Benedict Hardie, Alex Dimitriades and Darren Gilshenan are joining Marta Dusseldorp for season two of Bay Of Fires
Megan Nisbet Content Editor
05:15, 30 Nov 2025
Stella [Marta Dusseldorp] and Jerimiah [Toby Leonard Moore] on Bay Of Fires series one(Image: ITV)
Bay Of Fires is returning to ITVX with series two. The Australian drama will see Marta Dusseldorp reprise her role as Stella alongside Toby Leonard Moore, Nicholas Bell, and Bob Franklin.
However, the new series, which will continue to showcase Tasmania’s rugged west coast will also introduce some new cast members, including Benedict Hardie, Alex Dimitriades and Darren Gilshenan.
The second season opens with Stella now the leader of the Mystery Bay residents while also juggling solo parenting and keeping her criminal bosses at bay. As synopsis for series two reads: “Mystery Bay is prospering under Stella’s guidance – albeit in a somewhat chaotic fiscal manner.
“But such joys are short-lived when she and her kids find themselves sandwiched between an unhinged apiarist drug lord, a maniacal millenarian doomsday cult, the resurrection of her nemesis, Russia, and a growing civil war in the town.
“Slowly it dawns on Stella that she may be the cause of much of this nightmare. Perhaps the only way out is to go back to the source and blow it sky high.” Here’s what you need to know about the cast list.
Bay Of Fires returning cast
Marta is reprising her role as Stella Heikkinen. Viewers will recognise Marta from A Place to Call Home, Jack Irish, Janet King and The Twelve.
Also reprising their roles are Toby Leonard Moore (Billions), Nicholas Bell (Scrublands), Bob Franklin (Please Like Me), Kim Ko (Utopia), Matt Nable (Plum), Roz Hammond (Irreverent), Pamela Rabe (Wentworth), Kerry Fox (The Dressmaker) Andre de Vanny (Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries), Ilai Swindells (Retrograde).
As well as Imi Mbedla (Australia ’s Got Talent), Ava Caryofyllis (The Twelve), Emily Milledge (Fires), Elle Mandalis (The Twelve) and Ben Knight (White Fever).
Bay Of Fires new cast members
Benedict Hardie as Neil Roebuck
Benedict is known for his roles in Total Control, The Survivors, NCIS: Sydney, as well as films Upgrade and Hacksaw Ridge.
Alex Dimitriades as Allesandro
Alex has starred in Strife, The Tourist, Total Control, Amazing Grace and The End.
Darren Gilshenan as Joel
Darren Gilshenan is known for Dark City (1998), A Moody Christmas (2012) and No Activity (2015). He has also starred in Colin from Accounts, Harrow and No Activity.
The brand new second season will be available on ITVX from Sunday, November 30, with the first series available on the streaming site now.
Daisy, 27, got her big break in TV series Cold Feet as Olivia the daughter of David and Rachel played by Robert Bathurst and Helen Baxendale.
She was recently seen in the 2024 storm chase movie Twsiters and starred opposite Gladiator II hunk Paul Mescal in romantic drama Normal People,
The new film takes inspiration from best selling historical book Bad Bridget: Crime, Mayhem, and the Lives of Irish Emigrant Women by Irish professors Elaine Farrell & Leanne McCormick.
Tom Stoppard, frequently hailed as the greatest British playwright of this generation, had both a remarkable life and a remarkable career.
Born in Czechoslovakia in 1937, his family fled to Singapore when the Nazis invaded. When Japan threatened their new home, his mother took him and his brother to India. His father stayed behind in Singapore but died when the ship he was aboard was sunk. His mother later married a British officer and the family relocated to England, where young Stoppard took his stepfather’s surname and “put on Englishness like a coat,” he later said.
Stoppard quickly became known for his clever, witty and intellectually curious work, earning three Olivier Awards, five Tony Awards and an Oscar (for “Shakespeare in Love”). He was even knighted in 1997 by Queen Elizabeth II for his contributions to theater.
