Ah, the stag party! Drunken friends, cardboard cakes and the clichéd sound of “The Stripper” wafting through the proceedings. The Doctor may rescue the human race from all manner of grotesque alien creatures and life threatening situations, but this is the first time he’s rescued a human from this occasion that’s grotesque in an entirely different manner. From the moment Matt Smith pops out of the cake, he’s bloody brilliant, simply because he chooses to play it straight, in what’s a thoroughly absurd setup. Many actors would’ve mugged and tried to add to the already ridiculous situation, but Smith (or perhaps freshman “Who” director Jonny Campbell?) allows the scenario to happen around him, and in the process the joke becomes about five times funnier than it has any right to be. I’ve been trying to figure out for weeks now how to explain precisely what it is about this actor in this iconic role that I find so very appealing, and this scene offers up the best example yet of why this guy is the perfect Doctor for his time. Smith’s very much the anti-Tennant, which isn’t to bag on Tennant, but the series really needed this kind of change coming off Tennant’s tenure, and it’s a decision that’s shaping up to be the best one Steven Moffat made for his inaugural season.

The Doctor: “Funny how you can say something in your head and it sounds fine…”

With that line, and an ensuing uncomfortable silence, the episode dives into the opening credits. This must surely be one of the best “Who” pre-credits sequences in ages, simply because it’s so socially awkward. I’ve watched it numerous times and have yet to tire of it, or even cease finding it incredibly funny. After the credits, the episode shifts into yet another sequence which I adore. The Doctor, Rory, and Amy (Karen Gillan) are in the TARDIS, and the Doctor’s strapped into some crazy harness, wearing goggles and doing some work beneath the console, all while rambling on about how the wonders of the universe blind people and lead to them shutting out their “other” lives. And once again, Smith’s largely playing it straight while appearing a total madman, and it works beautifully.

On a different note, the old-school fan in me loves this scene because it shows the Doctor puttering away, working on the TARDIS. This used to be a staple of the classic series, but it isn’t something we’ve seen a whole lot of in the new incarnation. (Off the top of my head, I honestly can’t recall a single instance of it during the Davies era, but I’m sure somebody will step in and correct me if I’m wrong.) Further, because the TARDIS set is so freaking immense at this point, it allows for his actions to feel more epic than they did in the classic series, when it was usually just him, a roundel, and the sonic screwdriver.

The Doctor: “The life out there it dazzles! I mean it blinds you to the things that are important. I’ve seen it devour relationships and plans…because for one person to have seen all that, to taste the glory and then go back, it will tear you apart. So I’m sending you somewhere – together.”

The Doctor’s plan is to rekindle Amy’s feelings for Rory, even though he doesn’t say as much, instead focusing on the couple as a unit. Back when I wrote up “The Eleventh Hour,” I made absolutely no mention of Rory, even though it was clear he’d end up being a major player in the season. It didn’t seem like there was much point to it given that the episode wasn’t really about him. Now all that’s changed and it’s time to give him, and Arthur Darvill, some blog time. This TARDIS scene sets up the friction between the two men. Most noteworthy is the fact that Rory has done some homework, and appears less than impressed with the TARDIS. In some ways, it’s a variation of what we saw back in the first couple seasons with Rose and Mickey, but the setup is just different enough to warrant exploration. The Eleventh Doctor doesn’t seem invested in Amy in quite the same way the Ninth and Tenth Doctors were in Rose. Back at the start of the new series, Rose was the Doctor’s savior, but these days the situation is reversed, with the Doctor taking the lead yet again. Likewise, Rory isn’t like Mickey in that he’s very much still into Amy, and is all set to marry her. This entire construct feels like Moffat’s reaction to what Davies did, and his attempt to do it “his way.”

