The Pact - meet the cast and team behind series two

• Interview with Rakie Ayloa
• Interview with Pete Mctighe
• Interview with Jordan Wilks
• Interview with Mali Ann Rees
• Interview with Lloyd Everitt
• Interview with Aaron Anthony
• Interview with Elwen Rowlands
• Programme Information

Using the device of a secret pact, series two introduces us to a compelling new group struggling with morality, loyalty and faith as their lives spiral out of control.

The Pact centres around Christine Rees (Rakie Ayola) and her adult children - Megan (Mali Ann Rees), Will (Lloyd Everitt) and Jamie (Aaron Anthony) - whose lives are changed forever when they are contacted by a young man claiming to be a fifth, previously unknown, Rees sibling.

There is much debate over whether to engage with or meet this stranger, and loyalties are tested even before a decision is made. But ultimately, the siblings meet the man who claims to share their DNA, a strange loner from out of town called Connor (Jordan Wilks), and the spitting image of their recently deceased brother Liam.

As Christine realises her hold over her precious, dysfunctional family is under threat, she seeks to keep Connor at bay, denying his claims. But it's clear to Connor that Christine is keeping a dark secret, and he's determined to uncover the truth.

Meanwhile Connor begins to ingratiate himself into the lives of his so-called siblings, winning their trust and testing their relationship with an increasingly desperate Christine. But is Connor telling the truth? And if he's lying - if he is, as Christine claims, an imposter - why is he lying?

As with series one, The Pact series two will explore secrets and their consequences. It's another edge-of-the-seat morality tale with loveable, complex characters under extreme pressure, navigating blood ties and divided loyalties while facing the ghosts of their past.

Pictured above: Christine (Rakie Ayola), Connor (Jordan Wilks), Jamie (Aaron Anthony), Megan (Mali Ann Rees), Will (Lloyd Everitt)

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Interview with Rakie Ayloa

Christine (Rakie Ayola)

Rakie Ayola plays Christine Rees and is the executive producer of The Pact

What was it in this second series that really resonated with you?

Pete McTighe and I had been talking. We had got on very well coming out of the first series and we were in the very early stages of another project. Then The Pact was re-commissioned so I thought that I wouldn't hear from him for a year. He got back in touch (with the script for The Pact series two) and said, "Just have a look at this". I didn't really know where I might fit in it, but when I read The Pact again through Christine's eyes I thought, ah right, this is it. What actor wouldn't want to do this? She's so multi-faceted.

Where do we find Christine at the start of this story? It is over a year since she lost her son Liam to a drugs overdose.

It's about a year and a half later. There is that very fresh grief. When we meet her that's the weight that she's carrying - the weight of having lost a child. Whatever the circumstances it will always be traumatic. It was so unexpected. But she is bearing it. She is getting on with life the way people do. She is working and she's taking care of the others.

Did you speak to anyone in your research about working in the social services?

I started to. Three of my friends are social workers. Then I thought that I didn't want any of them to think that I based Christine on them. I don't think they would love me for that. So, I stopped talking to them about it. Christine is a really good, competent social worker.

There are drawings and paintings on the mantelpiece in the dining room of the Rees family home. Were some of those touches down to you, adding details that help to build the family and make them authentic?

When I walked into the house, I needed to understand it as somewhere that Christine lives. Ok, so she's managed to hold onto all this bric-a-brac and none of it is broken in spite of having four children around. I'm assuming she is not a woman who goes to flea markets, so these ornaments have been there a long time. So if she holds onto things then I think she should hold onto some of their drawings and paintings as well. Her children needed to be in the house and the co-grandson needed to be in the house. It's eclectic. There is an element that the oddity of the house makes sense of the oddness of the family.

Wearing your Executive Producer hat, how were you involved with the casting process?

When producer Adam Knopf said Mali Ann Rees was playing Megan, I said great. I love Mali's work. We'd done a couple of readings on Zoom, and I had been to see her in a one-person kids' show. I was a fan of hers. When it was decided that the family would be biracial, I said, 'Whatever we do the kids have to have South Walian accents." I didn't have a say beyond that. I asked if they could just let me know who they were offering to before they made the offers. I did want to know who is involved because you work for 30 odd years and you don't love everybody and not everybody loves you.

How would you describe Christine's relationship with her three surviving children, Will, Megan and Jamie?