Starting with “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead” in 1966, through his final full-length play “Leopoldstadt” in 2020, Stoppard crafted a body of work that would be the envy of most countries, let alone one writer.
Below are some of Stoppard most important plays, with observations from Times critics:
The 2022 Broadway production of “Leopoldstadt” in a family scene from 1924.
(Joan Marcus)
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (1966)
After working as a journalist, Stoppard had a breakthrough when this absurdist romp debuted at the Edinburgh Fringe. Times theater critic Charles McNulty reviewed a 2013 production at the Old Globe’s Shakespeare Festival in San Diego, describing it as a “metapharcical romp (to coin a genre), in which ‘Hamlet’ is glimpsed through the oblique perspective of the prince’s twin buddies, sent to spy on him by Gertrude and Claudius in that Elsinore castle of murder, adultery and occult intrigue. … Stoppard’s fertile wit keeps this three-act drama pulsing along without too much strain. A subtle pathos, along with the playwright’s verbal sophistication, prevents the play from degenerating into a collegiate vaudeville.” In 1990, Stoppard himself directed a film version starring Gary Oldman and Tim Roth.
Jumpers (1972)
This satire set in an alternative universe in which British astronauts land on the moon and “Radical Liberals” have taken over the nation’s government, premiered at London’s Old Vic starring Michael Hordern and Diana Rigg. Two years later, Times theater critic Dan Sullivan reviewed an American Conservatory Theater production of it in San Francisco. “Stoppard’s new play can’t be hung with one of those preprinted tags that theater critics carry in their pockets for easy labeling,” he wrote. “You might call it a Metaphysical Spoof With Acrobatic Prelude, or you might not. The only general thing you can say about it is that it’s very bright and very funny, and sometimes rather touching.”
Travesties (1974)
The Royal Shakespeare Company staged the first production at the Aldwych Theatre in London, starring John Wood, John Hurt, Tom Bell and Frank Windsor. Stoppard was fascinated with the idea that James Joyce, Vladimir Lenin and Dadadist poet Tristan Tzara were all living in Zurich in 1917. He placed these zeitgeist figures in the orbit of a more humble historical figure named Henry Carr, who figured into Joyce’s “Ulysses.” The Times’ Sullivan took in the 1975 New York production, calling it “dazzling” and wondered if Broadway audiences would be able to keep up with it. “Like Stoppard’s last play ‘Jumpers’ (which didn’t do very well here), this is a vaudeville show where the language does tricks as well as the actors,” wrote Sullivan. “And to do the tricks as well as ‘Travesties,’ John Wood [as Carr], a playwright’s language has got to be pretty accomplished.”
The Real Thing (1982)
Felicity Kendal and Roger Rees originated the lead roles in Stoppard’s very personal examination of love and marriage, truth and honesty. The playwright significantly reworked the script for its Broadway run, starring Glenn Close and Jeremy Irons directed by Mike Nichols, to great success. Linda Purl and Michael Gross assumed the roles for the 1986 L.A. production at the Doolittle Theatre. ”Without spoiling its surprises, the reviewer can say that not every scene in ‘The Real Thing’ is what it seems to be, including the first one,” wrote Sullivan. “Stoppard’s characters are theater people, professional makers of scenes, and some of these scenes get swept into the play. … ‘The Real Thing’ has wit, surprise and characters you care about. … If you like plays written in full sentences, you’ll like ‘The Real Thing.’
Arcadia (1993)
Moving between the 19th century and the present, Stoddard balanced tragedy and comedy with a healthy dose of science and mathematics. The play opened at the Royal National Theatre in London directed by Trevor Nunn with a cast including Rufus Sewell, Felicity Kendal, Bill Nighy and Emma Fielding. Two years later, in New York, Nunn directed a new cast that included Billy Crudup, Blair Brown, Victor Garber as Bernard, Robert Sean Leonard, Jennifer Dundas and Paul Giamatti in his Broadway debut. “‘Arcadia’ is a great play not because it seamlessly meshes serious ideas and the intense pleasure of a literary detective story,” wrote Times critic Laurie Winer, reviewing director Robert Egan’s 1997 Mark Taper Forum production. “It is a great play because, by the end, Tom Stoppard touches ineffability, just as his heroine touches genius.”
