Part Three: Emotional Reality…

JC: What was the sadly missed Philip Gilbert like to work with? He seemed very proud of the show. What about the other regulars, what are they like to direct?

NF: He was very proud. I only worked with Philip once and he was an absolute delight, a real gentleman. I can't tell you the thrill when Jason cast me in it and I had my headphones on and I had John and TIM talking in my headphones. It was just amazing.

I'll tell you something about Trevor. We were so nervous about recasting TIM. Eventually we took the lead from Nick, who said: "Isn't it about time we brought TIM back? It's so difficult not having him around'." So we cast Trevor, who hadn't listened to any of the CDs or watched the show at all. He came into the studio and Nick and everyone was worried. The moment Trevor said his first line as TIM it was like an amazing feeling. In a way it was as if Philip was there. Something about the acoustics of the sound booth made it so perfect.

JC: Many people liked Diolyx because it was a slightly longer story. Are there any plans for an occasional double-CD Tomorrow People story in the future?

NF: Yes, every season from now on will end with a double CD. So Rachel is a double CD and the end of Season six is as well.

JC: I really like it when the story isn't split into chapters.

NF: Me too. This is an exclusive, but from season six onwards every story will be one continuous adventure. I wanted to try it with Aftermath and it worked so well that we're doing it again.

JC: When I listened to Aftermath I sat on the bed listening on headphones and just cried and cried.

NF: Me too. I cried when I edited it and in the studio. I blubbed like a baby because they acted it so beautifully. I adored Joe's script. We talked for ages about it. I do work quite a lot with the writers about characters and stuff. But when he sent me the final draft I blubbed. The scenes with Helen and Nick are just extraordinary. I think they're brilliant.

JC: Have you watched all the OS stories? Which is your favourite? (Ditto for NS stories.) Which series do you prefer and why? Who is your favourite character?

NF: The Blue and the Green. Definitely. I saw it recently and loved it even more. There's something about it all coming together. I only saw the first episode of the NS and it didn't have John or TIM, so it didn't grab me.

JC: Nigel, how difficult is it to keep coming up with original story ideas?

NF: For TP I don't find it that difficult because I have this grand master plan. I know that at certain points something specific has to happen, so I base the whole thing around that event. It's not always what you imagine to be the most important thing about the story. I do find it slightly frustrating, because my master plan can restrict my freedom.

JC: What makes a good TP BF story, in your opinion?

NF: Emotional reality played by good actors.

JC: What do you see as the TP's greatest strength and weakness?

NF: The strengths and weaknesses are the same. The greatest strength is the fact that they have the Prime Barrier and are homo superior - everything that we aspire to, they are. This is also their greatest weakness because it separates them from the world and makes them vulnerable. This makes it a really interesting drama, because you have villains who exploit this. It's so easy to exploit a TP.