Filming underway on SAS: Rogue Heroes S2
In season two,of Steven Knight drama, attention will turn from the conflict in North Africa to mainland Europe.
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Filming has begun on series two of SAS: Rogue Heroes, created by Steven Knight (Peaky Blinders).
Series two is set in Spring, 1943. With David Stirling captured and Paddy Mayne now in charge of the SAS, their attention must turn from the conflict in North Africa to mainland Europe. But GHQ have cast doubt over the future of the regiment, while the creation of a new unit and a surprise arrival make things even more difficult for the men. Can they prove that the SAS remains essential to the war, wherever it may lead them?
Jack O’Connell returns as Paddy Mayne, alongside Connor Swindells as David Stirling, Sofia Boutella as Eve Mansour, and Dominic West as Dudley Clarke. Gwilym Lee (The Great, Bohemian Rhapsody) joins as Bill Stirling, David Stirling’s brother and founder of the 2SAS regiment, while Con O’Neill (Happy Valley, Our Flag Means Death) will play General Montgomery.
Returning are Theo Barklem-Biggs as Reg Seekings, Corin Silva as Jim Almonds, Jacob Ifan as Pat Riley, Jacob McCarthy as Johnny Cooper, Stuart Campbell as Bill Fraser, and Bobby Schofield as Dave Kershaw. They will serve alongside new recruits Mark Rowley (The Last Kingdom, The North Water) and Jack Barton (Heartstopper, War of the Worlds), who will play SAS members Jock McDiarmid and John Tonkin respectively.
Nwe cast members also include Paolo De Vita (Anonymous, La Grande Guerra del Salento), Anna Manuelli (Blocco 181, Pezzi unici), Edward Bennett (Industry, Save Me Too) and Matteo Franco.
Series creator, writer and executive producer Steven Knight says: “It’s so good to be back in the wild world of the SAS so soon. The second chapter is even more incredible than the first and we hope to do justice to the brave men and women whose story we are telling.”
Karen Wilson, joint MD of Kudos and executive producer says: “We were blown away by the incredible reaction to series one and are so excited to be back filming. Steven’s scripts are just brilliant, we have an amazing cast and we can’t wait to go on another action-packed ride with our Rogue Heroes again.”
Lindsay Salt, Director of BBC Drama says: “Series one dazzled millions of viewers across the country with its swagger, action-packed set pieces and wit, winning a whole legion of fans in the process. Series two goes bigger and better to prove that Steven Knight and the team were just getting started – we can’t wait to welcome the Rogue Heroes back to the BBC.”
SAS: Rogue Heroes screens in Australia on SBS.
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7 Responses
As a reader of non fiction WWII history I enjoyed this show. The expensive action packed set pieces are a big feature of series one so I think fans will want to see more of the same in season two, certainly the military hardware needed could become a headache for the shows set designers but considering the attention to detail and the correct choice of WWII vehicles and aircraft seen in season one I’m sure they shall do another good job.
I saw the youtube video of the British vehicle restoration company who recreated the LRDG Jeeps for Rogue Heroes, I would think they could be busy again.
Not wildly accurate as far as aircraft and other equipment was concerned-the German airbase attack (there was only one setpiece, filmed from different angles to cover several attacks during the series) featured the Spanish built Hispano HA1112 Bf109G clones that were re engined with Rolls Royce Merlins in the 1950s, as seen in the late 1960s film ‘The Battle of Britain’, for example.
Yes, if you want to be nit picking you can make those observations, but for me the creatives who were in charge of building the sets, sourcing period military equipment and setting up the movie like action sequences did a good job, especially for a made for TV show. The desert cinematography was good too.
Really enjoying this and happy they are sticking close to the history and the book it’s based on.
The series gives the very mistaken impression that the SAS were the invention of ‘special forces’ in the British forces when the Commandos were formed in Britain in 1940 to raid the then very long German occupied coast of Europe as well as SOE to organise and support the various resistance groups inside Europe, both proposed and supported by Winston Churchill. Then one adds in the LRDG for deep recce in North Africa and the Special Boat Service (SBS!) in the Med around the various islands there and the slightly more conventional Airborne paratroops, not to mention Orde Wingate and the Chindits in Burma-the British were actually pretty supportive of such types of units, initially due to the limited possibility of effectively attacking the Germans once most of Europe was conquered.
Stirling’s group made up of commando who weren’t killed or captured in the debarcle of Crete operation under the initially fictitious title of L Detachment, Special Air Services Brigade is what they have covered and been clear about that. Stirling was looking for a way highly trained infantry could impact what was a stalemate as German and British tanks pushed each other backwards and forwards across the desert. He found it by trial and error. After Stirling became POW, it was reconstituted as the Special Raiding Squadron under Paddy Mayne and fought in Italy and Sicily, which will be S2.
So it sounds like Eve Mansour survived her plane crashing in the Desert. The rest is widely historically known as is closely following McIntyre’s book SAS: Rogue Warriors, and the 3 part documentary series made from it.