World on Fire (TV series) explained

Genre:	War drama
Creator:	Peter Bowker
Composer:	Dan Jones
Country:	United Kingdom
Language:	English
Num Series:	2
Num Episodes:	13
Runtime:	60 minutes
Company:	Mammoth ScreenMasterpiece
Network:	BBC One

World on Fire is a British war drama television series created by Peter Bowker. Set in the Second World War, the series follows the intertwined lives of ordinary civilians across Europe who are caught up in the conflict.

On 12 February 2024, it was announced that World on Fire had been cancelled by the BBC.^[1]

Overview

The first series covers March 1939 to July 1940, and features visits to Paris, Warsaw, Manchester, Berlin and Dunkirk. It details events such as the Defence of the Polish Post Office in Danzig, the Battle of the River Plate, the Dunkirk evacuation and the Battle of Britain.

The second series covers October 1940 to May 1941 and features the beginning of The Blitz in Manchester and the North African campaign (including Operation Compass and the Siege of Tobruk) while also returning to occupied France and Nazi Germany, with the resistance movement and Lebensborn program being shown, respectively.

Cast

Main

• Jonah Hauer-King as Harry Chase, an interpreter at the British embassy in Warsaw who is later commissioned into the British Army, and joins the SOE.
• Helen Hunt (series 1) as Nancy Campbell, an American journalist struggling to broadcast the truth from Berlin.
• Sean Bean (series 1) as Douglas Bennett, a bus conductor, pacifist and shell-shocked veteran of the Battle of the Somme, and father to Lois and Tom.
• Lesley Manville as Robina Chase, Harry's wealthy and emotionally repressed mother.
• Julia Brown as Lois Bennett, a 21-year-old factory worker and talented singer who later joins the Entertainments National Service Association. In series two, Lois is an ambulance driver.
• Zofia Wichłacz as Kasia Tomaszeski, a waitress from Warsaw, with whose family Harry lodges, who later joins the Polish Resistance
• Brian J. Smith (series 1) as Webster O'Connor, a gay American doctor based in Paris and Nancy's nephew.
• Parker Sawyers as Albert Fallou, a Parisian jazz saxophonist and Webster's lover.
• Blake Harrison as Sergeant Stan Raddings, Harry's platoon sergeant.
• Ewan Mitchell as Tom Bennett, Lois's older brother, a petty criminal who later joins the Royal Navy.
• Mateusz Więcławek as Grzegorz Tomaszeski, Kasia's sickly younger brother who joins the Polish army with his father.
• Eugénie Derouand as Henriette Guilbert, a nurse at Webster's hospital in Paris, secretly Jewish.
• Mark Bonnar (series 2) as Sir James Danemere, a civil servant who is billeted at the Chase house.
• Ahad Raza Mir (series 2) as Rajib Pal, the captain of a sapper unit in the British Indian Army that is stationed in North Africa.
• Miriam Schiweck (series 2) as Marga Kühne, a 16-year-old German schoolgirl and member of the League of German Girls.
• Gregg Sulkin (series 2) as David, a Jewish RAF fighter pilot stationed in Manchester.

