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BBC TWO Thursday 16th March 2017

Press Contacts:

Premier

Sereene Brown – sereene.brown@premiercomms.com / 0207 292 7372 Hannah Harris-Turner – Hannah.harris-turner@premiercomms.com / 0207 292 8348

Images: www.bbcpictures.co.uk / Preview: www.bbcpreviews.co.uk

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Contents

Series Overview Page 3

Cast and Crew Page 4

Q&A with Gareth Neame - Page 6 Executive Producer

Q&A with Nigel Marchant - Page 8 Executive Producer

Q&A with Alexander Dreymon Page 11

Q&A with David Dawson Page 13

Q&A with Ian Hart Page 15

Q&A with Eva Birthistle Page 16

Q&A with Emily Cox Page 18

Q&A with Gerard Kearns Page 19

Q&A with Millie Brady Page 21

Q&A with Toby Regbo Page 23 Q&A with Eliza Butterworth Page 25 Q&A with Bjorn Bengtsson Page 26 Q&A with Christian Hillborg Page 27

Series 1 recap Page 28

Episode Synopses Page 29 Character Biographies Page 30

Notes to Editors Page 34

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The Last Kingdom

Series Overview

Based on Bernard Cornwell’s best-selling novels The Lords of the North and Sword Song.

The hotly anticipated second season of BBC Two’s critically acclaimed drama, The Last Kingdom,

returns on Thursday 16th March at 9pm.

Made by Carnival Films, the Golden Globe® and Emmy® award-winning producers of Downton

Abbey, and co-produced by Netflix, the epic historical series has been adapted by BAFTA nominated

and RTS award-winning writer Stephen Butchard, from Bernard Cornwell’s best-selling series of

novels.

The emotionally complex and compelling landscape of revenge, rivalry, love and loyalty form the

backdrop to a gripping adventure based on Cornwell's novels, The Lords of the North and Sword

Song – part of the hugely popular best-selling franchise, The Last Kingdom.

Set in the 9th century, the second season returns as fearless and instinctive warrior Uhtred continues

his fight for his native land of Northumbria. Uhtred, having given his sword to King Alfred, despite

his upbringing by the invading pagan Danes, embarks on his voyage north to reclaim his own fate: to

avenge Earl Ragnar’s death and recapture his ancestral lands of Bebbanburg.

Alfred’s conviction to create a united England is stronger than ever and he sets his sights on the wild

lands of the north, which have fallen into chaos and rebellion. It is a dangerous time for Saxon and

Dane alike but Alfred champions a new king - a Christian Dane - to unite the tribes. However, this

king has been enslaved and Uhtred becomes embroiled in a rescue mission, which brings him face-

to-face with an enemy of old.

Alexander Dreymon (American Horror Story) returns as Uhtred, alongside David Dawson (Peaky

Blinders), Emily Cox (Homeland), Ian Hart (Boardwalk Empire) and Tobias Santelmann (Marcella)

from the first season. They are joined by new cast members including Thure Lindhardt (The Bridge),

Millie Brady (Legend), and Peter McDonald (Thirteen).

The first, critically acclaimed season was a hit with viewers during its eight-week run on BBC Two in

2015, averaging 2.7 million total viewers. The season was also nominated for the best drama series

of 2015 at the RTS Awards.

Emmy®, Golden Globe® and BAFTA-winning Gareth Neame and Nigel Marchant return as Executive

Producers for Carnival Films alongside Stephen Butchard. Elizabeth Kilgarriff is the Executive

Producer for the BBC.

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Cast and Crew

CAST Uhtred Alexander Dreymon Alfred David Dawson Beocca Ian Hart Halig Gerard Kearns Hild Eva Birthistle Brida Emily Cox Ragnar Tobias Santelmann Gisela Peri Baumeister Aethelflaed Millie Brady Aethelred Toby Regbo Finan Mark Rowley Aelfric Joseph Millson Kjartan Alexandre Willaume Sven Ole Christoffer Ertvaag Thyra Julia Bache-Wiig Odda Simon Kunz Aethelwold Harry McEntire Aelswith Eliza Butterworth Sigefrid Björn Bengtsson Erik Christian Hillborg Guthred Thure Lindhardt Brother Trew Peter McDonald Pyrlig Cavan Clerkin Sihtric Arnas Fedaravicius Steapa Adrian Bouchet Clapa Magnus Samuelsson Haesten Jeppe Beck Laursen Aldhelm James Northcote Abbot Eadred David Schofield Osferth Ewan Mitchell Father Hrothweard Richard Rankin Tekil Marc Rissman Fiske Erik Madsen

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CREW Executive Producers Gareth Neame, Nigel Marchant,

Stephen Butchard Co-Executive Producers David O’Donoghue, Peter Hoar Producers Chrissy Skinns, Liz Trubridge, Dominic

Barlow, Guy Tannahill Directors Peter Hoar - Ep 1, 2 Jon East – Ep 3, 4 Jamie Donoughue – Ep 5, 6 Richard Senior – Ep 7, 8 Writer Stephen Butchard Ben Vanstone – Ep 3 Sophie Petzal – Ep 4 Production Designer Martyn John DOP Chas Bain Costume Designer Nina Ayres, Ralph Wheeler-Holes Hair and Make Up Designer Kate Benton Stunt Coordinator Levente Leszák

Composer John Lunn

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Gareth Neame is Executive Producer Q: What worked best in Season One? A: I think the thing that worked best in season one was how the fans really took to the characters. While it is a historical drama, it is also a character show, and following Uhtred and his band of friends is what really drew people in. It’s a drama about people with lots of adventure and excitement, with the extra dimension that it’s a story rooted in real history – it’s the story of how England came to be. Q: What did you feel you needed to hit for Season Two? What did it need to do? A: By the end of season one Alfred has saved his Kingdom of Wessex [‘the Last Kingdom’] from the threat of Viking invasion, but that is only the end of the beginning and now he must uses all his power to achieve his ambition for a new United Kingdom – his vision for all the Saxons to be united together under one King and a Christian God. It is in this context that Uhtred will continue to be torn between his two identities and conflicting loyalties – as both Saxon and Dane. And whilst he is Alfred’s greatest warrior, the heart of the story is to regain his birthright, his ancestral lands of Bebbanburg. Q: What does Season Two have in store for both Uhtred and the wider cast? A: The show has always been about two narratives. One is the big political ambition of creating a united England, and the other is the story of a man who’s not quite sure if he’s Saxon or Dane and his personal voyage to reclaim his birth-right. Uhtred and Alfred are essentially the two main characters, and that dynamic will continue as we follow Alfred’s mission and explore how Uhtred helps him from time to time, as well as following Uhtred on his own journey. Of course, new characters come into these episodes and bring new situations that distract and get in the way of both Alfred’s political journey and Uhtred’s personal mission. Q: How do you approach the condensing source material for the series? How do you map out the narrative in broader terms? A: We were blessed with a large number of novels by Bernard Cornwell already in the franchise. We used the first two novels to make season one, and season two is based on the third and fourth novels. Due to necessity of pace and storytelling some characters are removed or amalgamated, but we largely stay very central to the narrative. We use other sources as well as the books, working closely with historical advisors, particularly experts on the history of England that that time, so we can create an accurate world when we talk about the geography and customs. And as with any good drama, there is a degree of invention and embellishment to make it translate to the screen. Q: Peri Baumeister was cast as Gisela. Can tell us about this casting process and what her character brings to this season? A: Uhtred has had quite a few women already on his journey, but in the case of Gisela she is the sister of the prophesised King Guthred, which adds an interesting dynamic to the relationship. Her family is Danish, so similarly to Uhtred and Brida we did not want her or Guthred to speak in an English accent. Every time we come to those scenes we have to know what their background is, so we looked, as with many of the characters, to other European countries to cast. We really loved Peri when we saw her, and we thought she’d be a great match for Alexander.