And so the Doctor whisks Rory and Amy away for a date in Venice of 1580, where they encounter Rosanna, Francesco, Guido and Isabella, all of whom were introduced at the top of the story. “The Vampires of Venice” is written by Toby Whithouse, who gave us “School Reunion” back in Season Two, and has since gone on to create and showrun “Being Human,” the series about a vampire, a ghost, and a werewolf who all share a flat. “Vampires” has a great deal in common with “School Reunion,” but since that was so long ago, we shouldn’t hold that against it. Both stories feature disguised aliens with evil plans, although here the aliens are disguised as vampires who are in turn disguised as humans, at least as far as the viewer is concerned, which is a decent enough – if not a somewhat predictable – twist. (He also contributed “Greeks Bearing Gifts” to the first season of “Torchwood,” which again featured a disguised alien with nefarious plans.) But also similar to his previous script is that what appears to be the A-plot (the vampires/the Saturnynians) is actually the B-plot, and the true A-plot consists of all the character interaction in between the big set pieces. The stuff with Saturnynians is all frankly rather rote. We’ve seen this before, time and again on “Doctor Who.” It’s there to thrill and chill the little ones, while the adults will (hopefully) find themselves drawn to all the meat of the episode involving the drama of our three main characters, and here we finally get to understand Rory.

Rory (to the Doctor): “You know what’s dangerous about you? It’s not that you make people take risks, it’s that you make them want to impress you. You make it so that they don’t want to let you down. You have no idea how dangerous you make people to themselves when you’re around.”

And with that little speech, Rory pretty much won me over as a valuable addition to the TARDIS crew, because it’s important for the Doctor to hear that, as Amy is never going to say it, since she’s the one who’s busy giggling and having a good time throwing herself into perilous situations right and left. In fact, the Eleventh Doctor seems considerably less concerned with the fate of his companion(s) than his recent predecessors, which again kind of takes us back to the mold of the classic series, in which this was often the case, even though it was usually unspoken. Whithouse had a knack for cutting through the bullshit in “School Reunion” and getting to the heart of the central characters, and he does so once again here.

So as far as I’m concerned, Toby can contribute scripts to “Doctor Who” any time he wants, because this kind of interplay is like gold for this series, and it needs it in order to keep building the ongoing narrative about what’s really going on with these people when they’re not fighting monsters and travelling through time. All in all a deceptively charming episode, and one that’s well-directed, beautifully shot and thoughtfully planned out. It’s likely to have its detractors, but I think the people who don’t care for it are the ones who’ve mistakenly assumed that the alien invasion storyline is the meat of the episode, whereas the reality is that the vampires in Venice are merely the backdrop for other, far more engaging issues.

__________________________________________________

NEXT TIME: It’s time for the “weird” episode of the season, “Amy’s Choice.” Well, that’s assuming there aren’t several weird episodes yet to come.

Classic “Who” DVD Recommendation of the Week: Check out the Doctor’s previous meeting with vampires – real vampires – in “State of Decay,” starring Tom Baker and Lalla Ward. It’s the second story in the fantastic E-Space Trilogy. You can get it through Netflix by adding Disc Two of “Doctor Who: The E-Space Trilogy” to your queue.

(Thanks as always to Sonic Biro for the screencaps.)

Join us now as we embark upon…

Bullz-Eye: So when you guys were pitched the series…I mean, I’m sure you get this all the time, but on the surface, it sounds almost like it could be a Saturday morning cartoon.

Aidan Turner: That’s what I thought it was, actually. I thought I was going to do a voice over for a cartoon.

BE: Really?

AT: No. (Laughs) But I hear you.

BE: Were you familiar with Toby (Whithouse’s) work beforehand?

Russell Tovey: I was, personally. When it was pitched to me, I thought it sounded terrible, so I said yeah. (Laughs) There’s a few shows in England that are actually kind of not very good. They’re fun for students, but they’re not, like, credible, really. I thought this could be something like that show, just with a bit of sci-fi put in. In my head, it didn’t really compute, but in reading it, you realize it’s more than that.

AT: I mean, I hadn’t heard of Toby at all. I was aware there was a pilot when my agent pitched it to me…which was a funny phone call, because I kind of couldn’t believe what I was hearing. It was, like, the most obvious idea in the world, but you think, “This just can’t work.” But then the brilliant thing…and Toby’s such a brilliant writer…is that you read it and suddenly, almost from the get go, it’s original and it’s real and it’s steeped in this sort of truth, this beautiful world of realism. It just seems to work. Russell was part of the (original) pilot, but I made a decision not to watch the pilot. I don’t know why, really. I just…well, it didn’t work, first of all, and I thought, “Maybe that’s a sign I shouldn’t do it.” Yeah, so…I don’t know. Then it just turned over, and it just all worked. And then I met these guys, and they were cool, and we got on so well. And the whole team just works together so well, the crew and everybody. It’s just a joy, it’s an absolute joy.

