Strike Back Information

Strike Back is a British action and military television series, based on a novel of the same name by novelist and former Special Air Service (SAS) soldier Chris Ryan. The series follows the actions of Section 20, a secretive branch of the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6), who operate several high risk, priority missions throughout the globe. The series began broadcasting on Sky1 on 5 May 2010, showing the first six-part series. After a second series was commissioned, it was announced that Cinemax would co-produce the franchise. The first episode of the ten-part second series, undergoing the banner title Project Dawn in the United Kingdom, first aired on Cinemax on 12 August 2011. On 3 October 2012, Cinemax and Sky commissioned a fourth series, to be broadcast sometime in 2013.

Executive producer Andy Harries gained hold of the novel and pitched a television adaption to Sky, even though he had not read it. Sky commissioned the series as part of a £10 million commitment to adapt novels into original dramas following the successes of adapting Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels. Following Cinemax's participation from the second series, the series faced a re-imagining due to the absence of first series lead Richard Armitage, who was at the time filming The Hobbit in New Zealand. Before filming several cast members participated in bootcamp training by former SAS and Special Boat Service (SBS) officers. The series was filmed on location in South Africa, although parts of the second series were filmed in Hungary.

Ratings for Strike Back was relatively high for the original networks. The Sky1 premiere was viewed by almost 400,000 viewers (according to overnight figures), tripling the average audience share for the channel's time slot after three months. Project Dawn premiered to over 600,000. The Cinemax premiere in the meantime, saw the network its best ratings since 2005. The first three seasons have been released on DVD and Blu-ray Disc.

Series overview

Chris Ryan's Strike Back (2010)

See Chris Ryan's Strike Back for more information The first series consists of six episodes. It follows John Porter (Richard Armitage), who resigned from the SAS following the aftermath of a rescue mission in Iraq on the eve of the American led invasion in 2003, where two fellow soldiers were killed, apparently by a thirteen-year boy Porter failed to kill, leaving him responsible. Seven years later, Porter is "reactivated" following the kidnap of journalist Katie Dartmouth (Orla Brady) by the same terrorists he fought seven years ago, including the same boy, As'ad. Porter succeeds in rescuing Dartmouth and joins Section 20, headed by Hugh Collinson (Andrew Lincoln), who was also present during the fateful mission. By the end of the series, it is revealed that Collinson was the one who killed the soldiers, and covered this up. Section 20 officer Layla Thompson (Jodhi May) discovers this, and blackmails Collinson into saving Porter's life in Afghanistan. There, Porter learns that during the mission, Collinson panicked and mistook the soldiers for terrorists. Taliban members raid their location, and Collinson is mortally wounded while aiding Porter's escape.

Project Dawn (2011)

See Strike Back: Project Dawn for more information The second series consists of ten episodes. Porter is captured by a Pakistani terrorist called Latif (Jimi Mistry) while investigating a planned operation of Latif, Project Dawn. Sergeant Michael Stonebridge (Philip Winchester) finds disgraced ex-Delta Force operative Damian Scott (Sullivan Stapleton), who would not be hired by even private military contractors, who previously worked with Porter to track Latif. After Porter is executed, Section 20 discover Porter left the team clues to a hotel in New Delhi, India, where a group of terrorists attempt to capture a weapons scientist with knowledge of hidden weapons of mass destruction originally used to plant in Iraq, which serves as a part of Project Dawn. The weapon, namely VX nerve gas was kept in storage, and Latif has known about its existence.

Section 20's worldwide search for Latif ends in Budapest, Hungary, where they learn he is using suicide bombers by implanting them with explosive devices inside their bodies, which in turn will release the VX. The attempted attacks against a World Summit were actually a diversion to capture former Pakistani general Akmal Ramiz (Silas Carson), who Latif fears will make Pakistan more accessible to the west. He also captures Section 20 head Colonel Eleanor Grant (Amanda Mealing) in an attempt to confess to "Operation Trojan Horse", which planned to plant VX in Iraq, while also exposing Porter and framing Scott; Grant attempted to cover up the operation in shame. In the end, Grant forces Latif to shoot an empty VX canister, with the explosives still intact, killing them both. Although Scott gains the file that would clear his name, he decides to burn the file and remain in Section 20. Meanwhile, Stonebridge decides to leave to be with his pregnant wife.

Vengeance (2012)

See Strike Back: Vengeance for more information The third series consists of ten episodes. Former military intelligence operative, Major Rachel Dalton takes charge of Section 20. They work throughout Africa to gain their hands on four nuclear triggers which are in the wrong hands after a mission in Somalia. The triggers have originally been sold to Conrad Knox (Charles Dance), an English billionaire and philanthropist based in South Africa, who runs the Knox Foundation, charged with disarming unstable regions. However, it becomes apparent that he is using the weapons to arm his own militia, and is using the triggers in order to build nuclear weapons with the intent on liberating Africa "to a point where its voice is not just heard but listened to." Due to Knox's influence, Section 20 is forced to go dark in order to stop him. In the meantime Stonebridge seeks revenge on Craig Hanson (Shane Taylor) for murdering his wife, and Scott has to contend with Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) agent Christy Bryant (Stephanie Vogt), whom he used to work contract killings with. By the conclusion of the series, two of the bombs are recovered, and the remaining two were disarmed before they could destroy Johannesburg, Stonebridge fulfils his revenge, and Knox kills himself when he fails.