I would describe Christine's relationship with her children as quietly overbearing. They know that if Mum says she's cooking dinner they all have to be there. It doesn't occur to anyone to not turn up. If that ever happens you know that something's up. I think she has managed to stunt their development accidentally. They don't realise quite how dependent they are on their mother and how led they are by her.

From the outside Christine is the perfect mother. She has done amazing things as a single parent. From the inside she has held on to a bit too tight and for a bit too long.

And then this stranger Connor appears…

Yes. She instantly sees him as a threat. And he does look like Liam. There is no getting away from that. So, she knows this is really bad. It's interesting that her instinct isn't to care for him. All she sees is the threat.

How were you able to help the crew trainees on this series?

It was really important to me that the make-up of the crew was as diverse as we were able to achieve. We can always do more. What's brilliant is we had loads of trainees coming in. So the representation on our crew was by people who sometimes were on a set for the first time, which is great. Then my preoccupation is very much, "are you learning anything when you are with us?" Everyone is busy and not everyone is able to teach, either because they are busy or just because they are learning themselves. I just start with assuming you don't know anything and go from there. I also make sure they get to watch the monitors, so they know the scene we are doing and why they need to be quiet for 10 whole minutes.

What do you hope people take from this series?

I hope that people just get involved with the story and see it as a piece of drama that they want to know the end of. I hope that they find a character that they want to follow through it, whether it be Christine or one of the children. I'm sure there will be people going, "is this a Welsh family?" Yes, it is. It's a family who look like this from Wales. I just hope they are able to sit in it. It is about being seen. Some people will feel for Christine, some people will loath her. That's fine. If you get into the story wanting to slap Christine across the chops, that's ok with me as long as you are connected to the story. I want them to feel something.

Finally, congratulations on your 2021 Supporting Actress Bafta for Anthony. Have you noticed any changes in your career because of it?

A massive change is I have been acting for 33 years and this is the first time I have been an Executive Producer on something that I didn't pay for. That's a massive change right there. So, thank you Little Door, BBC and Lionsgate. And now I am getting more lovely scripts. So, I'm very grateful for all that.

Interview with Pete Mctighe

Pete Mctighe is the writer and executive producer of The Pact

The first series of The Pact was a great success. What particularly pleased you about the audience's response to it?

I think what the audience seemed to really love about it was the characters. It doesn't matter how good the twists and turns are in a story if you don't care about the people involved. We had such a brilliant cast in series one who inhabited those roles so beautifully. I think that the audience really responded to them and took them into their hearts.

It was a big deal to think about a second series that wouldn't involve those characters. The natural instinct is to bring everyone back and keep that story going, but I felt like that would be doing those characters a huge disservice, because the story that I wanted to tell about those people had been told. Weirdly they feel like real people to me, and I felt like I wanted to leave them alone to get on with their lives in peace. I think they deserved it after all the hell they had been through.

What were the seeds for the story for series two?

The idea for this series was actually based in part on my own family history and part of my partner's family history. It blended together in this alternate universe where I am basically Connor, where I could have walked into a family's life and said, "Hello, I'm your brother". But I never did. I didn't want to drop that bombshell on someone. I've always thought about what that moment would be and what it would look like and how it would feel, I've put myself in Connor's shoes. So that was really from where the idea sprang.

There is social commentary in both series of The Pact. Are both stories born from disadvantaged people in desperate situations?

When I came up with the idea, I spoke to quite a few real-world social workers to get a handle on how it is for them at the moment. They all told me how challenging it is for them, particularly now in the wake of the pandemic; they feel understaffed, underpaid, undervalued and yet they are absolutely vital.

That really came through to me. It's not because of the workers that the system is stretched to breaking point. Obviously, they are doing everything they possibly can and more. It's clear to me that the system is definitely broken. There are cracks and people do fall through those cracks, especially historically before there were computerised systems in place to track people, which is something we take advantage of story-wise. This is the story of one of those people. Hopefully it will help fuel the conversation. I think that social workers who are out on the frontline need more support than they are getting right now.

What does Rakie bring to the part and to the series as a collaborator and executive producer?