Supporting

• Yrsa Daley-Ward as Connie Knight, a close friend, colleague and musical partner of Lois.
• Eryk Biedunkiewicz as Jan Tomaszeski, Kasia's youngest brother, a schoolboy.
• Cel Spellman as Private Joe Broughton, a member of Harry's Platoon from Leeds.
• Benedict Taylor (series 1) as Dr Drake, head of a mental hospital in Manchester.
• Jonathan McGuiness (series 1) as Sir Oswald Mosley, the leader of the British Union of Fascists.
• Tomasz Kot (series 1) as Stefan Tomaszeski, a veteran of World War I and father of Kasia, Jan and Grzegorz, who rejoins the Polish army.
• Patrick Kennedy (series 1) as Campbell, the captain of HMS Exeter.
• Matthew Roamin (series 1) as Geoff, a shellshocked soldier Harry encounters in France.
• Prasanna Puwanarajah (series 1) as Major Taylor, a commander of the Special Operations Executive.
• Charlie Creed-Miles (series 1) as David Walker, Harry's superior at the Warsaw embassy.
• Buom Tihngang (series 1) as Demba, a Senegalese soldier whom Harry meets in France.
• Agata Kulesza (series 1) as Maria Tomaszeski, Stefan's wife and mother of Kasia, Grzegorz and Jan.
• Jack Deam (series 1) as Ted, manager of Lois and Connie's ENSA unit.
• Benjamin Wainwright (series 1) as Randy O'Connor, an American fighter pilot in Vernon's squadron and Webster's brother.
• Helene Grass (series 1) as Frau Pessler, one of Uwe's employees, a committed Nazi.
• Bruno Alexander (series 1) as Klaus Rossler, Claudia and Uwe's son, a German soldier.
• Arthur Darvill (series 1) as Wing Commander Vernon Hunter, an RAF fighter pilot.
• Matthew Aubrey (series 1) as Private Taffy Morgan, a member of Harry's platoon.
• Borys Szyc (series 1) as Konrad, a Polish army soldier.
• Ansu Kabia (series 1) as Eddie Knight, Connie's husband, a jazz trumpeter.
• Dora Zyogouri (series 1) as Hilda Rossler, the epileptic daughter of Claudia and Uwe.
• Tomasz Ziętek (series 1) as Tomasz, a colleague of Kasia in the resistance.
• Victoria Mayer (series 1) as Claudia Rossler, a German mother living in Berlin, struggling to contain the secret of her daughter's epilepsy.
• Johannes Zeiler (series 1) as Uwe Rossler, Claudia's husband who runs a textile firm.
• Max Riemelt as (series 1) Schmidt, Nancy's Nazi censor and minder in Berlin.
• Arthur Choisnet (series 2) as Luc, a communist university student and Henriette's brother.
• Grace Chilton (series 2) as Joyce Spicer, the housekeeper of the Chase household.
• Forrest Bothwell (series 2) as George, a young Northern Irish soldier stationed in North Africa.
• Jonathan Harden (series 2) as Captain Briggs, the commanding officer of the British platoon stationed in Egypt and Libya.
• James Backway (series 2) as Gordon, an RAF commanding officer.
• Jake Douglas (series 2) as Stephen, an RAF pilot.
• Geraint Downing (series 2) as Shortbread, an RAF fighter pilot and friend of David.
• (series 2) as Herr Kühne, Marga's father who tries to protect her from the Nazis.
• Friederike Ott (series 2) as Frau Kühne, Marga's mother.
• Carl Grübel (series 2) as Ralf Kühne, Marga's brother and a Luftwaffe bomber.
• Beat Marti (series 2) as Herr Trutz, Marga and Gertha's school teacher.
• Jay Sajjid (series 2) as Ishwar, an Indian soldier in Rajib's unit.
• Johanna Götting (series 2) as Gertha, the best friend of Marga who is strongly opposed to the Lebensborn programme.
• Andreas Schröders (series 2) as Dr Kommandant, a Lebensborn doctor.
• Inga Dietrich (series 2) as Astrid Mutti, an employee who works at a Lesbensborn site in Brandenburg
• Kevin Kiernan-Molloy as Sollo, an Australian soldier serving in North Africa.
• Agnieszka Podsiadlik (series 2) as Irena Lewandowska, a Polish refugee from Warsaw living in Manchester.
• Ben Allen (series 2) as Tam, an MI5 operative.
• Eric Godon (series 2) as Monsieur Berthaud, an elderly French man who aids the resistance.
• Béatrice De Staël (series 2) as Madame Berthaud, an elderly French woman who, along with her husband, aids the resistance.
• Lily Sacofsky (series 2) as Pearl, an ATS worker at the desert hospital in Cairo.

Episodes

Series two (2023)

Production

Series one

The series was commissioned by the BBC in October 2017, with Peter Bowker writing.^[2] Casting began in October 2018, with Helen Hunt and Lesley Manville amongst the first additions,^[3] with Sean Bean joining in November.^[4] Filming began in November 2018, and wrapped in March 2019. Locations included Chester, Liverpool, Prague, Lytham St. Annes, Wigan^{[5] [6]} and Lyme Park.

