The actors of Life On Mars have reunited for a whole new season, 17 years after the BBC police drama ended.
Life on Mars presented the tale of Sam Tyler, played by John Simm, a police officer working in 2006 who goes back in time to 1973 after falling into a coma following a car accident.
After landing in the past, he works as a police officer under the direction of DCI Gene Hunt (Philip Glenister) while trying to figure out what happened to him.
A spin-off sequel series, Ashes to Ashes, premiered in 2008 and continued longer than Life On Mars, with Glenister reprising his role as Hunt.
Glenister, 61, and Simm, 53, are reunited on-screen for an episode of ITV’s DNA Journey, in which celebrities use modern technology and science to trace their ancestors back through history.
An insider told The Sun: ‘It’s not quite the reunion fans of Life On Mars would have wanted, but it’s probably the closest thing they’ll get.
‘There will still be some of the old dynamic obvious between John and Philip, and the fact that they’ll be journeying back in time to investigate their ancestors on the show seems rather apt.’
Initially presented by Ant and Dec for its 2019 start, the series has subsequently expanded to include other notable faces, such as Amanda Holden and Alan Carr, Alison Hammond and Kate Garraway, and Alex Brooker and Johnny Vegas.
Lazarus was revealed in 2020, amid the height of the Covid shutdown, and a pilot screenplay was verified to be complete.
However, despite the anticipation, creator Matthew Graham announced on X: ‘Some sad news folks. After many months of planning, we will now not be making Lazarus. I can’t go into details but the hurdles were financial not creative.
‘Naturally all who were involved are sick as a jungle full of parrots.’
He continued: ‘It was a cracking concept – pertinent to our times. It had a whole new round of things to say about the relationship between the public and the police. And it was bloody funny too. But that, as they say, is showbiz baby.’
Life On Mars and Ashes to Ashes are available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
Source My Celebrity Life.