What Rakie brings to the role is the unpredictability and attention that Christine inherently has. Rakie is quite astonishing to watch. She is constantly full of surprises, you are never quite sure what you are going to get from a scene - that's a really exciting thing to see. There is one key moment in episode six where she physically made me jump out of my skin when I was watching the rushes. She does something unscripted that is so shocking and visceral and so right for that moment. Moments like that are why I love her. And then as a person and as a collaborator she is incredibly respectful of the script and of me, as I am of her, so we have a really solid working relationship, which is great. I really love working with her. She's fantastic.

How did Rakie help once the casting decision was made?

Rakie is such a brilliant actress so when we were casting for the new family, who were going to be mainly up-and-coming new talent, it made sense for someone of Rakie's standing in the acting community to be the matriarch of that group in real life as well as in the show. Rakie is Welsh, and she was able to bring the authenticity to the story that we needed. She was able to pull the rest of the cast together around her really. Whereas series one was very much an ensemble piece and series two is to an extent, but it does also revolve a lot more around one central character. Rakie had a really big responsibility to that character and to the show and she really stepped up and delivered.

The Rees family home casts a long shadow over everything. What do you love about the house in Llantwit Major?

On the page and in my head it was this isolated house on the coast, which sounds easy to write and easy to find, but of course it turned out not to be. Our locations people did an incredible job tracking that down. That house is like a private refuge, this atmospheric, mysterious, slightly claustrophobic sanctuary. It's almost like something from a ghost story, which is appropriate because the family is kind of haunted in a way by what has happened to one of their own. They pulled a rabbit out of the hat when they found that house. It's exactly what was in my head.

How would you say the tone is different for series two?

Right from the outset I wanted a slightly darker, more Gothic and intense tone to this series. The subject matter is quite heightened although it is told in quite a grounded way, so I wanted the visuals to support that. Our production designer Keith Dunne, the two directors, Nicole Volavka and Christiana Ebohon-Green and director of photography Sergio Delgado worked really hard to achieve that. Both directors really went above and beyond to elevate the show in really difficult circumstances. They did a beautiful job, as has everyone, in particular production designer Keith Dunne.

Is there an extra emotional clout that comes from writing about a family pact rather than a work or friendship one?

I don't think so. The women in series one were a family, just a different kind of one. Series two is about examining different families and unpicking them and figuring out what makes them tick. What glues them together? What drives them apart? I think as a piece both series one and two are about the nature of family and the nature of truth.

There's that speech from Nancy (Julie Hesmondhalgh) in series one where she says, "It's the absence of truth that keeps us together". I think that is true of series two as well. Series two is also particularly about identity, the search for and forging of identity and needing to understand who we really are. That's the starting point for the character of Connor. That's what he's craving when he comes into the show.

What are the other key locations for you in this series?

For me it was the overall coastal setting that was important, mainly as a contrast to series one. The environment for me is always a character. It's really important on the page that there's that sense of place, and the Welsh coastline really gave us that. There's something beautiful but also wistful and almost tragic about the Welsh coast. There is this mysticism and peace to it but then it also has this intense power and danger. That's a really great combination. There are lots of scenes that are shot on the beach and along the cliffs. We really took advantage of that as much as we could and because we were so lucky with the weather it looks fantastic.

Who has written the score this series?

I'm thrilled to say that it's Mac Quayle again who works on a lot of Ryan Murphy shows in the US. I was knocked for six when he said yes to series one. We reached out to him because he is one of my favourite composers of all time. I thought, 'No way is he going to want to do this little show in Wales,' but he really loved the scripts and had a really good time doing it. So thankfully he was really happy to come back and do series two. I was listening to his soundtrack for series one while I was writing series two. So, it was meant to be.

Interview with Jordan Wilks

Connor (Jordan Wilks)

Jordan Wilks plays Connor

Congratulations on your first major TV role. How did this part come about?

My agent sent it through. I got to read the first episode and I was hooked. I love good writing, it just scratches an itch when you're reading something, and you can see it come off the page. I remember saying to my mum when I read the first episode, "even if I don't book this, I can't wait to watch it". I put the self-tape in and boom, I got a recall. I read with the director Nicole Volavka and writer Pete McTighe was on the Zoom as well. That same day I got the call to say, "Yeah, you've booked it".

Once you had the job what questions did you have for Pete McTighe about Connor?

Because this is my first big TV production I was like a deer in headlights. But it was just soaking it all up and hearing Pete's vision of what he intended for the characters and how they all mixed, which was invaluable to hear from the writer of the show.

