Good news for fans of quality drama. ITV1 has confirmed that a one-off film sequel to The Naked Civil Servant is to go ahead, with John Hurt reprising his Bafta-winning turn as gay writer Quentin Crisp.
The original film, produced by the late Verity Lambert and recently shown on BBC4 as part of a tribute night to her, followed Crisp’s life up until he departed the UK for a new life in New York — where he revelled in being known as one of the ‘stately homos of England’.
The new film, An Englishman in New York, takes up where the previous film left off, with Crisp part of the New York scene. From the press release:
New Yorkers immediately embrace Quentin and his witty waspish ways, and before long he is being wined and dined by celebrities in every corner of Manhattan.
A shining light of the chattering classes, Quentin befriends Patrick, a young artist who opens his eyes to the possibility that intimate human relationships - something Quentin has spent his life running away from - can work. But, as is so often the case with the maverick gay writer, Quentin cannot help but shock and, at a public event, he quips that the burgeoning AIDS crisis is “a fad”. Quentin is suddenly dropped from high society.
Then, out of the blue, he is re-discovered by English pop star Sting and immortalised in Sting’s famous song “An Englishman in New York”. Could this be the start of Quentin’s revival?
The new film is written by Brian Fillis (who wrote BBC4 biogs Fear of Fanny and Curse of Steptoe) and will be directed by Richard Laxton (Hancock and Joan). It is being produced by Amanda Jenks at Leopardrama for ITV1.
Filming starts in August in London and New York, so it won’t be on screens until Autumn 2008 at the very earliest.
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