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Q: What are the challenges of producing a show like The Last Kingdom that contains various battle scenes and locations? A: One of the huge challenges with producing the show is that there isn’t a precinct. This isn’t The West Wing with the White House - or even Downton Abbey for that matter – this is a road movie, with numerous castles we have already travelled to in the first season. That puts a lot of challenges on a television show as you have to keep building and going to new locations. We’re set in an era around 800AD and there is no remaining architecture from the period so everything has to be constructed from scratch. We’re building castles and towns and villages, and many of them are augmented by CGI as they’re too vast to build physically. It’s a combination of traditional production design with computer and digital effects to complete the sets. Likewise, we’ve got a lot of classic traditional stunt work, horse-work, with lots of sword fighting and so on, and again a lot of it is augmented with VFX and post production, where we see swords penetrating people’s bodies and blood flying, or heads being severed. It’s a challenge to really bring all of those elements together. Q: This show is not afraid of killing off the odd character here and there; does it change the sort of dynamic between the actors and the production? A: I don’t think actors wondering whether they’re going to be killed off affects the approach. The storylines are in the books, and we’re portraying an incredibly violent time. It’s a fascinating piece of history that we don’t tend to know a lot about. Just as American history is taught from 1776, we’ve been taught about 1066, Harold and William of Normandy and we don’t know much about what happened before then – I became fascinated that there was in fact a country called England many years before that. But achieving that nation took hundreds of years and an extraordinarily bloody period of our history. This is a truly fascinating story – both personal and political – fictional and factual – which deserves to be told.

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Nigel Marchant is Executive Producer

Q: Where does Season Two pick up from Season One? A: At the beginning of Season Two, we’re picking up about six months after where we left off so things haven’t hugely changed, however Alfred has gained confidence after the battle of Ethandun and his victory against the Danes. This allows him to start looking at the country as a whole and how he can influence the other kingdoms, both by joining ties with Mercia and influencing them with the prospect of marriage. We saw Uhtred riding off to the north having lost an awful lot; his friends, his lover, and at the beginning we find him quite down and out trying to regroup. He can’t go to the north and reclaim his birthright because he hasn’t got an army behind him but, by luck and fate, he bumps into some old friends and starts working for Alfred again. Q: How have you developed the visual style of the show for Season Two? A: I think for Season Two we were looking at how we could up the ante. We did an awful lot that we really enjoyed in Season One and we found a style that really suited the show which looks different to other shows that were out there. This season was about keeping the best parts, the rawness, the immediacy, and then just building on that. We explored how we could make it a little bit more sophisticated at times. The lighting isn’t quite as raw as it was and has a bit more shape to it. We made the battles much bigger .It was really taking what we were very happy with in Season One and then pushing it and making the scale as big as we possibly could. Q: Is each season of TLK an opportunity to augment and expand what was already a groundbreaking physical set? A: The great joy that we had on Season One with production design was that so many sets were inside and outside so they were built on location. We would shoot 360; when we were looking through windows we had crowd beyond it so it gave a huge amount of flexibility to the directors and made it feel very real. We strive for that time and time again. We believe that when we see these sets and it’s muddy and dank and cold and you can see people’s breath, there’s a reality. We believe it much more than when you’re confined by being on stage and it feels a little bit more make believe. Martyn John, our production designer did great work this year, really being ballsy and going for scale, making the sets as big as we could possibly afford and giving directors a great landscape to play with. We’ve now taken over a whole back lot, it’s completely 360 with numerous sets that we redress so we can use them for multiple episodes. It’s very exciting for directors to come on board and be very creative, as well as the actors who feel that there’s a reality to it so then it’s very easy for them to feel part of the language of the show. Q: What are the challenges of creating epic battle scenes and tying these into the overarching storyline? A: The hardest thing with the battle and fight sequences is finding new ways into them. Uhtred is our key character so you have to be careful to avoid fake jeopardy. He’s our hero - we know he’s going to survive - so we have to look at how we make each fight and each battle different. We’ve had fight sequences in the rain this year, with fire at night time, and different shield walls. It’s been important to keep refreshing the show and present these big action sequences differently every time. I think you have to find an emotional heart within them, if we just see people hitting each other with swords we don’t really care and I think we can become blasé to those things.

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Q: The show is not afraid to get into the nitty gritty of Saxon/Viking combat – what were you most looking forward to seeing realised on screen? A: We did one fight sequence in and out of tents and in the rain which I really enjoyed. Easy for me to enjoy it, not having to do it and get soaking wet but I think visually it looks very good. This year we shot to a slightly different schedule. We were shooting during the summer and it was quite hard because everything was very sunny and bleached out and everything looked cleaner. The costumes didn’t look as dirty and aged down, it just gave everything a sheen. This world is much more believable when it’s raw and ugly and so we had to fight that all of the time. We also did a big battle at night for the season finale and again that’s much tougher for us to shoot and much more complex but brings a different quality to the sequence. Q: Tell us about watching Alexander become more and more comfortable in the skin of Uhtred and what he’s doing with the character? A: Alex is our leading man and he’s a leading man on the floor, everyone looks to him. He’s there virtually every day of shooting. I think the other actors acknowledge what he does and how hard he works. If he’s not shooting, then he’s rehearsing so it’s been great to see him rise to the challenge. I think he really enjoys the action sequences and cares very much about them. He wants it to feel real, he wants to do as many of the stunts he can himself. He wants to really train and rehearse those so they look exciting, authentic and fresh. It’s great to see him put such enthusiasm and time and energy into doing those. At the same time, there are some beautiful moments of stillness within the show this year and some very touching moments which he has with Beocca are among my favourite scenes that we’ve shot. They are very tender and we see real friendship between the two characters. I think it really lifts the show as a whole having these two great actors delivering these beautiful, tender moments. Q: What does it mean for an actor to have the kind of time afforded by long form television to round out a character? A: The benefit of having long form television is that you can multi-layer characters and I think that’s much more interesting for an audience and much more interesting for an actor because in life we all change; circumstances dictate what we do and our attitudes. I think we can explore that on a much bigger canvas with long form. We can see Uhtred’s journey in much more complex detail - as much as he ends the first season wanting to seek revenge, we pick up in Season Two and he can’t do that, he hasn’t got the means behind him to achieve that. We get a sense of his loss from the battle at the end of Season One and we go on that journey with him and feel very much for the character he inhabits. Q: TV shows are a lot less reticent to kill off major characters these days, does The Last Kingdom follow suit? A: I think you want to show a reality within the lives that these people led and consequences both in terms of the everyday living and obviously the battles, therefore characters die. They were tougher times and we show that within the season - I think it would be a mistake if we didn’t kill off characters as it wouldn’t feel real. People lost people they loved and cherished and I think we did well to show that and the harsh reality of it. Death is rarely pretty. Q: Does it keep things fresh? A: One of the actors did get clemency this year, he was meant to die a little bit earlier and everyone fought the campaign to keep him going so we relented and they survived a little bit longer. Sometimes I think the joy is taking the books, and Stephen does this so well, and finding new characters and new interests around them so we’re not sticking to the novels word for word. We bring Odda back, who isn’t particularly felt within books three and four, but he is such a great