Series two

The second series began filming in July 2022 in Belfast, following a long delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was confirmed for six episodes written by Bowker, Rachel Bennette and Matt Jones. Lesley Manville, Jonah Hauer-King, Julia Brown, Zofia Wichłacz, Blake Harrison, Eugénie Derouand, Eryk Biedunkiewicz, Yrsa Daley-Ward, Parker Sawyers, Ewan Mitchell and Cel Spellman were all confirmed to be returning, while Mark Bonnar, Ahad Raza Mir, Miriam Schiweck and Gregg Sulkin joined the main cast.^[7] Filming wrapped in September, with additional filming occurring the following December. Sean Bean was unable to return because of scheduling conflicts, while Helen Hunt and Brian J. Smith did not return because they did not fit within the story, though Bowker said he hoped they could return in a potential third series because of 1942 being the beginning of American involvement in the war.^[8]

Broadcast and release

The first series was first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 29 September 2019, and concluded on 10 November. In the United States, it premiered on Masterpiece on 5 April 2020 and concluded on 17 May.

The second series was first broadcast also on BBC One, on 16 July 2023, and concluded on 20 August. All episodes were immediately available on BBC iPlayer on 16 July. In the United States, the second series premiered on Masterpiece on 15 October 2023 and ended on 19 November.

Reception

The first series was given four out of five by Lucy Mangan of The Guardian.^[9] The historical accuracy of some elements of the series, however, was criticised by reviewers, including columnist Peter Hitchens.^{[10] [11]} On Rotten Tomatoes, the first series holds an approval rating of 84% based on 31 reviews, with an average critic rating of 7.6/10. The website's critical consensus reads “Though at times more style than substance, World on Fire's layered storytelling never steps on itself, leaving room for its excellent ensemble and gorgeous set-pieces to fill in any narrative gaps.”^[12] On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 74 out of 100, based on reviews from 12 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

The second series was given four out of five by Rebecca Nicholson of The Guardian.^[13] On Rotten Tomatoes, the second series holds an approval rating of 100% based on eight reviews, with an average critic rating of 7.2/10.^[14] On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 70 out of 100, based on reviews from four critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Notes and References

1. Web site: Gelman . Vlada . 2024-02-12 . TVLine Items: World on Fire Over, Ken Burns’ Da Vinci Docu and More . 2024-02-13 . TVLine . en-US.
2. Web site: BBC Sets 'World On Fire' WWII Drama, 'The Trial Of Christine Keeler' & More . Nancy . Tartaglione . 4 October 2017 . 3 November 2019 . . Penske Media Corporation.
3. Web site: Helen Hunt To Star In Peter Bowker's BBC One World War II Drama 'World On Fire' . Peter . White . 10 October 2018 . 3 November 2019 . . Penske Media Corporation.
4. Web site: Sean Bean Joins Peter Bowker's BBC One WWII Epic Drama 'World On Fire' . Peter . White . . Penske Media Corporation. 27 November 2018 . 3 November 2019 .
5. News: Lucia . Carmella de . Hollywood stars to film major new BBC One drama in Chester . 9 February 2019 . . 22 November 2018 . . 0962-4422.
6. News: Hughes . Lorna . Why do these local woods look like a WW2 army camp? . 9 February 2019 . . . 1751-6277 . 8 February 2019 .
7. Web site: BBC releases first-look images for World on Fire series 2 . 31 May 2023 . www.bbc.co.uk . en.
8. Web site: Ravindran . Manori . 17 July 2023 . 'World on Fire' Creator Peter Bowker on Shaking Up His War Drama in Season 2: 'We Can Do So Much More' Than Show the 'White European Perspective' . 18 July 2023 . Variety.
9. News: World on Fire review – ordinary lives caught up in extraordinary times. Mangan. Lucy. 29 September 2019. The Guardian. 20 November 2019. en-GB. 0261-3077.
10. Web site: Peter Hitchens . Peter Hitchens . The War was not Our Finest Hour . . 27 July 2020 . 4 November 2019.
11. Web site: Gareth Rubin . PC fantasy or historically accurate? What World On Fire gets right – and wrong – about war . . 29 July 2020 . 30 September 2019.
12. Web site: World on Fire - Rotten Tomatoes . 1 June 2023 . www.rottentomatoes.com . en.
13. Web site: World on Fire series two review – this epic second world war drama is totally gripping Television The Guardian . 2023-10-21 . amp.theguardian.com.
14. Web site: World on Fire - Rotten Tomatoes . 19 July 2023 . www.rottentomatoes.com . en.