The Invention of Love (1997)
For this portrait of poet A. E. Housman, Stoppard once again turned to historical figures for his cast. The play premiered at the Royal National Theatre, London, with Housman played as an old man by John Wood and as a young man by Paul Rhys. It was directed by Richard Eyre. The play opened on Broadway at the Lyceum Theatre in 2001, directed by Jack O’Brien. “Stoppard has written an essentially undramatic dreamscape,” wrote Times critic Michael Phillips.” The recently deceased Housman (Richard Easton), about to cross the River Styx, assesses his recessive life and great unrequited love for the athlete Moses Jackson (David Harbour), a fellow Oxford man. En route, the elder Housman runs into his younger self (Robert Sean Leonard). There’s a long scene near the end of Act 1 shared by the two Housmans. As they discuss the niceties and textual flaws of the classics they love as much as life itself, Stoppard’s playfulness is tinged with rue; the older man cannot prevent the younger’s heartbreak to come.”
The Coast of Utopia (2002)
This trilogy of plays, “Voyage,” “Shipwreck” and “Salvage,” zeroed in on philosophical debates in 19th century Russia. They premiered at the National Theatre’s Olivier auditorium in repertory, directed by Nunn. The plays debuted on Broadway, directed by Jack O’Brien, at the Vivian Beaumont Theater at Lincoln Center in 2006. “A nearly eight-hour drama about the Russian intelligentsia that received mixed reviews when it premiered in London in 2002, ‘The Coast of Utopia’ isn’t for the theatrical faint of heart,” cautioned Times critic McNulty. “Stamina is a prerequisite for the company and audience alike. … Stoppard’s play enacts a moment in history when thinkers and writers set out to redirect the future. Ideologies were conceived and pressed immediately into service, sometimes at the expense of the individual lives they were theoretically meant to serve. [It] dramatizes both the ebb and flow of conditional life and the hunger for unconditional solutions to its woes.”
Rock ‘n’ Roll (2006)
Stoppard looked to his Czech roots with this drama, connecting the Prague Spring of 1968 with the Velvet Revolution of 1989 through music. The play premiered at the Royal Court Theatre, London, once again directed by Nunn and featuring Rufus Sewell, Brian Cox and Sinéad Cusack. The cast moved to Broadway in 2007. “You might want to arrive a bit early and study the timelines in the lobby, which detail Czechoslovakia’s turbulent political history from 1968 to 1990 and key events in the rock music scene during that era,” wrote reviewer F. Kathleen Foley of Open Fist’s 2010 production. “Read them carefully. Otherwise your head just may explode at some point during this Los Angeles premiere, which presupposes an intimate familiarity with Czech history, the early rock scene and, oh, did we mention Sapphic poetry? It’s all a bit ostentatious and difficult to follow — but even at his most intellectually prolix, Stoppard is flat-out brilliant, arguably our greatest living playwright.”
Leopoldstadt (2020)
The final play of Stoppard’s brilliant career was sparked by the playwright learning of the plight of his Jewish ancestors upon his mother’s death in 1996. It debuted at Wyndham’s Theatre in London’s West End, but was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic and debuted on Broadway in 2022 starring Davis Krumholtz with Patrick Marber directing. The play “unfolds as a series of oil paintings magicked into life,” wrote Times critic McNulty. “The play, which features a cast of 38 actors, moves from turn-of-the-century Vienna, where Freud, Mahler and Schnitzler are the talk of the town, to 1924, when the scars of World War I are clearly visible. Performed without intermission, the action ominously leaps to 1938, as the Nazis are ransacking the homes of Jewish citizens. The play concludes in 1955, when three family survivors reunite to piece together the fates of their murdered relatives. … It’s not just that the work mirrors aspects of his personal history. It’s also the virtuosic way that he conjures the shifting cultural zeitgeist of Vienna in the first half of the 20th century through stylized conversation alone.”
