Bombshell (TV series)

Bombshell is a British television military drama series, produced by Shed Productions, the company behind Bad Girls, Footballers' Wives, and Waterloo Road. The series, originally commissioned by Shed Productions in early 2004, focuses on the day-to-day workload of officers and soldiers in the British Army, and was subsequently given the nickname Army Wives by the British press. The series was first teased by the creators in March 2002, and was described as "a focus on how the army is changing with the recruitment of more women and a more lenient attitude to homosexuality." The series was initially offered to the BBC, but the producers were unhappy with the rights deal initially offered by the channel.

The series attracted a strong initial casting, with Zöe Lucker, Bertie Carvel and Rosie Marcel among the first cast members confirmed to star in the series. After filming completed, ITV announced that the series was scheduled to be aired in February 2005. After the series failed to materialise, there was suggestion that the series could launch on ITV2 instead, but this did not happen, and the series has never been officially broadcast in the UK.

An ITV spokesperson claimed that the reason the series was shelved was due to the "undeniable similarities" between the series and Ultimate Force, which at the time, was struggling in the ratings, with two series having been cancelled mid-run due to poor ratings. However, just over a year later, the series was shown on TV One in New Zealand in 2006, and on the Hallmark Channel in Australia in 2008. A DVD of the series was also released on 3 March 2007 in New Zealand.

A spin-off series, entitled Bombshell Bootcamp, which followed the cast as they trained at an Army Boot Camp in Bracknell in preparation for their roles in the series, was also due to air on ITV2.

Cast

 * Zöe Lucker — Captain Jenna Marston
 * Andrew McKay — Gunner Luke Bates
 * Robert Beck — Bombardier Boyd Billington
 * Emma Rydal — Cheryl Cotter
 * Rosie Marcel — Gunner Stacey Dawes
 * Lucy Cohu — Valerie Welling
 * Bertie Carvel — Lieutenant Roddy Frost
 * Felix Scott — Gunner Adam Hodges
 * Jeremy Sheffield — Major Nicholas Welling
 * Michael Obiora — Gunner Jackson Clark
 * Daisy Dunlop — Gunner Karina Fuller
 * Chris Geere — Gunner Dean McGowan
 * Alicya Eyo — Gunner Gaynor Harvey
 * Simon Sherlock — Lance Bombardier Terry Cotter
 * Bob Cryer — Guy Corderey
 * Alix Wilton Regan — Sophie Welling