Mali and Rakie are from Cardiff and Lloyd is from Barry. Are you from London?

I'm London born and raised. I grew up in North London, Enfield. During the shoot me and my girlfriend moved in together and we moved to Islington. Going to Cardiff was an eye-opener. When you grow up in London you just think everything revolves around London; "this is the best city in the world" - I've gone on record saying that many times. Then I went to Cardiff, and I was like, "hold on a sec. Maybe I got that wrong?"

What do you think you've learned from working with Rakie Ayola?

You would think that somebody who has worked in this industry for that long and picked up that much experience might gatekeep that information, but Rakie wasn't like that, she is more than willing to share. For me the most invaluable things I learned from Rakie were technical: how to work with the camera, how you make sure that your performance is being seen in the way that you need it to be seen - for that I will be forever grateful. Moments where she would say to move my eye-line because the camera will pick me up a lot better there. Rakie shares and just brings you in and will give you a hug at the end of the day and say, "Good job". Sometimes that's all you need and all you want.

What was your favourite location for The Pact?

My mum, my brother and my girlfriend came during production to visit, and I made a point of taking them to all the locations that we had filmed in. Some of them felt straight from a fairytale book. Obviously living in London it's a concrete jungle, but being in Barry or Cardiff you can drive to the beach and be there in 10 minutes no matter where you are.

My favourite location was Marine Drive in Barry. It's where Will and Samantha's house is. I went back five times when I needed to de-stress and just relax. Me and Aaron filmed a scene there where we were sitting on a bench. You are overlooking rolling hills that then go onto beach and sea and then if you look over to your left you can see the whole town and vista and landscape. That was my go-to spot.

Interview with Mali Ann Rees

Megan (Mali Ann Rees)

Mali Ann Rees plays Megan Rees

What were you able to bring of yourself and your own life experience to this part?

Megan is definitely going through the quarter-life crisis, which I can relate to. There is an uncertainty about what exactly you are meant to be doing and where you are meant to be in life. Megan is trying to fight against these responsibilities, unsuccessfully, but as she gets to know herself better, she can then start to face those things.

You share the same surname as Megan. Did writer Pete McTighe change the family name to Rees once you were cast?

I don't know if it was on purpose. It was especially strange when we were looking at our dead brother's grave, Liam Rees, because Liam is an anagram for Mali. So, it was like I was staring at my own grave, which helped with the scene. It's a strange coincidence. It was meant to be.

Megan's bedroom is a chaotic space - the walls plastered are with lights and photos. Were there production design details that you found really helped with the character?

I didn't get to see her room until a few weeks in but when I did, I was like, oh yeah, that's spot on. The main thing for me was seeing my black hair products in the room. It was like, oh wow, they've made that effort. And they had silk pillowcases, which is what I sleep on anyway for black hair. It was that attention to detail that meant a lot to me, both as an actor and for those people watching at home, that it will look more authentic. These things are so often forgotten. I think that's true across this production as a whole, I have never worked with such a diverse crew, cast, everything. It is so rare to have so much crew from different departments be from different backgrounds.

How is Megan feeling about her life when we first meet her?

She's fighting against growing up at the beginning. All these things like her wedding seem to be coming to her very suddenly. She's unsure about whether to make those commitments. She's kind of ignoring her responsibilities.

What has been Megan's way of dealing with the loss of her brother, Liam?

I think she's been ignoring the grief. Sort of getting on with it in a way, planning the wedding. She runs a café, which keeps her very busy.

What was Megan's relationship like with Liam?

Megan and Jamie are super close, but there are hints that Megan wasn't particularly helping with Liam's problems. She's a party girl herself so in a way again she was ignoring the problem - "Oh yeah, come out with me and my mates". She wasn't thinking that he might be struggling. So, there is a lot of blame there for not being more helpful in that situation.

What's Megan's café on the end of Penarth pier like?

It's nice. I didn't see it before production transformed it. I need to go back because Penarth pier is lovely. It's so strange that it is so close to Cardiff, but I hadn't been. There are so many beautiful places around Cardiff that I guess when you are from Wales you don't really explore much. You live where you live. We went to Southerndown beach, and I thought, God, why don't I go on more walks?

What discussions did you have with Rakie about Megan and Christine's relationship?