You can find audio dramas by L.A. Theatre Works of “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead,” “The Real Thing” and “Arcadia” on Spotify.
Many of the films Stoppard wrote or co-wrote are available for streaming, including “Brazil” (1985),” Turner Classic Movies, and for rent on Apple TV and Prime Video; “The Russia House” (1990), for rent on Prime Video; “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead” (1990), for rent on various platforms; “Empire of the Sun” (1987), for rent on various platforms; and “Shakespeare in Love” (1998), Paramount+ and Kanopy, and for rent on various platforms.
Stoppard is also certainly a playwright whose work is a joy to read. Most of these plays can be found at your local public library or favorite bookstore.
Spartacus has been missing from our screens for 12 years but now a new bloody era is on the horizon
Spartacus: House of Ashur is on the way, breathing new life into the unforgettable violent period drama.
The long-awaited series is going to be set in an unfamiliar world as not only does cunning Ashur (played by Nick Tarabay) survive his horrific series three death, he thrives.
Brought to life on MGM+ and Starz in the US, Spartacus: House of Ashur comes 12 years after the original Spartacus series came to an end.
As the wait is almost over for the iconic show to return, here’s everything there is to know about watching Spartacus: House of Ashur.
When will Spartacus: House of Ashur premiere?
There is just a matter of days left before the drama’s big debut with Spartacus: House of Ashur starting on Friday, December 5, on Starz in the US and Saturday, December 6 on MGM+ in the UK.
Those in the UK can get access to MGM+, which also features the Power franchise and Outlander, via an add-on subscription within Prime Video
The show’s confirmed release has been a long time coming with news of the spin-off first being announced back in 2023.
Spartacus: House of Ashur episode count and release schedule
Spartacus: House of Ashur is going to consist of 10 episodes with only the first two instalments dropping on December 5 and December 6. From this point on, a single episode is going to be released on the same days every week, continuing to bring this epic story to life.
And as long as there are no delays to the schedule, this means that the grand finale is going to be out on Friday, January 30, in the US and Saturday, January 31, in the UK. But fans are going to have to stay tuned in to find out how it all plays out.
Spartacus: House of Ashur cast
Actor Nick Tarabay will be reprising his devious role of Ashur from the original Spartacus series for his own spin-off House of Ashur. As this is an alternate reality, he will be joined by an abundance of new faces including Outlander icon Graham McTavis as Korris.
Other new cast members include Tenika Davis as Achillia, Jamaica Vaughn as Hilara, Ivana Baquero as Messia and Jordi Webber as Tarchon.
The only other original star to briefly join Tarabay in House of Ashur is actress Lucy Lawless as Lucretia. An early released clip has teased her appearing in the underworld where she once again comes face to face with Ashur.
Julius Caesar will be portrayed by actor Jackson Gallagher, a role which had previously been taken on by actor Todd Lascance. It was planned that Lascance would reprise the role but wasn’t able to due to scheduling conflicts with NCIS Sydney.
What is Spartacus: House of Ashur about?
As previously mentioned, Spartacus: House of Ashur is a spin-off from the original Spartacus drama which will be set in an alternate reality. It delves into what could have happened if Ashur hadn’t been decapitated on Mount Vesuvius 12 years ago.
Instead, Ashur has been gifted the gladiator school which had once been owned by Batiatus (John Hannah) as a reward for helping the Romans kill Spartacus and ending the slave rebellion. While Ashur may have been given all that he desired, will he truly be happy with his second chance?
Spartacus: House of Ashur will premiere on Friday, December 5, on Starz in the US and Saturday, December 6, on MGM+ in the UK.
