The end of October sees the start of a second season on the BBC TV drama ‘Time’. Created by Jimmy McGovern the acclaimed first season was set in a men’s prison and starred Sean Bean and Stephen Graham. This second season is set in a women’s prison and stars former Doctor Who Jodie Whittaker and Game of Thrones alumni Bella Ramsey. It’s been on my radar for a while as much of it was filmed in St Helens and the Merseyside region.
Back in April this year yellow fluorescent directional signs with ‘T2’ started to appear in St Helens. It didn’t take long for local media to pick up that this was ‘Time 2’. The signs were connected to two sites that have been used quiet a lot over the last few years – the town’s police station and the former Pilkington Glass offices now known as Alexandra Business Park.
The police station in St Helens has a disused custody suite which makes it the perfect location for police dramas such as the Liverpool based series ‘The Responder’ (currently filming a second season in the city) and anything needing scenes with characters under arrest.
It’s quite obvious when filming is happening at the police station, as along with the location signs, a fleet of white trailers – accompanied by security guards – arrive in the car park to the rear. It’s always tempting to walk past and try and sneak a look at what was happening. We spotted a name ‘Kelsey Morgan’ on one of the trailer doors, which we’ve since found out is Bella Ramsey’s character’s name. Around the front of the police station, where normally there is just a red and white striped barrier; large green gates appeared, which seemed to be the gates of the women’s prison.
It was less obvious what was being filmed for the series at the former Pilkington Glass Offices. The building has been used in a recent run of television shows for everything from 60s/70s television studios in ‘Funny Woman’ and ‘Nolly’, to a hospital in the series ‘Maternal’. It’s a large building which can easily be adapted. During the filming my husband Andy spotted a car branded to look like a prison vehicle coming out of the site on one of his evening runs. I need to write a list of everything that has been filmed in St Helens recently; it seems there are fluorescent signs popping up every other week. Just this month ‘BB3’ signs appeared at the complex. As yet I’m not sure what this indicates.
Flash forward to October 23rd 2023 and the premiere of the first two episodes was held at St George’s Hall, Liverpool. Many of the cast were present to promote the show. By chance, my husband happened to be in the city that evening and was able to watch as people arrived – and snap a few photos of Bella Ramsey, Julie Graham and writer Jimmy McGovern. For this second season Helen Black is also listed as writer, giving a female voice to the show.
It’s great to see Liverpool and the Merseyside region being invested in and celebrated for its contribution to film and television. It’s not something that seems to be slowing down as further investment has been announced which would indicate that I need to keep looking out for those little fluorescent signs… https://www.sthelensstar.co.uk/news/23879470.films-tv-shows-coming-st-helens-investment/
The second season of Time 2 airs on BBC One on Sunday 29th October. It comprises of three one-hour episodes.
From scene to seen 