Lenora Crichlow: Same story, really. Even now, when people who haven’t seen the show come across the show and I’m explaining it to them, I find myself halfway through going through what it’s about, and…it actually sounds quite off-putting. (Laughs) I’m looking at their faces, and I can read that they just think it’s not their cup of tea. I can totally understand, because when it was pitched to me, I thought a bit like the boys: “Oh, this just sounds ridiculous.” It’s only when you get into the meat and bones of the story and the characters that you realize there is something there for everybody, everyone. I suppose that’s what gives it the difference. The sci-fi element…it can only happen as a result of these very human issues and traits and relationships. That’s what makes the difference.

AT: I think that, with the show, people are surprised because the idea does sound ridiculous, but that’s the beauty of being a part of something like this. It’s that, immediately, when people see it, they go, “Oh, okay, I get it now. It’s not what I thought it was going to be.” So I think we’re lucky we have that element, because it gets people from the beginning, you know?

RT: The themes to me sounded American in its concept and scale. I think that’s why our first impression is, “Yeah, if this was America, it would be okay, but in England, we can’t compete.” There hasn’t been a massive track record of hit shows that have got something so kind of “out there.” My first instinct was that it sounds brilliant but it will never, ever come to fruition of what you really aspire it to be. But, however, it has and it can compete with your American shows, which is such a great thing for us. Respectfully to your shows, they are like the top of the pyramid. They are the icon that we look to, to get inspired. People are saying this show is kind of comparable to that and can be put in the brackets with that. What an honor. We’re just absolutely over the moon.

BE: I think there’s almost a “Buffy” feel to it at times.

RT: Yeah, great. And “True Blood,” people are saying. I mean, none of us have seen “True Blood.” Have you seen it?

LC: No.

AT: No, I haven’t seen it.

RT: But we know that has gotten massive reception, a massive audience, and we’re being compared to that and compared to “Buffy.” That’s great for us, we’re just so chapped.

BE: Well, I’m sure the phrase “British ‘True Blood’” is going to be thrown around a lot, because on that show there’s a shape shifter, there’s vampires, and other sordid types of characters.

(At this point, my wife – who had been traveling from Virginia to meet me at the press tour – arrived at the hotel after a highly extended ride on an airport shuttle van and joined us in the courtyard. Fortunately, I had forewarned the trio that her arrival was imminent, and as proper gentleman, Messrs. Turner and Tovey immediately leapt to their feet.)

RT: This is Mrs. Harris?

BE: This is Mrs. Harris.

RT: Hi, Mrs. Harris. How are you doing?

AT: Hello. Hi, Mrs. Harris.

LC: Hi, Mrs. Harris. Welcome. Pull up a chair.

Jenn Harris: I was the last drop off.

RT: Oh, my goodness.

AT: Well, you made it.

LC: You’re here now, that’s the important thing.

BE: And for the record, she has seen the first episode, and she loved it, too.

AT: Oh, fabulous.

JH: It’s awesome.

LC: Oh, great.

RT: Cool.

BE: Yeah, it’s funny that you say that about the British and the American shows, though, because between “Dr. Who,” “Torchwood,” and “Primeval” recently, British sci-fi is actually on a real roll at the moment.

RT: Do you like “Primeval”? Did that do well?

BE: I do like it, yeah. I don’t know how well it’s really done here, but it was pitched to us at TCA last year, and I was a fan right out of the gate.

JH: We enjoyed it.

BE: So did either of you guys approach your iconic monster roles with any particular forethought as far as other vampires or werewolves from the past?

AT: Yeah, I don’t know. It’s weird: you can do all this research, you can watch the movies and read the books, but at the end of the day…it’s not even a choice you make to be original, it’s just sort of something that happens. I don’t know if you can play up to any sort of idea of what people have of a character. I think that’s where you’re going to make a mistake. What you really do…and maybe it’s a cliché to say, but, you know, the writing is so good that it sort of does it itself. It does, the character…it’s an easy transition, you know? You just kind of slide in and, yeah, the script does do it for you, and the characters just evolve through Toby’s writing, which is just sensational.