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character and actor that we wanted to keep him going and develop his storyline much more. Stephen has this great ability to create and generate those stories within the franchise. Q: What are you most looking forward to audiences seeing this season? A: I’m hoping the audience continues to enjoy the journey that they go through with Uhtred and the other characters and see Alfred pushing his power and the concept of this new England. We start to see how he brings these dreams of unity together, how he manipulates the world around him to get what he wants. There’s some great storylines that have a modern feel to them in terms of moral dilemmas and action sequences and fights that we want the audience to find satisfying. But really the emotional heart of the story, of our characters and the smaller quieter moments of the journey that these people go through, is what I’m looking forward to our audience seeing.

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Alexander Dreymon plays Uhtred

Q: Does the beginning of this season feel like the morning after the night before? A: Yes! Wessex has just come out of the Battle of Ethandun, and Alfred is still in charge. Also, the problem of the Danes has been taken care of because Guthrum has been baptised a Christian, and has become a puppet king for Alfred. The main Danes, Ragnar the Younger and Brida, are in prison and are held hostage. Uhtred is on his way up north to free his sister. There’s a lot to sort out! Q: So what is Uhtred’s state of mind? A: It’s an interesting place to find Uhtred again. We established him as an energetic hero in the first season, and we find him at the start of the second season at his lowest. He’s in a brothel, drunk, and has probably had a couple of fights the night before. That may be a bit unexpected, but it makes sense, given all that has happened to him. Q: But he can’t lie in a stupor in a brothel for the whole season, can he? A: No. It’s Hild that wakes him up. She gives him faith again and the strength to go on. Very soon afterwards, Uhtred meets up again with Father Beocca, who shows him the path he needs to follow. Q: How does Uhtred’s relationship with Alfred develop? A: Alfred’s piety begins to weigh more and more on Uhtred because their ways of doing things are so different. Alfred doesn’t trust him, and that becomes increasingly difficult to deal with. They’re the two most modern men in the whole piece, but they polarise further in Season Two. They had a beautiful moment together at the end of Season One, where Alfred actually acknowledged that Uhtred enabled him to win the Battle of Ethandun and he thanked him for that. But then very quickly they move away from that closeness. Uhtred saved Alfred’s life. He also saved his son, and lost his own son in the process. That’s the ultimate sacrifice, isn’t it? So Uhtred’s very surprised and hurt when Alfred starts to mistrust him again. Q: Do you enjoy working with the brilliant stuntmen on The Last Kingdom? A: Absolutely. In Season One, I was very keen to do as much as I could myself. But I very quickly learned that the fantastic stunt doubles that we have on the show quite often could do things much better than I ever could. They are real inspirations. Q: The second season features some epic scenes on a slave ship being rowed to Iceland. What was that like? A: It was amazing. We shot it at Korda Studios here in Budapest, where they also filmed The Martian and The Borgias. We had this big ship on a hydraulic system, which enabled us to replicate the movement of the waves, and large cannons shooting water at us all the time. We also had rain

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machines and big flashlights, so it looks like you’re in the middle of a storm. It really feels like it when you’re in there. You’ve got a camera in your face and you’re trying to do a scene, but you can barely keep your eyes open because you’re getting splashed with so much water. It was a really cool experience. Q: Tell us about Finan, the Irishman he meets on that journey? A: He may seem like one in a line of right-hand men for Uhtred, but Finan is much more than that. When you go through a trauma like that journey and survive it together, your companion becomes much more than a friend – he becomes your brother. There’s nothing that you wouldn’t tell him and nothing that you would be ashamed of in front of him. Q: Why is that? A: Because he’s seen you at more than your worst and at your most vulnerable. It’s a very unique bond that those two men share, and in a way that’s a blessing because you can allow yourself to be so close to somebody. Q: Why do you think viewers are so drawn to your character? A: What’s great about Uhtred is that it’s easy for the audience to connect with him and see this Ninth Century world through his eyes. He doesn’t care about people’s faith or origins. In this new season, he gets a gang together, and he has a nun in tow, even though he is a pagan! Q: He’s very adept at creating bonds with people, isn’t he? A: Yes. He’s very good at forming friendships. What’s so relatable to modern audiences about Uhtred is that he is happy to create alliances with people from all over the place, no matter what their faith or their nationality is. He is way ahead of his time. And that’s one of many reasons why people love The Last Kingdom!

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David Dawson plays King Alfred

Q: What attracted you to the role in the first place? A: What I love about Alfred is that from the start he has had a lot of confidence. He has always been the cleverest, wiliest man in the whole story. But I love him most because he wants to achieve his dream through negotiation and diplomacy, not necessarily through losing lives. Q: Where is Alfred at the outset of the second season of The Last Kingdom? A: At the start of Season Two, we see a very different man from the one we met at the beginning of Season One. For a lot of that season, he struggled to prove himself as a leader because he wasn’t your stereotypical, stocky, warrior king. And now, since his victory at the Battle of Ethandun, the vision of England that he set out in Season One is slowly becoming a reality. He is now looking beyond Wessex to try to fulfil his dream in the best way possible. Those around him believe in him more than they ever did because he is accomplishing things that he dreamt of doing. Q: So what does he want to do now? A: He views his dream of a united England as a chess board, and now he has accomplished saving Wessex, he is looking beyond that to see how he can best move those chess pieces around the board to create England. Q: What is happening to Alfred’s children in this season? A: Alfred is looking to his children, particularly his daughter, and training them in the skills that they will need to become accomplished leaders when they are fully grown. Q: How does the relationship between Alfred and Uhtred unfold in this season? A: Episode seven was one of my favourites in Season One because that’s when you really saw Alfred and Uhtred let down their guard in front of each other and come together. It meant an awful lot to Alfred what Uhtred did in saving his son, Edward. But then Uhtred leaves, and at the start of this season, Alfred realises that, no matter how stubborn Uhtred is, he has lost his best warrior. Q: So what is Alfred planning? A: Now that Alfred and Uhtred are apart, in Alfred’s long-term vision, he would like to find a very clever way of drawing Uhtred back to Wessex, so that he can use him once again. They’ve seen each other’s weaknesses and have seen the men they would like to be in the other, and that’s what draws them to each other. I wouldn’t say it’s a bromance exactly, but they are far better when they’re together than when they’re apart.