Shadow Warfare (2013)

See Strike Back: Shadow Warfare for more information A fourth series will consist of ten episodes.

Cast and characters

Richard Armitage plays first series protagonist John Porter, a character who is brought back into service by Section 20 seven years after he resigns from a botched rescue mission. Armitage describes the character as "sort of like Lucas North [the character he played on the BBC espionage series Spooks], only on some kind of go-faster drug." Following the announcement of the second series, Armitage had to drop out of the role, following his commitment to appear as Thorin Oakenshield in The Hobbit films. Two leads replaced Armitage; Sullivan Stapleton plays former United States Delta force operative Damian Scott, and Philip Winchester plays Michael Stonebridge. Stapleton was originally contracted to appear in two series.

In the first series, Andrew Lincoln played Hugh Collinson, Porter's comrade in the 2003 mission and Section 20 boss. Jodhi May played Lieutenant Layla Thompson, an "ambitious woman working in a male-dominated field that she's climbed to the top of." Over the course of the first series she grows to distrust Collinson. Shelley Conn played Sergeant Danni Prendiville, a Section 20 officer who has an affair with Porter. Colin Salmon appeared as civil servant James Middleton, and Orla Brady played kidnapped Sky war correspondant Katie Dartmouth.

Following Collinson's demise, Amanda Mealing played his successor, Colonel Eleanor Grant, who was described as a "smart, tough military leader who is skilled with a gun and diplomacy, but knows when to break a rule or two." By the conclusion of Project Dawn, Grant is killed off, and later replaced by Rachel Dalton, played by Rhona Mitra, since Vengeance. Eva Birthistle played Captain Kate Marshall, a "crack commando" who oversees Section 20's military personnel, who also had an affair with Stonebridge even though the latter is married. In the fourth episode, Kate was killed in an explosion. Rhashan Stone plays Major Oliver Sinclair, Grant's right-hand man, and Section 20's second-in-command. Michelle Lukes plays Sergeant Julia Richmond, one of the newer recruits of Section 20. Lukes describes her character as "exceptionally bright and technically brilliant," with the ability to speak seven language. Richmond became more active in the field in Vengeance.

Jimi Mistry played Project Dawn villain Latif, the Pakistani terrorist and mastermind behind the eponymous plot. The primary antagonists of Vengeance are guns-for-hire Karl Matlock, played by Vincent Regan. and Conrad Knox, a billionaire who is using his humanitarian work as a front to build his own militia, played by Charles Dance.

Production

Development

The television series is based on a novel of the same name by Chris Ryan, a former SAS soldier who was known as the only member of his unit, Bravo Two Zero, to evade capture by Iraqi forces during the Gulf War in 1991, and was regarded as the most difficult escape for a British soldier. Ryan became a novelist after leaving the SAS. Andy Harries, the chief executive of his production company, Left Bank Pictures, saw the novel Strike Back at an airport while on holiday, but never got around to reading it. Regardless, he still managed to pitch the idea of a series from the novel to Sky's Head of Drama Elaine Pyke, who commissioned it. Harries said of the experience, "I read the back of the book just to remind myself, I remember Elaine saying 'what's the story' and I said 'Don't worry about that, it's really the thrust of the piece.'" The commission became part of Sky's £10 million commitment to producing original dramas based on novels following the network's success in adapting the Discworld novels from Terry Pratchett. It was also a part of Sky's attempt to replicate the pace of American-based action series including 24. Chris Ryan became involved in the project by acting as a series consultant and script advisor. Harries also served as a producer on the show.

A second series of Strike Back was commissioned by Sky in August 2010, for a longer run of 10 episodes. Later, in February 2011, it was announced that Sky entered a co-production deal with the American television network Cinemax, as the network wanted to introduce new original drama series. The first episodes of the series was written by The X-Files alum Frank Spotnitz. Spotnitz was brought in to start the second series with the purpose to re-imagine the show, as the producers needed it to work in the absence of first series lead Richard Armitage, due to the actor's commitment to The Hobbit film series in New Zealand.

Training

In the first series, Armitage had to "bulk up for the role." The actor spent ten weeks with a trainer in the UK, before moving to Johannesburg, where the first series was shot, and participated in more training, however he had to wait for ten days after arriving to get used to the city's high altitudes. Before the second series, more main cast members took up intensive bootcamp training in South Africa by former SAS and SBS officers. The two leads Stapleton and Winchester underwent more training. The actors were trained in several aspects including running, teamwork, and weapons. Winchester recalled his training experience, "[Sullivan Stapleton] and I would meet every morning at 6am. We would run to a chosen location and on the way we had to memorise street names and directions and then our trainers would say 'that car that you just passed what was the licence plate number?' Our trainers were ex-SAS guys who made us study everything in detail, for example, we learnt step by step how to enter a room in twos, then alone. At the same time, we had to be constantly aware of where our weapon was trained."