RT: Your only research would be basically what other people have created, because these aren’t real life things. I mean, a ghost possibly exists, but vampires and werewolves don’t exist. You’re basing what you think your performance should be on what people have done before, based on something that doesn’t exist. What you do is treat it like a human being, like with the writing, and then that’s…

AT: It’s the essence of the show, isn’t it? Which is so lovely. That’s what makes it really deep, is that these guys want to be human, they want to be…

RT: It’s fresh, and we’re rewriting the rules.

LC: I think the biggest research for…well, not the biggest research, but a huge part of the research for us is just on our characters. Essentially, that’s what they are. The werewolf, the ghost, and the vampire side of each of our characters is quite…it’s something that we are quite objective about at times. For me, anyway, my biggest research was, who is Annie? Before I dealt with Annie as a ghost, it was more, “What is she like?” And then the ghost element is just as beguiling to me as it is to her. Do you know what I mean? So that journey is something that you can just play with. Because, I mean, there’s only so much research you can do to play a ghost or a vampire, really. Essentially, Russell had to play George.

AT: It’s great we don’t have to play the supernatural. It’s by proxy that these people happen to be yadda, yadda, yadda. But we don’t have to play it, which is great, you know? It’s just the people, the real people.

BE: So, Lenora, does Toby have a rules and regulations guide for your character? As far as, like, the clothes, which I’m sure you’ve heard about more than once.

LC: Oh, yeah, the clothes… (Laughs) Annie can’t change. Her clothes do kind of adjust slightly with her, but I’m not quite sure where that rule came from. It came from his mind, I think.

AT: I think budget. We didn’t have enough money for your costume change.

LC: I think it was the budget. It was BBC Three we started on, let’s don’t forget that. So one, the budget, but two, it kind of actually makes sense and it all adds to Annie’s frustration, or adds to her sort of being trapped. The house is completely like a prison, almost, and that’s like her uniform. Her costume actually becomes very much a part of her character, and that is when we see it morphing and stuff like that, is when she’s feeling differently.

JH: And it keeps coming back. Like, there’s one episode where she’s fixing her hair and she’s totally changed, she looks totally different, but then she walks out and she looks the same.

LC: Exactly the same. Or she gets a bit more confident, and maybe she will shift a layer, but then it’s very soon back and she’s wrapped up again. And it’s an aid. It’s become sort of a thing that even though, yes, I’ve got one costume, it’s something that the costume designer has been able to help me use and play with, to kind of just sort of all add to her ghostliness.

BE: Well, I guess along the same lines, but for all of you, what’s your favorite aspect of your character to play?

LC: I love Annie’s energy. I think she’s always looking for the bright side, and she’s positive. And for a ghost and someone who’s dead, she’s really, really optimistic. And I like that energy about her. She’s always able to…

JH: And a little sneaky.

LC: A little bit. (Laughs)

JH: But in a cute way.

LC: In a very cute way, yeah.

AT: Well, I think with Mitchell, he’s just…he’s flawed, you know? He’s a troubled soul, and he’s an addict, you know? He wants to be a good person and he wants to live a life that he considers, you know, moral. And he wants to address those issues, as opposed to someone like Herrick, who just doesn’t care anymore, you know? He wants to completely embody what he represents, and he’s happy with that journey, too. But I think Mitchell just wants to get on a positive road. So, essentially, you’re dealing with someone who’s incredibly flawed that wants to take the right road. So I guess it’s his courage and his bravery and his…yeah, yeah, it’s interesting, you know? It wouldn’t be as interesting if I was playing a vampire that was just after the blood lust all the time. That would get incredibly boring, you know. This is a huge journey for Mitchell, and it will always be a struggle. You know, if we go to Series Three, I can bet he’d still be struggling with it. I don’t think it’s ever anything that he is going to completely overcome. So that’s interesting, and it’s cool to kind of play somebody that’s always teetering on possibly falling back off the wagon again and stuff. You know, it’s exciting.

BE: There’s a Britishness about it, too, in that he’s kind of going, “I really feel bad about this, but…”

AT: Yeah, yeah. “Let me apologize, I’m a vampire.” But that’s what makes him real. We all know people like that, you know, that have those kinds of problems and issues, and they deal with them. So we have to feel different about it, and it’s just complex. There’s so much there to play with Mitchell, you know?

RT: I like George’s neurosis. I think it’s fun to play, and I like the fact that they allow me to just go up and down the scale tonally in my voice. He’s just a great stuttery, nervous character, and as an actor, to play somebody who’s kind of a bit twitchy is…it’s rewarding.