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Q: Do you enjoy playing those scenes with Alexander? A: Absolutely, I love the relationship between Alfred and Uhtred. These are two men who loathe each other and are polar opposites, and yet they still need each other so desperately and really admire each other. It’s my favourite part of the whole story!

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Ian Hart plays Beocca

Q: Is it Beocca’s vocation to look after Uhtred? A: Yes. In one scene, Beocca talks about the feeling that God has placed him by the side of Uhtred, so for him to disobey God’s will would be wrong. It’s not that he doesn’t question God’s will – everyone does, no matter how pious and strong their belief. Uhtred tests Beocca’s patience and tests his belief. But despite all that, Beocca feels that is his role. It’s not a choice. It’s a God-given role. Therefore, whatever stupid thing Uhtred does, Beocca has to stand next to him and accept it and try to find a way to keep him out of moral trouble. It is God’s work that he’s doing. Q: Do you see Beocca as a peace-maker between Uhtred and Alfred? A: Yes. Uhtred is his own man. How much he takes advice from Beocca depends on his own agenda. But through thick and thin, Beocca’s aim is to try and unify Uhtred and Alfred and not let the distance between them grow and grow. He tries to bring them back into the fold and get one to see the benefit of the other. He also attempts to get through that thick skull of Uhtred’s and convince him that Alfred’s plan is a good plan and that it doesn’t necessarily exclude him. Q: Does Beocca’s wisdom stem from the fact that he has travelled widely? A: Yes. At that time, most people had never left their village, but Beocca has had experience of the larger world. That allows you to open up to a wider way of thinking. Q: Is the Church still all-powerful in the second season? A: In Season One, the church held power. Alfred’s piety dictated the moral compass of the journey that he was on. But in the second season, that power play between paganism as the old way and Christianity as the new way that is becoming almost a legally binding structure has changed. The line has been blurred a little. At this point in British history, while the Pope in Rome was a powerful figure, in the backwaters of Britain, people still believed in some very strange ideas. Many people were worshipping many, many different things. Q: When he is with Uhtred, Beocca is obliged to become a man of action, isn’t he? A: Yes. The more he becomes involved with Uhtred, the more he is forced to take action. But he defends himself first and foremost so he can stay with Uhtred. If Uhtred wants to go into battle, Beocca has to go with him. The whole idea of Beocca being involved in war is so that he can remain next to Uhtred and keep him in his line of sight. Beocca’s job is to make sure he’s still alive at end of the battle, so that when Uhtred has just chopped someone’s head off, Beocca can say to him, “Think what you just did there!” He has to try and square the circle with his own conscience. There is certainly a moral dilemma involved in hitting people over the head with a stick!

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Eva Birthistle plays Hild Q: Where is Hild at the beginning of Season Two? A: When we last saw Hild in Season One, she had joined Uhtred’s gang and gone on the road with them. When we meet her in Season Two, she has experienced quite a lot of bloodshed and lived the life of a warrior. She doesn’t have anyone close anymore after the brutal attack in Season One, and she feels safe with Uhtred. Q: Why has Hild gone from nun to warrior? A: She’s getting slightly weary of Uhtred’s lack of direction. So if she’s going to stay with him, she decides that he must get his act together and do what he originally set out to do. He’s suffering from heartbreak and has lost his way, so she makes the decision to help him and become a warrior – which as a lady of the cloth is a very big decision! She puts her faith to one side and resolves to seek revenge, which is what drives her initially. She believes in Uhtred’s journey and wants to support him, but it means becoming part of that troop. So she dons the warrior uniform, takes up the sword and starts fighting. Q: What draws Hild to Uhtred? A: She respects Uhtred from the get-go. But she also needs protection after the brutal assault she suffered in Season One. She feels let down by her God. She feels anger and resentment. She sees the revenge Uhtred seeks and wants to emulate him. It troubles her - she finds him morally dubious. But she respects the very clear goal he has. Q: Why is she so anxious to seek revenge? A: Hild wants that in order to make peace with what she’s been through. That means having to be proactive and make choices that aren’t easy. But she wants to make amends and do something, as opposed to sitting back and letting things happen to her. It happened before, but now she feels she has the power to get up and fight back. Q: So Uhtred is a role model in that respect? A: Yes. Hild sees how Uhtred keeps doing that time and time again, and that’s her inspiration. Because his gang saved her, she feels; “Well, I should give something back to you guys.” He needs help. As time goes on, she gets better at it and actually starts to enjoy it! It’s like an outlet for her. She’s seeking revenge, and it feels good! Q: One of the great qualities of The Last Kingdom is that all the women are very strong characters, aren’t they? A: Yes. Women at that time very much had roles they were put into. But the women in this show don’t stay within those confines for very long. They break out of them and show real strength. Across the board in TV, that’s always refreshing and it can only be positive to see women in those roles, especially in period pieces because it was unusual to be that way, to have that strength and to buck the regime.

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Q: So contemporary women will be able to identify with these characters? A: Yes. Stephen writes really well for women. He recognises the importance of that. The Last Kingdom is going out to an audience today. Women watching it have to be able to relate to the women on screen. We’re not going to be able to relate to women who sit around doing nothing!

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Emily Cox plays Brida Q: Where do we find Brida at the start of Season Two? A: She’s in prison, locked up and not very happy! Luckily, she gets out. Ragnar the Elder was killed in Season One, and Brida swore that she would avenge the death of their father … Q: How is the relationship between Brida and her two brothers? A: Uhtred, Ragnar the Younger and Brida are very close. They grew up together and love each other very deeply. Brida and Ragnar are very happy in each other’s company. They both want to live the same way, as Vikings. Q: Does this wonderful, unspoilt countryside help “get you in the zone” to play Brida? A: Definitely. Last year, I had so many scenes outside. When you’re out there in nature, you get to think, “Wow, that’s the way people actually lived back then. Unlike me, they couldn’t drive back to their beautiful hotel and have a shower in the evening.” You get a very small glimpse of what it might have felt like to live in that period. But fortunately, I haven’t got lost yet! Q: Are you good at the horse riding and fighting? A: This sounds like bragging – maybe it is! – but I’ve been told I’m actually the best horse rider on the show! I was so proud when they said that. But I’m definitely not the best fighter! For instance, what I’ve found really, really hard is to throw an axe and get it to land where it’s supposed to land. Fortunately, you only ever see me throwing it. You never see where it actually lands! So that’s good. I think Alex is the best fighter. He is really, really good. That’s annoying. But then I get on horseback, say “Look at me!” and feel good about myself again. Q: Brida is a real action heroine, isn’t she? A: Absolutely. As Brida, I get to fight a lot. As she was in Season One, Brida is a really, really strong woman. She says what she thinks and makes jokes. She’s just part of the gang. She leads men and tells them what to do. She likes to see herself in that role, leading and fighting. She’s a strong woman who’s not worth less than men. Q: The Last Kingdom has earned a reputation for ruthlessly dispatching its leading characters. Do you ever worry that might happen to Brida? A: Of course, I’d be very sad if they killed Brida off. I hope she lives for as long as she can. I met Bernard Cornwell at the premiere of Season One. He’s a lovely, lovely guy. He was very warm and really, really loved the show. I was trying to convince him never to kill Brida! Q: Have you enjoyed being back on set? A: Yes. It’s been such a fantastic time. It’s been so lovely to come back and meet all the people I spent so much time with last year. The sets this year are beautiful. We also have new costumes which look amazing. The whole production feels pretty big scale. It’s so cool. Sometimes you’re sitting on your horse and thinking, “Oh my God, I’m actually getting money for this!” It’s such fun and it’s so epic. I’m proud that I’m allowed to be part of it!

