S4C has announced its next drama series, Dal y Mellt (Rough Cut), will be released as a Box Set on S4C Clic and BBC iPlayer on Sunday 2 October.
The drama will also air weekly at 9.00pm from Sunday 2 October. Dal y Mellt is an adaptation of the novel of the same name. Its author – who also adapted the script and co-produced, actor and performer Iwan ‘Iwcs’ Roberts said:
“People have compared the series to Peaky Blinders or Guy Ritchie’s work, but I don’t think it’s like anything you’ve seen before. It’s like lightning. It’s fierce, witty and gripping.”
The story, produced by Vox Pictures, is full of emotion, mystery and excitement. Director Huw Chiswell and producer Llŷr Morus have kept true to the novel – including the charismatic dialect full of Welsh idioms and colourful language.
Whilst following several characters through some surreal situations it becomes clear that there is one powerful and unknown force bringing the motley crew together – the big question is, what?
“I don’t think anything similar has been on S4C” says Gwïon Morris Jones, a young and promising actor from Anglesey who plays lead role, Carbo. “The way it’s been produced is more like a Hollywood movie. When did you last see someone hanging upside down from a crane on S4C? As well as stunts, there’s gangs, theft and fast cars!”.
Not only did Gwïon take on the challenge of a main part, having “just graduated from the Central School of Speech and Drama” in London, he performed his own stunts too.
“I’m a bit of a thrill seeker. In my free time I enjoy bouldering, which is climbing without ropes, as well as mountaineering. I had a stunt double, Alex, and one morning he was hanging from a big crane. I thought ‘I can do that’, so I went ahead and gave it a go. If I had to deliver lines pretending to be upside down, I wanted to be hanging upside down so I could do it properly.”
Gwïon is accompanied by an amazing cast to bring it all to life. Mark Lewis Jones plays Mici Ffin, Graham Land plays Les with Siw Hughes playing his mother, Meri-Jên. Dyfan Roberts returns to the screen to play Gronw, with Lois Meleri-Jones playing his daughter Antonia and Owen Arwyn as his son Dafydd Aldo. Ali Yassine portrays Cidw. According to Mark Lewis Jones who plays the owner of a garage and a lovable rogue, the characters are the heart of the drama and bring equal amounts of love and hate.
“Beneath the story that runs through the six episodes is the most important thing; the relationships between the characters and their background” says Mark. “Everyone has a backstory. It makes the scenes a lot more interesting because they’re not just about the plot. On the surface, little things may seem trivial, but they’re actually crucial to finding out what’s going on between the characters and how they are linked. The characters really resonate as people you would come across in a Welsh town.”
Dal y Mellt promises to bring something fresh and energetic to S4C whilst keeping viewers on the edge of their seats. The series starts out on the dark back streets of Cardiff and then moves back and forth between Cardiff, Soho, Porthmadog and surrounding areas and Holyhead.
Watch Dal y Mellt on S4C from Sunday 2 October, or watch the box set on S4C Clic or iPlayer.
