The first trailer for upcoming, four-part drama Holding, which is based on the book by Graham Norton, has been released online. The limited series is directed by Kathy Burke and will debut on ITV in the UK in March.
The series stars Conleth Hill alongside Siobhán McSweeney, Brenda Fricker, Charlene McKenna, Helen Behan, and Pauline McLynn.
Set in the insular fictional village of Duneen, West Cork, on the edge of Ireland, a place with its own climate and rhythms, Holding, written by Dominic Treadwell-Collins and Karen Cogan, introduces us to a surprising, quirky and shrewdly observed world. Told through its idiosyncratic, yet very real characters, who each have their own frailties, complexities, secrets and pasts, Holding is also a compelling murder mystery, which unfolds with a distinctive and darkly comic tone and explores themes of grief, community, family, and various shades of love – from quietly passionate to taboo to unrequited.
Olivier Award-winning actor Conleth Hill (Game of Thrones, Dublin Murders, Vienna Blood) plays the leading role of local police officer Sergeant PJ Collins, a gentle being who hides from people and fills his days with comfort food and half-hearted police work. He is one of life’s outsiders, lovable, but lonely and a bit rubbish at his job.
When the body of long-lost local legend Tommy Burke is discovered, PJ is called to solve a serious crime for the first time in his career. PJ finally has to connect with the village he has tried hard to avoid.
Siobhán McSweeney (Derry Girls, Nowhere Special, Anthony) plays vulnerable, messy Bríd Riordan. Bríd had been due to marry Tommy before his untimely disappearance, whilst Charlene McKenna (Peaky Blinders, Vienna Blood, Bloodlands) is youthful, stuck Evelyn Ross who desperately loved him. The two women are at the heart of the community and neither is above suspicion.
Helen Behan (Elizabeth is Missing, The Virtues, This is England ’90) plays Evelyn’s eldest sister Abigail, the sensible one who has brought up her two younger sisters after the deaths of their parents when they were young, while Amy Conroy (The South Westerlies) plays middle sister Florence. Constantly taken for granted, she’s in a relationship with Susan, the headmistress at the school where she teaches, and is finally planning a life away from her sisters.
Academy award winning actress Brenda Fricker (My Left Foot, Albert Nobbs) returns to television in the role of Lizzie Meany, a shy presence in PJ’s life who has been battling her own demons and secrets as PJ comes to discover… Pauline McLynn (GameFace, Father Ted, Angela’s Ashes) is local shop owner and busybody Eileen, whose deceased husband was the local Garda before PJ – which gives her an even stronger opinion on everything PJ does.
Newcomer Clinton Liberty (Handsome Devil, Normal People) plays Linus, a fast-tracked eager young detective from Cork who’s keen to make a name for himself at work – to the detriment of his relationship with his boyfriend at home. He’ll learn through PJ to trust his gut over the science – and slow down.
Check out the trailer below.
