Who is in the Summer of Rockets cast? Toby Stephens, Keeley Hawes and Linus Roache
SUMMER of Rockets is set to arrive on our screens this year.
The new BBC cold war drama boasts a stellar cast. Here's what we know about the production so far...
Who is in the Summer of Rockets cast?
The upcoming BBC show features some familiar faces. Here's who you can expect to see in the new series:
Keeley Hawes
Keeley, 42, was born February 10, 1976, and is an English actress.
She trained at the Sylvia Young Theatre School.
Keeley kicked off her career in the film version of The Last September (1999).
But it has been her TV credits that have launched her to stardom, including Tipping Velvet, Spooks, Line of Duty and The Bodyguard.
Toby Stephens
Toby, 49, was born on 21st April 1969, and is an English actor.
He is the son of actors Dame Maggie Smith and Sir Robert Stephens.
Toby studied acting at the esteemed London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA.)
He's had an extensive career both on stage and screen but is best known for his roles as Bond villain Gustav Graves in Die Another Day as well as portraying Edward Rochester in BBC's adaptation of Jane Eyre.
Timothy Spall
Timothy is a veteran actor and presenter who has appeared in multiple stage, TV and film productions.
The actor, 61, first found fame in TV drama Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, following a host of theatre roles.
He went on to become a well-known face in everything from Disney movie Enchanted to Harry Potter films and the rather more dark flick, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.
Linus Roache
Linus is a Brit-born actor based in London.
His father is Coronation Street legend, Bill Roache, who plays Ken Barlow on the long-running soap.
However, he didn't start taking up bigger roles until the mid-nineties, when he started doing acting professionally.
As well as this, you may recognise his voice from adverts for brands including and Clinique.
Mark Bonnar
Mark, 50, was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, in November 1968 to parents Rosie, a social worker, and Stan, an artist.
He studied at Leith Academy but left at 17 and did a YTS as a library assistant, and worked in the libraries of Edinburgh for five years.
He did a short stint at Telford College in Shropshire to do a Highers but he returned to the library service and after two years ended up in the planning department at Edinburgh City Council.
Mark is one of the cast of the Chanel 4 sitcom Catastrophe and also starred as barrister Colin Osbourne in the ITV crimes drama Unforgotten.
The actor can also be recognised for his role as Emily Watson’s husband Gary Carmichael in BBC drama Apple Tree Yard.
He's also known for starring in Shetland as well as playing Officer Meekie in Porridge.
More on TV Explainers
What is the Summer of Rockets about?
Set in the UK during the Cold War period and tumultuous year of 1958, fear and excitement of the future permeates the lives of all.
Samuel is a 40 something Russian Jewish émigré, inventor and designer of bespoke hearing aids, whose clients include former Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill.
The series follows Samuel and his family, wife Miriam and children Hannah and Sasha, as he is approached by MI5 to demonstrate his work.
Yet it is not his inventions the operatives require - instead Samuel is tasked with the secret mission of obtaining information about his charming, newly acquired friends Kathleen and her husband Richard Shaw MP through whom Samuel also meets the impressive Lord Arthur Wallington.
As Samuel’s life becomes more and more intertwined with his mission, how far is he willing to let things unravel for his cause? And who can he truly trust?
When can you watch Summer of Rockets?
Summer of Rockets is written and directed by the multi-award-winning Stephen Poliakoff.
It is not known when the series will be broadcast but filming in London and Oxford started last summer and wrapped up in mid-2018.
There will be six hour-long shows which will be screened on BBC Two.
For those that miss it they can catch upon iPlayer after the show has been broadcast.