The Split Up is a spin-off from the hit BBC drama The Split and will follow another family’s law firm.
A spin-off from the hit BBC drama The Split has received a significant update.
Fans were gutted when the legal series starring Nicola Walker and Stephen Mangan wrapped up after three seasons in 2022, followed by a two-part special last year. Now, fresh information about the upcoming show The Split Up has emerged, including casting announcements.
The original programme featured Annika star Nicola as Hannah, grappling with the breakdown of her marriage to Nathan (Stephen) whilst juggling affairs, romance and complicated relationships, all while managing her family’s law practice alongside the chaos created by her two sisters and mother.
The Split Up will now centre on a different family law practice, this time based in Manchester and focusing on the British-Asian elite Kishan family.
The six-episode series will explore “the high-stakes world of Manchester’s divorce law circuit, where one family of lawyers, the Kishans, reigns supreme,” according to the previous announcement, reports Wales Online.
It adds: “Kishan Law is a British-Asian high net worth family law firm in Manchester, noted for its clientele and its reputation.
“They are the ‘go to firm’ for Manchester’s elite who come to them for their excellence, integrity, and discretion.
“But the future and legacy of Kishan Law hangs in the balance when a family secret from the past comes to light, throwing their professional and personal lives into turmoil.”
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The line-up for the series has already been unveiled, and it’s now been confirmed that The Good Place star Jameela Jamil is coming on board.
When the announcement was posted on social media featuring a photo of Jameela with leading lady Ritu Arya, the She-Hulk actress responded: “I love her.”
“My two favourites together,” one supporter wrote, whilst another added: “OMG can’t wait. Love you both!!!”
“Very excited for this,” a third person commented.
Jameela is joining The Umbrella Academy’s Ritu Arya, Unforgotten’s Sanjeev Bhaskar, alongside Aysha Kala (Virdee), Arian Nik (Film Club), Danny Ashok (Dinosaur), Dimitri Leonidas (Those About To Die), Mawaan Rizwan (Juice), Sindhu Vee (Matilda the Musical), Shalini Peiris (The White Lotus) and Tom Forbes (Queenie).
Celebrity guest appearances will also feature Lenny Henry and Jane Horrocks.
The BBC revealed: “The fast-rising star of Kishan Law is Aria Kishan (Ritu Arya), poised to step up and take the mantle from her father Dhruv (Sanjeev Bhaskar). However, the death of her mother has cast a new light over these plans for Dhruv, who has begun to wonder if his daughter can, or should, take on this responsibility single-handedly.
“Aria’s relationship is placed under scrutiny too with the wedding for long-term partner Neal (Danny Ashok) on the horizon, but with their personal and professional so entwined it’s unclear if their relationship can withstand any more pressure – a problem further compounded when a former secret flame (Dimitri Leonidas) arrives in Manchester unexpectedly.
“Alongside her siblings Maya (Aysha Kala) and Kav (Arian Nik), Aria must navigate the splits that divide family and those we love – and ask herself: who should you live your life for?”
Creator Ursula Rani Sarma expressed: “Having admired The Split and Abi Morgan for years, I was honoured to be asked to bring The Split Up to life. As a writer passionate about representation, it’s a dream come true to place a contemporary British South Asian family centre stage. Diversity deepens our understanding, enriches our stories, and reflects the true fabric of our society.
“It’s thrilling to watch our amazing cast led by Ritu and Sanjeev bring the Kishan family to life. I can’t wait for audiences to meet them and to witness the drama as it unfolds.”
Abi Morgan chimed in: “The chance to take all that was loved about The Split and use it to inspire the next generation of British South Asian talent, to create a new family of dynamic lawyers spilling over with all the messiness of life, both personally and professionally, has been a brilliant challenge, beautifully realised by lead writer Ursula Rani Sama. I hope audiences will take it to their hearts.”
