Actress Aggi O’Casey exuded 1960s glam as she joined screen veteran Rita Tushingham in filming scenes for BBC period drama Ridley Road in Manchester on Thursday.
The newcomer, who plays the lead role of Vivien Epstein in the series, sported voluminous brunette tresses and a colourful wool coat as she made her way around the set.
Meanwhile, Rita, 78, embraced her role as Vivien’s landlady Nettie Jones as she rocked bright auburn curls and a floral apron as she shot scenes on a terraced street.
In character: Actress Aggi O’Casey exuded 1960s glam as she joined screen veteran Rita Tushingham in filming scenes for BBC period drama Ridley Road in Manchester on Thursday
Aggi, who donned a blue pussy bow shirt beneath her vintage coat, appeared in a relaxed mood as she strolled down the street between scenes.
She stars alongside Penny Dreadful actor Rory Kinnear, who plays the leader of a Neo-Nazi organisation, Colin Jordan, in the BBC’s newest drama.
Rita meanwhile wore a brown knitted cardigan over a navy, collared dress as she transformed into character.
Keeping warm on set amid the cool December weather, she also rocked a long, grey padded coat and black slouchy boots, while keeping her retro hairstyle neat with a white hair net.
New role: Meanwhile, Rita, 78, embraced her role as Vivien’s landlady Nettie Jones as she rocked bright auburn curls and a floral apron as she shot scenes on a terraced street
The actress, known for her roles in A Taste Of Honey, Girl With Green eyes and Doctor Zhivago, also took precautions by wearing a white face mask on set. She also hugged a hot water bottle.
Production for the upcoming four-part east London-set series has been taking on the streets of Lancaster since filming kicked off last month.
Ridley Road is based on the novel of the same name by Jo Bloom and tells the story of Vivien Epstein, a young hairdresser who moves to London after her father dies.
It will focus on Vivian’s infiltration of the Neo-Nazi organisation known as National Socialist Movement after learning her boyfriend Jack (played by Tom Varey) has been seriously injured.
Cosy look: Keeping warm on set amid the cool December weather, she also rocked a long, grey padded coat and black slouchy boots, while keeping her retro hairstyle neat with a white hair net
It was inspired by the so-called 62 Group, a group of Jewish men who stood up against rising Neo-Nazism in post-war Britain, and Vivian joins forces with the group to try and uncover the truth.
Jordan was the real-life leader of the NSM a significant voice in the British far-right, believing in an ideal known as pan-Aryan Universal Nazism.
In the mid-1960s NSM supporters carried out 34 arsons against Jewish buildings in London, with one such attack in Stamford Hill uncovered by the 62 Group leading to multiple arrests.
In later life Jordan offered support to a small Nazi British People’s party, and he died in 2009.
Staying safe: The actress, known for her roles in A Taste Of Honey, Girl With Green eyes and Doctor Zhivago, also took precautions by wearing a white face mask on set
Ridley Road boasts a star-studded cast including Tamzin Outhwaite, Tracy-Ann Oberman and Eddie Marsan, and is set to air on BBC in 2021.
Actor Rory is best known for his role as The Creature in the Showtime series Penny Dreadful and is also set to star in the much-delayed No Time To Die.
Ridley Road has been written and adapted for television by Sarah Solemani who said of the show: ‘Britain’s relationship with fascism is closer and more alive than we like to think. Luckily, so is our rich heritage of fighting it.
‘Jo Bloom’s gripping book revealed a darker side of sixties London and the staggering contribution the Jewish community made in the battle against racism.
Lead role: Aggi stars alongside Penny Dreadful actor Rory Kinnear, who plays the leader of a Neo-Nazi organisation, Colin Jordan, in the BBC’s newest drama (pictured in 2017)
‘I am thrilled to be working with RED and the BBC to bring this little-known slice of British history to the screen.’
Piers Wenger, Controller of BBC Drama, added: ‘Sarah’s brilliant scripts tell a unique story of doomed love and undercover espionage against a backdrop of a fascist uprising in 1960s London.
‘This story couldn’t feel more timely and we are hugely indebted Sarah for bringing this story to life in her own style.’
Of her breakout role Aggi said: ‘[Writer] Sarah Solemani has blown me away with the detail, sensitivity, and complexity with which she has written Vivien. I can’t wait to bring this vital and little-known story to life.’
Supporting cast: Ridley Road boasts a star-studded cast including Tamzin Outhwaite, Tracy-Ann Oberman (pictured) and Eddie Marsan, and is set to air on BBC in 2021