There has been an element of discovery throughout. Megan is still lives at home, and she loves her mum very much but there is a certain age where you start to find faults in your own parents. Before they have been this amazing person who gives you everything and looks after you and loves you. Then all of a sudden you start seeing cracks, which I think a lot of people will relate to.

What is it that makes her such an extraordinary actor?

Just the reality she gives to each character and what she gives to other cast members regardless of whether the camera is on her or not. She can just look you in the eye and immediately you feel like you are looking into that person's eyes. She makes really intelligent choices where I think, oh if I had that scene, I would have played it like this, and then she does it and you go, oh god that is so much of a better choice.

She does also hand out some lines of wisdom sometimes when we are all just relaxing. There is an impression as an actor that you have to do it all when you are very young or in your 20s and 30s. If you don't make it then it's never going to happen. Her and Lisa Palfrey talked to us once and really spun that on its head. "I didn't act in this theatre until I was over 40. That's when my career really started progressing." We all were like, oh god that is such a relief. There is time! It's not a race or a rush.

Were you able to bond in rehearsals with your screen siblings working with director Nicole Volavka?

Nicole suggested to me and Aaron, "why don't you guys go to a museum together? We went to the pub. It is strange when it's organised getting to know each other but we hit it off really quickly. I was also a bit shocked that although we don't look super similar, I could see what they had done here with our heights and just the way Aaron was walking. I was like, oh God, this guy's like me. It was really easy. I felt very comfortable very quickly with Aaron. Lloyd was in Mexico to start with, but I had worked with Lloyd previously on a programme called Tourist Trap. It's a comedy and we didn't actually have any scenes together, but I met him briefly.

Talking of Will, how do Megan and Jamie feel about their "big-mouthed big brother"?

There is a bit of empathy there, but I think Megan's role in the family is to be the voice of the other brothers against Will. I don't know whether it is because of her gender that he hasn't gone in on her as much or that she's just stood up more to him. She defends Jamie a lot and I imagine that's what she did for Liam as well.

What makes Gethin the right man for Megan to marry?

In Megan's chaos, Gethin is a stable, reliable man who is perfect for her, although she might not be able to see it because she is so in the midst of the chaos.

What choices did you make for Megan with costume?

I really like the costume that Lucille Acevedo-Jones gave for Megan at the start of the show. It's a bit hippy - Megan loves a layer. Lots of different colours, relaxed and almost androgynous. She's running a café so she's not always going to be in practical clothing. The big discussion was the wedding dress. How to fit all those hippy, androgynous relaxed feels into a formal dress?

The first thing I did after I got the job was to go wedding dress shopping with Lucille. She really thinks deep into what people are wearing and makes sure that you are comfortable with it as well. The wedding dress shopping was just bizarre. There were loads of other brides waiting. The woman who was doing the fitting had obviously been trained to fit brides in a specific way, so she was still talking to me as if I was getting married although she knew it was for a TV programme. The dress that we got in the end is perfect for the character.

What has been interesting for you about portraying a Welsh dual-heritage family in a TV drama?

I don't think I had really grasped how much this hasn't been done before. I don't think there has been a drama that promotes a Welsh dual heritage family. It's normal for me because I come from a dual-heritage family. It's not strange or new or bizarre or fresh to me. So, I hadn't given it much thought. It's a family. There are a few lines that mention race in the script, but in the same way as you do in real life -it comes up but it's not the centre of the story. I think that's really important.

Interview with Lloyd Everitt

Will (Lloyd Everitt)

Lloyd Everitt plays Will Rees

What was it about this second series of The Pact that really excited you when you read the scripts?

I got the first episode and I'm dyslexic, so it takes me ages to read a script. But if I get a script that I am super into, I finish it. I was done with this in about two hours because I was just so intrigued. What is this about? Who are these characters? Where are we going with this?

Will is described as a smart, cocky, successful businessman. He is not the easiest of characters to warm to, unlike Jez who you played in Casualty. What was it about Will that you found interesting?

What I found interesting was his inner workings. Why are we the way we are in any walk of life? What makes one person behave this way and another person behave that way? What happened to them in their childhood? What events did they go through to manifest into this version of themselves? As I am getting older and more experienced and more mature, I can see that Will is a brilliant, complex character.

What does his house on Marine Drive in Barry say about Will?