The series uses a vast catalogue of firearms and other weapons, including side arms, assault and sniper rifles, rocket-propelled grenades, hand grenades and other explosives. In training, cast members started by carrying weights that mimicked the weapons so they could get used to carrying them during filming. They were later taught how to handle guns, by disassemble and re-assemble, fire and reload them. Former SAS officers gave the cast weapons training, and were also on hand during the filming to oversee if the cast members handled them properly.

Filming and locations

Filming the first series began in South Africa in August 2009, and was shot with 35mm film. 35mm cameras were used because the crew regard them as "the best and most flexible capture medium" available. Three Kodak film stocks were used for filming the series, along with a variety of Arri cameras. Each scene uses a minimum of two cameras, but the crew regularly use four camera angles.

Having worked in South Africa several times in the past, he decided to use the country as the filming location for the series, as he felt it could replicate anywhere in the world. The first series was largely filmed in the Gauteng province, including its capital, Johannesburg. Local crew members were used to collaborate with the British crew. Starting with Project Dawn, Cape Town was largely used as a filming location, with other episodes filmed in Durban and Springbok, Northern Cape. Before filming Project Dawn, the production crew were scouting other filming locations throughout Europe, South America and the United States. The series would additionally be shot in Budapest, Hungary. Some other scenes were also shot in the UK. The first two episodes of Vengeance was originally scheduled to film in Mozambique, but a week before it began the country had "a massive freedom fighter rally."

Broadcast and reception

Broadcast and ratings

The series aired on Sky1 in the United Kingdom. The first series began airing on 5 May 2010, originally showing two episodes for three weeks. According to overnight viewing figures, the premiere episode was seen by 398,000 viewers and a 1.7 per cent audience share, becoming one of the most viewed non-terrestrial broadcasts, and more than tripled Sky1's average audience in their slots from the previous three months. Project Dawn began on 21 August 2011, but was showing just one episode a week that time. Overnight ratings saw a substantial increase over the first series premiere, having been seen by 616,000 viewers, with a 2.6 per cent audience share. Vengeance premiered on 2 September 2012, however overnight ratings decreased to 385,000, and was beaten by new episodes of The Simpsons and Sinbad, which aired on the same channel.

The United States did not air the first series, but started airing Project Dawn, known as "Season One" in the country, began airing on Cinemax on 12 August 2011. The premiere attracted 567,000 viewers on its first telecast, and an additional 500,000 viewed the two following encores. Despite the limited availability of the network on American television (only 16.7 million homes have Cinemax available), it was the best ratings performance for the network since a broadcast of the film Titanic in 2005. Vengeance premiered with two back-to-back episodes, on 17 August 2012. It attracted 390,000 viewers, with encores increasing viewership to over half a million. Vengeance averaged 310,000 viewers with an 18 to 49 rating of 0.13.

The series was also made available in other countries. In Australia, the first series aired on ABC1, with Project Dawn airing on Channel Seven. In Canada the show airs on HBO Canada, while in France, it is shown on [[Canal+]]. In Belgium, the second series of the show began airing on La Deux on 28 April 2013 while the channel did not show the first series.

Critical reception

Strike Back received generally positive reviews from television critics.

Awards and nominations

Strike Back was nominated for six accolades, winning two. In 2010, the first series was nominated for Best Digital Choice for the National Television Awards. In 2012, the series was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Main Title Design, and Eva Birthistle was nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role TV in the ninth annual Irish Film & Television Awards in 2012. In the same year, Strike Back won a UK Screen Association Conch Award for Best Audio on TV Drama of the Year. Additionally the series won a Royal Television Society Award for Best Special Effects, with South African company Big Bang Stunts & Effects being the recipient. It was also nominated for Best Sound in Drama in 2010.

Home media releases

The first series of Strike Back was released on a two-disc set on DVD and Blu-ray Disc on 7 June 2010 in the United Kingdom (Region 2), after only over two weeks since the conclusion of the series on television. In Australia (Region 4), the DVD was released on 3 May 2011, while the Blu-ray was released later on 2 June. The release consisted of all six episodes, which were edited to three feature-length episodes, along with special features, namely cast interviews and behind the scenes featurette.

The second series, Project Dawn, was released on a three-disc set on DVD and Blu-ray on 14 November 2011. Along with the ten episodes, the set includes the special featurettes Top Secrets: Making Strike Back: Project Dawn, Firearms Training and Scott Vs Igor Fight Scene featurettes, as well as broadcast titles. On the same day of its release, a collection of both series were also released on DVD and Blu-ray. In the United States (Region 1), the series, labelled Strike Back: Cinemax Season One was released on 7 August 2012. The American release includes audio commentaries from various cast and crew members on five episodes, along with a DVD and Digital Copy on the Blu-ray edition. Vengeance was released on DVD on 5 November 2012 in the UK.