its North East premiere in Newcastle, giving local viewers an early chance to see the first episode of Forever Home.
The cast and crew will gather at Tyneside Cinema for the screening on Friday, 4 September. Attendees have not yet been confirmed, but the production features a high-profile cast including Denise Welch, Douglas Henshall, Amy Nuttall, Kevin Whately and Lewis Cope.
A Northumberland production
Cameras stopped rolling on the drama in Northumberland several months before the planned premiere. Filming took place in Stocksfield and Hexham, bringing the production to locations close to residents across the Tyne Valley.
Welch, known for her work in Waterloo Road and Benidorm, reportedly delighted staff at Hexham Indian restaurant Zyka when she visited for a curry after a busy day filming. The production’s North East links are also reflected in its wider cast: Whately is known for Auf Wiedersehen Pet, while Cope, who was born in Hartlepool, has appeared in Strictly Come Dancing, Vera and Emmerdale.
What Forever Home is about
The drama is based on the book of the same name by television presenter and Eurovision commentator Graham Norton. It follows Carol Crottie as concerns grow about her older partner Robert, whose dementia is worsening.
Carol begins to question why Robert refuses to leave his home. Her suspicions deepen when she wonders whether his behaviour is connected to the disappearance of his first wife, Joan, who left with Robert’s brother 20 years earlier and abandoned their two young children, Kaden and Sally.
As Robert becomes increasingly anxious about the house’s hidden basement, Carol and her mother investigate what happened to Joan. The secrets Robert has kept are expected to take time to unravel.
When and where to watch
The first episode will be screened at Tyneside Cinema in Newcastle on Friday, 4 September. The article does not state whether tickets are available to the general public or confirm which cast members will attend.
Forever Home is the latest in a series of television productions filmed in the North East. Earlier regional projects mentioned include Channel 5’s The Feud, filmed in Benton, Jarrow and Heaton, and The Fortune, which was filmed in Teesside before airing earlier this summer.
Another North East production, the BBC crime drama The Northumbria Mysteries, is being filmed with Robson Green and Kevin Whately and is due to air next year.