He likes nice things. He's materialistic. It's quite a minimalist house. It's a designer house. It's got the nice bedroom and long balcony. It's got a nice driveway for the Range. This is what success looks like. It looks out over the water. In terms of him being materialistic I don't think there's anything wrong with that as long as you aren't trying to find yourself in those material possessions. But he is.

On paper Will has got the perfect life. He's got a beautiful wife and child, a lovely house, the car, the money - but he is deeply traumatised by something that happened. I guess this generation now is looking at that. What is this hole that I am trying to fill? Will doesn't have that self-awareness though. That's why he is an interesting character to play.

How much time does Will make for family life?

He definitely has a lot of time for his wife and son because of the abandonment by his father. He has doubled down on being there for his family. As for his brothers and sister, Will is the eldest. He's been through the trauma of having his father leave and feeling that kind of emptiness. The other siblings, Megan and Jamie, have grown up closer in age and they have a genuine bond. Will is the outsider. It's hard to say which of the children is closer to their mum, but Will is close to his mum because she had his back. She stood by him.

What discussions did you have with Rakie about their mother-son dynamic?

We talked about the dynamic but then just left it. I feel like sometimes with a scene I'll come up with an idea and a plan but then there is going to be something else that I can't control that is going to inform me. Who knows what that is? It's when you are in the moment. It might be something like, all of a sudden Christine touches his clothes. These little mannerisms start to just form without you even having to think about it. I always try to leave as much space for that and don't try to control things too much.

How has Will been coping since the death of his brother Liam?

I think he has hugely suppressed the emotion. He is living with a lot of guilt. Probably what has made it more difficult is he thinks he is not worthy of grieving for someone. He is just getting by. He is doing what a lot of people do. "How are you?" "Yeah, I'm fine". He has been deeply struggling. In the story he self-harms. People usually connect a lot of shame to that. You are punishing yourself. He is creating suffering for his own interpretation of what happened.

What's been your favourite location to shoot in?

We shot in an abandoned railway. There were all these abandoned trains. We were doing a chase scene there. That was a part of Barry I had never even seen down in the docks. That was super-cool place to film. I also loved filming up by The Knap on Marine Drive. There I really felt like, oh wow, this has really come full circle for me. Now I am actually filming where I first had the idea to be an actor.

What do you hope viewers take from this? What do you think it has to say?

I think the best dramas put you in the positions of the characters. Would you then make the same decisions with your family? How deep does your pact go? Another thing I would say is that this is the entertainment business. I want people to be entertained. Sometimes you just need to keep it simple. What's going to happen next? That's how I am when I watch a good programme.

Interview with Aaron Anthony

Jamie Rees (Aaron Anthony)

Aaron Anthony plays Jamie Rees

Jamie is described as kind and sensitive with painted blue nails and a slash of eyeliner. What do you love about him?

As soon as I read that description of him, I was really excited by the part. It's nice to see a sensitive male character onscreen. He's in his early 20s, so he is exploring that, and in this small town he is a bit of a unicorn. He's got this pull. He's been at university in London studying art, so he has all this expression in him. And I think that kindness really comes through in how he's written. That's been really fun to play.

Was there much debate as to what colour to go for with Jamie's hair?

What actually happened was in January I had finished the previous job I was working on and I just decided to dye my hair purple. I called my agent and said to her, "just so you know…" Then the audition for The Pact came through. I was reading for a different character first of all so I sprayed my hair black for the tape. But I also read the character description for Jamie, and I said to my agent, "I really want to read for Jamie if I can. Also, I think the hair could really work for this." So I auditioned with my purple hair and the producers said they loved it and that I could keep it for the character. So it was a really nice twist of fate.

What discussions did you have with costume about Jamie's wardrobe?

We wanted to tell a few stories with his costume. The idea that he is coddled a little bit by his mum. There is a sense that he is very much the baby of the family. There are definitely some elements of his clothing that you feel he might have had for a while. Also, he has come back home. He is a little bit stuck. So, he wears what he feels comfortable in, and he can hide in a little bit. He also expresses himself through colours. He is probably the most colourfully dressed character. With the eyeliner and the nail varnish we talked a lot about making those things all work together. I didn't want it to be too grungy. We are very much the TikTok/Instagram generation now. Boys wearing eyeliner is everywhere, which is so cool. So we wanted to play a lot with that.

How has Jamie been coping since Liam's death?