The limited series Get Millie Black was crafted for television with a screenplay penned by Booker Prize-winning author Marlon James, who wrote A Brief History of Seven Killings.
This crime thriller marks Marlon’s screenwriting debut and first premiered on HBO in the United States on November 25, 2024. It then made its UK premiere on Channel 4 on March 5, 2025.
Get Millie Black has been steered by Tanya Hamilton – the show’s lead director – while Annetta Laufer directed two episodes and Jean Luc Herbulot directed one. The series was penned by writers Theresa Ikoko and Lydia Adetunji.
The plot revolves around the unparalleled Millie-Jean Black, a Jamaican-born police detective who is forced to leave Scotland Yard and her troubled life in London and return home to Jamaica, where she joins the Jamaican Police Force.
Once back in Kingston, Millie and her partner Curtis start investigating a missing persons case which intersects with another — bringing Scotland Yard detective Luke Holborn to Millie’s doorstep. The show grapples with complex themes and delves into the painful and troubled legacy of slavery, racism, classism, sexuality, and generational cycles of trauma in the post-colonial Jamaican and British landscape.
Get Millie Black features the brilliant Tamara Lawrance in the starring role, alongside Joe Dempsie, Anjli Mohindra, Gershwyn Eustache Jnr, Chyna McQueen, Nestor Aaron Absera, and Peter John Thwaites.
The five-part mini series is available to watch without charge on Channel 4, with episodes running for an hour on average, reports the Express.
Discussing Get Millie Black and how Millie’s character came to life, Marlon revealed: “My mother was one of the first policewomen in Jamaica to make detective. Storytelling has always struck me first and foremost as a mystery to be solved – which I’m sure I got from her. Millie, from the second she appeared in my imagination, was a brilliant, mercurial, hilarious, unpredictable force of nature; someone who was always there, just waiting for her story to be told. I didn’t create her, I found her.”
Boasting a perfect 100% score on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, Get Millie Black has received endless praise from critics, with one penning: “Get Millie Black lives and breathes. This might be a crime thriller, but it isn’t just a crime thriller. In the right hands, a crime thriller can contain multitudes.”
Meanwhile, another reviewer commented: “We got more story in the first 300 seconds than some series manage in an hour-long episode.”
In another glowing review of the series, a third critic remarked: “Crime shows, especially missing girl shows, often feel barren, or at least frozen in their Scandinavian snowscapes. Millie, on the other hand, feels abundant.”
And yet another impressed reviewer said: “Get Millie Black works well as a gory whodunit (with a genuinely unnerving twist at the centre). But the outstanding performances and the crimes in this setting make the show unique.”
Audience reviews follow in a similar vein, with one viewer writing: “All I’m going to say is wow. Watched all episodes in one sitting. Terrific detective series.”
While another audience member commented: “Worth a good watch if you’re interested in crime dramas. Especially if you want something original like this one, which takes place in Jamaica. Matter of fact, you don’t see many Jamaican movies/tv shows nowadays, and I’m glad that I’d checked it out. Great acting, good writing, and pacing that makes the series sort and simple since this is a limited series.”
Get Millie Black is available to stream for free on Channel 4.
Did you forget to register to vote in California’s special election on Tuesday? There is still time.
California allows same day registration. Eligible citizens are allowed to cast a conditional ballot and once their eligibility to vote is verified, the vote will be counted.
Tuesday is the last day to vote on Proposition 50, a measure that would approve new congressional district lines designed to favor Democrats in the 2026, 2028 and 2030 elections, overriding the map drawn by the state’s nonpartisan, independent redistricting commission.
Prospective voters can visit a polling place on Tuesday to register and then cast a ballot.
![Stella [Marta Dusseldorp] and Jerimiah [Toby Leonard Moore] on Bay Of Fires series one](https://i0.wp.com/occasionaldigest.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Bay-Of-Fires-cast-in-full-as-new-stars-join.jpg?w=640&ssl=1)