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Gerard Kearns plays Halig Q: What can we expect from the second season of The Last Kingdom? A: Betrayal, conflict, fighting, love, death – all these things are rolled into Season Two. I think it’s really gripping. Q: How do we first encounter your character in the second season? A: We meet Halig lying drunk on a bench in a town, going towards the North because Uhtred wants to raise an army to defeat his uncle and take back his kingdom. Q: What happens next? A: At the start of the season, Uhtred is at his wits’ end. He’s a lonely solider who needs an army. He goes on various missions with Halig. But they end up crossing some of the high priests... Q: Why is he following Uhtred? A: Halig has nowhere else to go. Uhtred is his only hope of something better. He could maybe get land or a title. There’s a chance of a better life with Uhtred. Without Uhtred, he would just be another soldier, maybe a farmer at best. Q: How would you characterise Halig? A: He’s a character who will go into things without thinking. He’s bright and he’s sharp, but in situations of conflict, his courage will take over. He’s very much a product of his surroundings. Q: What is Halig’s relationship with Uhtred like? A: He has a good relationship with him. Uhtred is in charge and Halig follows his orders. If Uhtred says, “Jump!”, Halig replies, “how high?” That’s Halig. He serves his lord. He’s got no other option. I don’t imagine he’d ever think of betrayal. If a better option came along, I don’t think he’d take it. He’s a very loyal character. He’s very strong and brave in that sense. Q: Have you enjoyed researching the era? A: Yes. It’s been really good reading some of the history books for research and getting a sense of that period. I wanted to use the role as an opportunity to explore the history of that time and bring that into the character. I read a good book called “An Anglo-Saxon World” that has the rules of the time and poems and stories and music from that era. I also found the story of Beowulf fascinating. You use those things as a motivation to find a character – where he was from, who he would have served under. Q: Did anything in particular grab you from your reading? A: I found it really interesting learning about the ancient settlement of Sutton Hoo. I discovered how much of a curse it could be to be a king. There were lots of kings back then, and that wasn’t necessarily a blessing. If you were a king, you had lots of people to feed. You had to have wealth and an army at your disposal.

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Q: Why is this era such a good setting for drama? A: It’s a fascinating period. So much was changing in Britain at that time, which always makes for great drama.

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Millie Brady plays Aethelflaed

Q: Can you tell us about whom you play and how they fit into Series Two? A: I play Aethelflaed, who is the daughter of King Alfred. This year, you see her grow away from the young sweet girl from Season one. We’re moving with her as she grows up. This season begins when she’s a teenager, and you’re seeing the beginnings of this little tomboy fighter girl. That’s one of the first things that drew me to the part. She’s got a real “fighter” side to her. Q: How does she develop? A: The audience go with her from being this little warrior having lessons in the courtyard to growing up and becoming the Queen of Mercia, which is really exciting. It’s fun having that journey with an audience rather than just jumping in and saying to them, “right, you play catch-up.” They’re able to see how she develops, which is thrilling. Q: What makes her grow up? A: She experiences some really harsh things that force her into growing up more quickly than people would have liked her to. It’s quite shocking because at that time these young girls were made to marry. Q: Tell us more. A: Aethelflaed is married off to Aethelred. Before the marriage, she’s really excited. She thinks it’s going to be some fairytale romance because she’s seen the relationship between Uhtred and Gisela. She’s watched from the outskirts and has this very romanticised idea of what a marriage is like. We see this young girl gearing herself up for her duty. She can’t wait. Q: What happens next? A: Then we’re hit with this reality that these marriages which are set are often not the happiest things. But this in turn motivates her to grow as a woman and as a warrior. Q: So she flourishes on the battlefield? A: We see that she comes out the other end of this tricky situation and becomes one of the most powerful warriors in history. She turns it on its head. Instead of letting it defeat her, she then rises up and becomes this warrior queen. It’s quite a challenge to play that, but it’s great! Q: Is Aethelflaed a role model, then? A: Yes. It’s really interesting, especially with how things are now. We’re in a time of great change, where women are getting more recognition for their work. So it’s fascinating to put those modern ideas into something like this, based in a time where women wouldn’t have a big say in things. Q: So did that take some viewers by surprise? A: Yes. People wouldn’t have expected to see that, but there were these really strong women back then. My character is a real person, a very strong woman who became Queen of the Mercians. So to

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see a drama like this with all these really powerful female characters is very exciting indeed. There are no down-trodden women in The Last Kingdom, which was a massive thing for me when I first read it. I said to myself, “oh, we’ve got lots of power players here among the women” - which is sadly sometimes quite unusual in drama. But as soon as I read this, I went, “oh brilliant!”

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Toby Regbo plays Aethelred

Q: Talk us through the character of Aethelred A: He’s an ambitious boy-man who hasn’t really developed an emotional maturity. Also, he doesn’t understand women and the fact that they can be powerful. He’s quite scared of the idea of not being able to control his marriage because if he can’t control a woman at home, then how could he ever control a kingdom? In court, he’d like to see himself as a leader who is a puppeteer pulling the strings and controlling people. He doesn’t understand how to connect. He’s brutal. Q: How would you describe the marriage between Aethelred and Aethelflaed? A: Aethelflaed is a young girl who is naïve about what marriage means. She’s been raised with the idea of doing her duty for Wessex by marrying Aethelred. She’s hoping for a great love, and at first it seems like that’s what she’s got. But Aethelred has slightly different ideas about marriage and relationships and women. Q: How do you set about playing a character that is so nasty? A: He is 100 per cent horrible! But from my perspective as an actor, I have to find a way to connect to him. I can’t just play a two-dimensional monster. I have to try to find a way to make him human. Q: Will viewers loathe him? A: I think the audience are probably going to hate him! The one thing that perhaps people can relate to is his ambition. He certainly has drive, and he doesn’t like the fact that people treat him as a child rather than as a man. So there’s a human element to him there. But the main overarching thing that you see is a cruel, cruel person. Q: Does he see himself as doing God’s work? A: Yes. But there is a hypocrisy in Aethelred’s faith. He sees the Danes as heathens and thinks the way they treat people is so barbaric. And yet at home he is even more violent and cruel. There’s an interesting paradox there. Q: How does the relationship between Aethelred and Alfred play out? A: Alfred knows that Aethelred is a bit of an idiot and that he can control him. But at the same time, Aethelred is married to Alfred’s daughter, so he has let Aethelred into his world. Alfred doesn’t respect Aethelred. Q: How does Aethelred regard the Danes? A: He thinks they’re godless and need to be controlled and taxed. Beforehand, in my head it was all war between the Saxons and the Danes. But in fact that’s unrealistic. At some point, there had to be negotiations. So it was really interesting to find out that there was so much politics going on between them.