Liam's death is what really triggered Jamie's panic attacks. I thought a lot about what Jamie might have been like before that. I think there was definitely already trauma from their dad leaving when they were very young and none of them really knowing why, and also from his relationship with Will. Ultimately, I think Jamie took a lot of solace from his relationship with Liam, so I think his death has completely tipped his world upside down.

What first drew you into the story when you read Pete McTighe's scripts?

One of the scenes that I did for my audition is when Jamie meets Connor. I remember reading that scene and being really moved by it. You instantly go, what would you do in that situation? How would you feel? Jamie has such a powerful reaction to it. He's the first person to meet Connor. So that instantly drew me into the story - that and the very first scene. There is so much of an enigma in Pete's writing. You're going, who is this person? Who do we trust? I found it gripping from the off. I could really visualise all of it and with its pace you can feel things building and brewing.

Are you a big fan of dramas that have great twists and turns?

I really am. That's what I think makes great drama not knowing what's coming and being able to explore this thing called life through seeing different events and situations that we might not be able to imagine, but that we can see on screen.

How is Jamie's relationship with his mum? What discussions did you have with Rakie?

A lot of it just happened naturally. Rakie is amazing at conveying it all so strongly. She takes on that energy. Christine is described as very watchful and when you're in a scene with Rakie she is kind of hypnotic. In the best possible way there were moments where she might see me flailing or not doing what she knew I wanted to be doing and she would just kind of direct me with her eyes.

One scene that I was really struggling with we had been doing it all morning and then my close-up was after lunch. It was a very emotional scene, a long scene as well. Going after lunch is always a bit harder because you have to get back into the rhythm. I wasn't getting back to the place that I had been in for the previous shots. Rakie said, "Would it help if I gave you a hug?" So she gave me a hug in character and that just got me to exactly where I needed to be in the scene. That's how it's worked, rather than having lots of pre-arranged conversations.

What work did you do to achieve Jamie's Cardiff accent?

I worked with a dialect coach called Patricia Logue, who I have worked with before. We did a play in Cardiff at the Sherman Theatre with her directing. It was great when I found out that she was the dialect coach on this. She's brilliant. I've moved around a lot, so my accent really switches depending on who I'm talking to. It was one of those things when I auditioned for Jamie that I did whatever naturally came out. You don't always have a lot of time for prep. So I've just really developed that. It's semi-based on Mali's accent as well because she's from Cardiff. I did a lot of listening to her. We did a family dialect session.

What has been your favourite location?

Margam Park in Port Talbot where we shot the wedding scenes. The set design for the wedding and the marquee is really cool. There is a big church with this huge stained-glass window overlooking a graveyard. That's where Liam's grave is. And there are these ruins. I think it's going to look awesome, gothic and dramatic but contrasted by this wedding going on as well.

Apart from all the great twists and turns, what do you hope stays with the audience?

I hope what stays with people is that life and family are complicated. Unfortunately we all have trauma, and tragic, seismic events in our lives - It's how we get through those together. Those are some of my favourite moments in the story when they are able to connect with each other no matter how fractious their relationships are. Also I'm just so intrigued to see what people really think of the characters, especially Christine. My takeaway from her is that she has given so much. There is a lot of love in what she's done but she is a very complex person. I love how layered that is. 

Interview with Elwen Rowlands

Elwen Rowlnads is the executive producer of The Pact

Series one of The Pact was such a great success. What do you think it was that viewers really responded to?

I think it was a combination of relatable characters in an extraordinary situation, the amazing cast, and the twists and turns in Pete McTighe's scripts. It was fantastic to watch the response. The viewing figures were fantastic, particularly when you consider that episode one went out on the day that pubs reopened after lockdown.

We thought no one would be at home! We consolidated to eight million viewers and were in the Top 10 shows of the year on BBC iPlayer, which really was beyond what we had expected for our first production.

What were the initial discussions you had with writer Pete McTighe about a second series?

We always intended to take the format of The Pact and create a new series with new stories and new characters. When the time came to make that decision, it was a tough one. The audience responded so well to the characters in series one and we did have a moment where we wondered if we should be continuing their story. But Pete felt strongly - and he was absolutely right - the most interesting part of those characters' stories had been told in series one. The right thing to do was to move on.

What themes are being explored this time round?

There was a line from Nancy [Julie Hesmondhalgh's character in series one] about how the absence of truth binds us together, that really struck a chord with us. It definitely influenced the second series. Our story again explores the nature of truth and the complex circumstances that lead people to withhold it.

Christine Rees is such a powerful, complex central character. What does Rakie Ayola bring to this drama as an actor, and collaboratively as an executive producer?

It's been a pleasure working with Rakie, on both fronts. She's such a commanding presence onscreen. We've always described the character of Christine as a lioness looking after her cubs. Rakie absolutely delivers on that. She has real strength and emotionally she brings something raw and brilliant. As an actor she continually surprises you with her choices.

It felt essential to bring Rakie on board as an executive producer to steer and guide us, as the scripts hadn't originally been written for a black family. She had an eye on everything from the script to the production design to making sure it felt real for her on screen family. She also spent a lot of time talking to our trainees on set and answering their questions.

What were you looking for in casting the three surviving siblings Will, Jamie and Megan? What do Lloyd Everitt, Aaron Anthony and Mali Ann Rees bring to the roles?

We and Rakie were keen to find Cardiff-based biracial actors for the family. We didn't know who was out there, who was available, but we found Lloyd and Mali, who are absolutely fantastic in their roles. Aaron (who isn't Welsh) nailed a brilliant Welsh accent. When you're casting, you're always looking for the best actors who feel authentic in the role, but here we also had to ensure that the actors were credible as a family unit. I definitely think we achieved that.

What crucial differences does it make to a production working with local talent both behind and in front of the camera?

Local knowledge is so important to get the best out of the locations you're filming it. In front of the camera local talent brings authenticity, something audiences always respond positively to. As a Welsh company it's important for us to support local talent as much as possible.

The Rees family home casts a long shadow over its inhabitants in this drama. Was it easy to find the right location?

It was the trickiest location to find. We wanted it to have a gothic feel and it needed scale. It needed to be big enough for a film crew to work in and yet feel authentic as a family home. Story-wise it's a house the family has inherited from the paternal grandparents and there's a sense that the home hasn't changed much over the decades adding to the gothic feel. The house we found was perfect - it even had some exposed plaster and peeling wallpaper which our production designer Keith embraced. You can see the chipped paint on the front door making the house feel real and lived in.

Which other locations were exciting finds?

We have so many breathtaking locations! That's the beauty of filming in Wales. We're using Penarth pier and the café on the pier, which gives you a stunning vista out to sea. We have quite a few cliffs and beaches. We're using a beach at Llantwit Major and a bit of Southern Down and Rest Bay in Porthcawl. We've also used the Marine Parade in Barry. That's for Will's house, which is a very modern house contrasting beautifully with the gothic family home. During the script development stage of series two we made a decision to go coastal to give a different feel from series one, with its lake and pine woods.

What do you hope viewers take from The Pact series two?

The complex nature of family - how it binds us and defines us.

Cast list

Christine Rakie Ayola

Connor Jordan Wilks

Jamie Aaron Anthony

Megan Mali Ann Rees

Will Lloyd Everitt

Beth Lisa Palfrey

Gethin Jacob Ifan

Samantha Rebekah Murrell

Kayla Kristy Phillips

Joe Christian Patterson

D.S Pritchard Matthew Gravelle

Kate Elizabeth Berrington

Owain Callum Hymers

Lloyd Huw Novelli

Alec Nick Hywell

Police Officer 2 Simon Howells

Louise Tilly Vosburgh

Dealer Iwan Charles

Jerry Stuart Bowman

Amy Emily Chase

Priest Olwen Medi

Carol Marsha Miller

Harry Steven Mackintosh

Alfie Kaylen Luke

Crew list

Writer/Creator Pete McTighe

Executive Producers Elwen Rowlands

Pete McTighe

Hayley Manning

Rakie Ayola

Directors Nicole Volavka (Block 1)

Christiana Ebohon-Green (Block 2)

Producer Adam Knopf

Line Producer Florian Cassel-Delavois

Director of Photography Sergio Delgado & James Swift

Production Designer Keith Dunne

Costume Designer Lucille Acevedo-Jones

Hair & Makeup Designer Emma Cowen

Editors Al Morrow (Block 1, eps 1-3)

John Blackwell (Block 2, eps 4-6)

Music by Mac Quayle

Casting Director Sarah Crowe

Programme Information

• Episode one
• Episode two