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Q: And how does Aethelred get on with Uhtred? A: They don’t like each from the moment they meet. Everything about Uhtred hacks Aethelred off. He doesn’t like how easy-going Uhtred is. Uhtred doesn’t fit in to Aethelred’s view of what the world is. He’s this heathen but he is allowed in court. He’s titled, even though Aethelred views him as a Dane. And Uhtred doesn’t like Aethelred because he sees him as a pompous idiot!

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Eliza Butterworth plays Aelswith

Q: What is happening to Aelswith at the outset of the second season of The Last Kingdom? A: At the start of the season, we find her and her husband, King Alfred, seeking to control and create a united England. They are trying to continue all the work they’ve done with Christianity and with building this kingdom. Q: Is their marriage strained as a result of what occurred in the last season? A: In a way, that relationship has actually become a lot stronger because of everything that they’ve gone through together. They nearly lost their baby Edward, and I feel that has strengthened them as a couple. They realise they have to unite in order to get things done. Q: What specifically do they want to achieve? A: They both want the same thing now, which is a kingdom under Christian rule. They also want to ensure that their daughter Aethelflaed, who is going to become a queen herself, is safe and secure in this new-found land which they’re going to create. Q: Is Aelswith still wary of Uhtred? A: Yes. She was grateful to him in Season One because he helped her son recover. However, there is always a slight negativity towards him as he is a Dane and didn’t have any religion to follow. Therefore, she doubts his sincerity and wonders if he is a good, pious man. So she’s sometimes a bit sceptical about him and questions whether Alfred should trust everything he says. Q: The scope of The Last Kingdom has gone up a notch since the first season, hasn’t it? A: Yes. The scale of the show is much bigger than it was in Season One. We now have a cathedral and Kjartan’s castle, which is this beautiful, big building with spires. The kingdom is being built, just as England is being built. So everything has progressed, showing more of the land and more of the new-found places that the Saxons and Danes have conquered. Q: Aelswith’s outfits have become more opulent in this season, haven’t they? A: Yes. My costumes have had a “glamorous makeover”! It’s a reference to how they have become richer now that he is King Alfred and they have a lot more land. It’s showing that side of things and underlining that they’re growing up and ageing into a stronger couple. Q: Has working on The Last Kingdom taught you a lot? A: Yes. I didn’t realise that it was King Alfred who created England. In history lessons at school I didn’t really know about it. But now I’ve learnt so much about it. I think, “Wow, without this man and his intelligence and his craftiness sometimes, I don’t think we would have this country that we call England today.” So working on this project has been a great history lesson. It’s very special. Q: Have you enjoyed being on this show? A: Absolutely. I’m so grateful to be here on such a wonderful project and on such a wonderful set. You think, “Wow, we’re playing real people and all this stuff actually happened.” I constantly have to pinch myself!

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Bjorn Bengtsson plays Sigefrid

Q: Tell us about Sigefrid? A: He’s a Norseman and lord of war. He has come to Britain with his brother Erik to conquer. He wants the power and the glory. He’s ambitious. He feels he needs to be in control. He really likes to hold power. He believes in his gods and wants to pay tribute to them. He’s a very religious character. He believes in Valhalla, so he doesn’t give a damn about dying. That makes him a scarier warrior because if you don’t care whether you live or die, your opponent is facing pure rage. He’s ambitious, vicious, dangerous and mean. I love Sigefrid! Q: Has he become inured to the effect of war now? A: Yes. He’s been in war for so long that now all he knows is war. At some point, he just went numb because of all this war. He started to embrace it. He’s been through so much horror – we can’t even imagine the things they saw. Now he’s just fighting. He’s just doing it to gain more power and to win more land and to raid more and to earn more profit and to win more glory. Q: What journey does Sigefrid go on? A: He and Erik start by trying to kill Scots, but that doesn’t work. Then they try to form a pact with Guthred, but that fails as well. At that moment, Sigefrid comes into conflict with Uhtred. Q: Is he motivated by revenge? A: Yes. He’s the kind of guy who, if anyone has done him wrong, needs revenge. He never forgets if someone has wronged him. He’s driven by revenge. He has to win. Q: It was a complex era politically, wasn’t it? A: Yes. People at that time were always trying to make pacts. You had to have allies because so much was going on in England. You needed allies to watch your back. Still, it was a great time to be a Dane. Compared to the Saxons, the Danes were the cool ones! Q: Talk us through Sigefrid’s bond with his brother A: Sigefrid’s only ally is his brother. That’s the relationship he relies on. Sigefrid is very unpredictable. He is full of rage. He does things first and thinks about them later. His brother is the opposite. He’s the one who thinks and makes plans. It’s ying and yang. They need each other. Sigefrid is more of an action man. He wants to go to war, and Erik says, “Maybe we should think about it first.” Q: What can audiences hope to take away from this season of The Last Kingdom? A: They can expect lots of intrigue and fights. It’s a very violent time. Alfred is trying to unite England, but lots of other people are trying to get their piece of it, too. There’s loads going on. So viewers should be prepared for lots and lots of drama!

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Christian Hillborg plays Erik

Q: Tell us about your character, Erik? A: His main dynamic is that he mostly hangs out with his older brother, Sigefrid. They are two war lords in Jorvik. Their main goal is to take over everything. However, they do have contrasting personalities. Erik is more of a lover than a fighter. He’s the one with has softer values. He is the more reflective one – he sees the bigger picture more – while Sigefrid is more spontaneous and impulsive. That’s a really good dynamic to play with. It’s really funny to work with Bjorn, who plays Sigefrid. We’re both Swedish and we already knew each other! I wouldn’t say he’s so impulsive as Bjorn! What is interesting is that playing this character you have to portray values that are often the opposite of what you believe. Q: Eventually they fall out, don’t they? A: Yes, they have a beef over Haesten. Erik believes in Haesten, but Sigefrid really doesn’t like him and just wants to kill him. But Erik is sheltering Haesten because he’s a good man and he’s his man. Their difference of opinion over Haesten is the beginning of the brothers’ clashing which leads to a dramatic conclusion. Q: How does it play out? A: That conflict between the brothers doesn’t go away. Earlier, Erik saved Sigefrid’s life. He rescued him from being killed by Uhtred. Uhtred spared Sigefrid, but sent the brothers away with just one ship. But then a girl comes between them. Erik falls in love, and Sigefrid doesn’t like that at all. It’s real Biblical stuff between the brothers. As an actor, it’s great fun to do. Q: The set for The Last Kingdom is pretty special, isn’t it? A: It’s amazing, isn’t it? Everything is so detailed. We sit in these marvellous buildings and just go, “Wow!” They’ve built these incredible recreations of Jorvik and Dunholm. They’ve done a fantastic job. The great thing about being on these astonishingly accurate sets is that they really help you get into character. Q: As your character is a great warrior, who do you think is the best fighter on the production? A: I like Haesten because he’s gritty – and he’s a heavy fighter. Of course, Sigefrid is also a great warrior – but only when he fights the right people! Q: If you could carry one weapon as Erik, what would it be? A: A magic cape or a sword that brings world peace. That’s so cheesy, isn’t it? What a loser! I want to save all the animals on the planet!

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Series One Recap

We first met our hero Uhtred as a young boy, the son of a Saxon nobleman, in the ninth

Century England. Many of the separate kingdoms of what we now know as England had

fallen to the invading Danes, leaving the great kingdom of Wessex standing alone and

defiant. Uhtred’s father was killed in battle, and his lands and inheritance taken by his

scheming uncle. Captured by his father’s killers, Uhtred was brought up by Danish warlord

Ragnar whom he learned to love as a father. With his new family - Ragnar the Younger as a

brother and Brida as a friend - Uhtred grew into a young Danish warrior. Then as an act of

revenge, Uhtred’s family were murdered by Kjartan the Cruel and his one-eyed son Sven,

and his sister Thyra taken hostage on the eve of her wedding.

Uhtred fled to Wessex and won the protection of the newly crowned Saxon king Alfred,

hoping his commitment would ensure he continue on a path to reclaim his birthright. He

won victory for Alfred at the great battle of Ethandun; the invading Danes driven from

Wessex and peace secured with hostages, Brida and Ragnar. But Uhtred paid a great price;

his best friend Leofric and lover Iseult were killed in battle. He began a journey north with

Hild and Halig, intent on revenge for the murder of his family and the theft of his ancestral

home.

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Episode Synopses

Episode 1

King Alfred plans to extend his influence beyond Wessex, and warrior Uhtred seeks revenge.

Episode 2

Uhtred’s enemies close in as a dangerous attraction between he and Gisela intensifies.

Episode 3

Uhtred and Halig suffer in slavery whilst Guthred’s authority is brought into question.

Episode 4

Ragnar is intent on avenging Kjartan – can Uhtred come to his aid without defying Alfred?

Episode 5

A prophecy raises questions of fate and duty for Uhtred while Alfred’s enemies gain power.

Episode 6

Celebrations for the royal wedding are overshadowed by personal and political tensions.

Episode 7

The fate of Wessex rests on Uhtred’s shoulders as he confronts an impossible decision.

Episode 8

In a fierce showdown at Beamfleot, will the bonds of love triumph over the bonds of blood?

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Character Biographies

UHTRED Born of Saxon nobility but raised a Dane, Uhtred is a man of conflicted identity. A natural warrior, he is a leader of men, fearless, instinctive, and driven by a deep seated need to reclaim his ancestral lands of Bebbanburg. In the wake of winning King Alfred’s victory for Wessex, Uhtred is mourning those dear to him who fell in battle. Intent on avenging the murder of his family and the theft of Bebbanburg, Uhtred begins his voyage north but isn’t able to escape Alfred’s manipulation for long. Becoming embroiled in the power play for the kingdoms of England, Uhtred faces challenges of loyalty and questions of destiny, greater than ever before. ALFRED As the king who paved the way for the kingdoms of England to unite, Alfred has gravitas, intelligence and integrity. The flip side of Uhtred, Alfred favours contemplation over impulse and is committed to the spread of Christianity, and becomes increasingly incensed by Uhtred’s pagan ways. Satisfied in Wessex’s strength following the great victory at Ethandun, Alfred seeks to extend his influence and sets his sights on the fractured lands of the north, where Danes and Northmen plunder and rule. Ruthless and determined, Alfred finds a way to keep Uhtred fighting on the side of the Saxons, but his ongoing mistrust will push their relationship to its very limits. AELSWITH Alfred’s wife Aelswith is fiercely loyal and protective of her husband and king. Pious, haughty, and acerbic, she is distrustful of Uhtred’s pagan ways and holds a deep grudge against him, but she is forced to question her judgement in times of great hardship. AETHELFLAED Alfred and Aelswith’s beloved daughter. Aethelflaed is strong, brave and intelligent; she has a mind

as thoughtful as her father’s and a will as strong as her mother’s. Ever grateful towards Uhtred for

protecting her family in the dark days before the battle of Ethandun, the two share a kinship that will

be put to the test in a time of great need.

AETHELRED Arrogant lord of Mercia. Aethelred appears to be both the perfect match for Aethelflaed and a good ally for Alfred as he strives to extend his influence outside Wessex. But in moments of weakness Aethelred is plagued by insecurity, and is rarely seen without his advisor Aldhelm by whom he is easily influenced in matters both personal and political. ALDHELM Aethelred’s ambitious and scheming right-hand-man, and commander of his household troops. Resents Mercia’s subservience to Wessex, and has plans to reverse the line of dominance. AETHELWOLD Alfred’s oldest nephew, Aethelwold would have taken Alfred’s place as king if it weren’t for his age, and so holds a grudge against Alfred. A little younger than Uhtred, Aethelwold is an immature, petulant rebel, who wants to stake his claim on the throne. Having proven his mettle in battle, Aethelwold is tolerated in the royal court, but continues to keep one eye firmly on his own advancement - and plans for Uhtred to help him along the way.

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BEOCCA Uhtred’s childhood tutor and Alfred’s most trusted priest. Beocca alone has seen Uhtred grow from

boy to man and knows his true birth-right. Pious and devout, but with a wry sense of humour,

Beocca is both a quick thinker and a brave disciple of Alfred’s cause. Ever hopeful of turning

stubborn Uhtred from his pagan ways, Beocca maintains a strong paternal affection for his wayward

charge. Uhtred is in some ways the closest thing Beocca has to family, but an act of compassion

could lead him to find love in the most unexpected of circumstances.

ODDA Despite his son’s treachery and subsequent death before the battle of Ethandun, Odda is Alfred’s most trusted and senior Ealdorman. Politically astute and fiercely loyal to Wessex, he will go to any length to attest his devotion to the kingdom. STEAPA Alfred’s formidable warrior, whose duty is often to keep an eye on Uhtred on behalf of the king. Though ferocious in battle, he is a patient tutor and trains Aethelflaed in swordskill. PYRLIG A tenacious fighter who left the thrill of battle in favour of a life in the church, Pyrlig is a gregarious priest experienced in matters of both love and war. Uhtred takes a shine to him, and the two find themselves side-by-side as ambassadors for Alfred’s cause in matters of the grave political severity. GISELA Guthred’s headstrong and passionate sister. Guthred means to marry her to someone for political gain, but she and Uhtred have other ideas. Thoughtful and intuitive, Gisela knows Uhtred better than he knows himself, and Uhtred’s love for Gisela is unlike that he has ever known. However, the course of their romance does not run smooth, and both must overcome monumental obstacles if they are to build a life together. GUTHRED Dane who is chosen to be a Christian king of Cumbraland and unite the tribes of Dane and Saxon. Sold to a slave trader, Alfred arranges his release in order to build allies in the north. Affable, funny and intent on being a good king, Guthred also has a ruthless streak that will lead to a betrayal of those he holds dear. HALIG Halig earned his stripes with Uhtred at the battle of Ethandun, and has been his faithful servant ever since. Trusting, light-hearted, and likeable, Halig is also brave and fiercely loyal, and will follow Uhtred at the cost of all else. HILD A spirited and resilient nun, Hild is devout without being sanctimonious, and offers sound advice and loyal support as one of Uhtred’s closest companions. The suffering she has experienced at the hands of Danes draws her to a life lived by the sword, as she tries to overcome her trauma. FINAN Uhtred meets Finan in dire circumstances, and they forge a bond that will keep them fighting at each other’s side for a lifetime. A former warrior of Ireland, Finan’s swordskill is as nearly as quick as his wit, and Uhtred learns to rely on Finan for his counsel, battle strategy, and friendship. More image options needed

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SIHTRIC Illegitimate son of Kjartan, he defects by swearing an oath to Uhtred. Keen to turn his back on his roots, he is tireless in his efforts to serve Uhtred, and becomes one of his most faithful men. With striking Danish looks, Sihtric makes a cunning spy. CLAPA A hulking Dane, Uhtred trains Clapa for king Guthred’s army of Cumbraland. He’ll become one of Uhtred’s best fighters, but his savagery in battle belies a warm heart and loyalty to his comrades that holds no bounds. OSFERTH The nephew of Leofric, who fell at the battle of Ethandun. As Alfred’s bastard son, he is destined to live out a quiet life in the church. However, Osferth has ambitions to be a warrior and though he isn’t a natural fighter, Uhtred gives him a chance to prove that he possesses the courage of his late uncle, who was Uhtred’s dearest friend and bravest comrade in battle. RAGNAR Uhtred’s Danish brother Ragnar the Younger is brave, loyal and fair, and will come to Uhtred’s aid when he’s most needed, despite struggling with his brother’s enduring loyalty to Alfred and the Saxon cause. Ragnar and Brida are now Alfred’s hostages, but Ragnar knows he must fulfil his destiny by avenging his father’s death at the hands of Kjartan the Cruel. BRIDA Once Uhtred’s best friend and lover, Brida left Uhtred in favour of a life with the Danes. She is unforgiving of Uhtred’s continued allegiance with Alfred, regardless of whether it might win him back his homeland. Fearless, gutsy, outspoken, and a born fighter, Brida relishes her Danish life with Ragnar the Younger. SIGEFRID A fearsome Northman and leader of men, adept at plundering and conquering Northumbrian land. Aggressively ambitious, Sigefrid sets his sights on a higher prize that will shake Alfred’s kingdom to its very core. Sigefrid’s burning intensity and appetite for destruction can only be tempered by his brother, Erik, with whom he shares a fiercely close bond. ERIK Northman warlord, brother of Sigefrid. More considered and contemplative than his violent brother, Erik and Uhtred form a precarious understanding and mutual respect. Kind and loyal, Erik’s compassion and faithfulness leads him into deep waters. HAESTEN Sworn to the Northman brothers, Erik and Sigefrid, Haesten fails in a task of great responsibility and is rescued by Uhtred in a moment of mercy. Sly and self-interested, Haesten is a master of self-preservation and will do anything for the sake of personal gain. KJARTAN Murderer of Uhtred’s Danish family and captor of Thyra. Feared lord of the fortress of Dunholm, he is known as ‘Kjartan the Cruel’. Unfazed by his enemies, Kjartan is ruthless and devious in his schemes to crush all those who oppose his standing as a great lord of the north. SVEN Enemy of Uhtred and abuser of Thyra. Spoilt and arrogant, Sven ‘the one-eye’ lacks the cunning of his cruel father, Kjartan, but his malice should not be underestimated. An enemy of Uhtred’s since childhood, Sven’s cowardly nature is put to the test when they meet again.

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THYRA Ragnar and Uhtred’s sister, held prisoner by Kjartan and Sven in their impenetrable fortress of Dunholm. Damaged by the loss of her family and abuse by her captors, Thyra has lost all hope of freedom and happiness and choses to live in a dank cell, with only the hounds of Dunholm for company. ABBOT EADRED Pompous and powerful priest who claims to have seen St Cuthbert selecting Guthred to be the King of Cumbraland in a vision. The abbot is deeply disapproving of Uhtred, and seeing his popularity as a threat to King Guthred’s influence, turns Guthred against him, with shocking consequences. AELFRIC Uhtred’s uncle and usurper of Uhtred’s ancestral home of Bebbanburg. Venal, scheming and power hungry, Aelfric is relentless in his mission to destroy Uhtred, the threat to his throne who has vowed to take vengeance. BROTHER TREW Priest of Northumbria and messenger of Abbot Eadred. HROTHWEARD A dangerously fanatical priest, who insights the Saxon uprising of Eoferwic. AIDAN Steward of Bebbanburg and Aelfric’s man.

Minor characters:

GELGILL Sven’s lewd slave trader, he agreed to sell Guthred to Alfred’s priests.

HAKKA Uhtred’s abusive slave master.

ROLLO Leader of Ragnar’s men.

SVERRI Owner of the trader ship on which Uhtred, Halig and Finan are enslaved.

TEKIL Leader of a band of Danish warriors sent by Kjartan to kill Uhtred and capture Guthred.

ULF A strategic and influential Dane, Ulf is a prominent earl of Northumbria.

34

Notes to Editors

Carnival Films is a division of NBCUniversal International Studios and is the UK’s largest drama specialist. The company is responsible for the global television phenomenon Downton Abbey and numerous primetime series such as The Last Kingdom for BBC and co-produced with Netflix and Sky 1’s highest rating original drama series Stan Lee’s Lucky Man. Other shows produced over Carnival’s history include Poirot, Hotel Babylon, Whitechapel and Dracula as well as award-winning mini-series such as Traffik, Any Human Heart and The Lost Honour of Christopher Jefferies. In addition to The Last Kingdom season 2, Carnival’s current slate includes the second season of Stan Lee’s Lucky Man for Sky, the Shakespeare adaptation The Hollow Crown: The Wars of the Roses, a co-production with Neal Street for BBC/WNET PBS and Jamestown, a new series for Sky. Carnival has received a host of national and international awards including Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes and BAFTAs and has been recognized as the UK’s best production company at both the Bulldog Awards and Broadcast Awards. For more information visit http://www.carnivalfilms.co.uk

PUBLICITY:

For more information regarding The Last Kingdom S2, please contact:

Premier

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Sereene Brown – sereene.brown@premiercomms.com

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