JH: You want to help him, but you don’t know how.

RT: Yeah, he needs help, completely.

BE: You had a great spotlight in the second episode with one of your fellow werewolves. Was that fun to play against somebody who was going through the same kind of things and yet knew more about it than yourself?

RT: Yeah, yeah, it’s great. I mean, every script we read is just…before we get it, like, you start and we don’t know what’s happened at the end of the show. Like, we’ve only read one and two and three. You just get so excited about what’s coming up, and that’s fresh. Yeah, it was brilliant, and Dean Lennox Kelly is a wicked actor. This story line…it’s just great dialogue that you don’t really get as an actor a lot. It’s a rarity when you’re given something and you’re getting these words to say, which you love saying. And the scenes, which you completely go, “Oh, I love this.” I really like the dynamic, and you work with people you love. It’s just a gift. This show is a complete gift, basically.

BE: Are the transformations a pain?

RT: Are they a pain? Sometimes.

AT: Quite literally, sometimes.

RT: Yeah, I have to wear contacts, and I’ll have the makeup put on. I’ve got very sensitive skin, so it flares up every now and then. And my teeth…yeah, it’s a long process, and I’m screaming my head off. But, again, that’s rewarding. The compliments I have had on them, the transformation stuff, has been great. And also Philip, who did the animatronics and puppetry of it all, is brilliant. So that again…I think that’s such an important aspect of the show, is the transformations. You don’t really see…you see Annie sort of disappearing towards the end, but…Annie is constantly there, Mitchell has teeth, and your eyes are done on CGI.

AT: Yeah, but it’s so rarely. We’ve only done it a couple of times, which is great, too, because we don’t rely on it. We don’t play on it. Again, it’s just something that you sort of feel as you watch the show, it just has to happen. It’s not something like you get bored of seeing or you feel like the show is trying to show off. Essentially, it comes down to the characters. That’s what’s so beautiful about it.

RT: The way our transformation is, is like completely exposing, and they wrote it as that. So if I went half-heartedly, if I was, like, going “ahhhhh” while doing it, I think it could really shift the balance of the piece. Do you know what I mean? You have to commit to it and go for it, because every bone in your body is breaking and all your insides are changing. And it’s the most immense pain you will ever feel. If the audience doesn’t believe that, then I think that’s failure.

JH: Was it crazy watching it?

RT: Was it what?

JH: Was it crazy watching the transformation onscreen?

RT: It’s weird when you watch it back on the monitor because we have…you can have playback there, and I like doing that. (To the others) Do you like doing that? Yeah, I like watching back afterwards to judge and say, “Oh, yeah, I got away with that.” But they have these two heads, these animatronics heads. So there’s me and there’s one that’s more like me, but they can push bits out. And then there’s another one which is like me, the final wolf. So when you watch it back on the monitor, you’re, like, “God, yeah,” and then you’re, like, “Oh, that isn’t me I’m watching.” That was really weird. Yeah, it is strange. I think my mum finds it strange, doesn’t like it. There’s a scene where I get…probably a spoiler, but I get beaten up, and Mitchell rescues me. That’s how he and George met. George has been attacked by a load of other vampires, and Mitchell broke it up, and they became, like, this codependent friendship/relationship, like “The Odd Couple.” I get beaten up in this scene, and my mum said, “I can’t watch you, I’m almost really upset.” Because, basically, she sees…you know, I’m in character, and I think, “Mum, it’s not me, it’s George.” But she sees her son getting the shit kicked out of him, and she doesn’t like it.

BE: In the first episode, the vampire attack out in the alleyway was pretty gory. Did you hear back from viewers or BBC Three about the goriness?

AT: Well, this is what you were just talking about. It’s that scene, isn’t it?

LC: No, no.

RT: That was a different one.

AT: Oh, right, yeah. Well, yeah, that was pretty gruesome, yeah. Yeah, (Annabel Scholey) did an amazing job. I remember that.

RT: She was great.

AT: She was amazing. No, we didn’t hear back whether anything was too gory. I think that they are the boundaries we can push on the show. I mean, naked bodies as well. And, Lenora, you get naked a bit too. I don’t know if there are any boundaries for this show. Maybe next season will get completely crazy with that.

RT: It’s suspected, I suppose. The audience would expect to see blood and guts.

AT: And loads of it, and that kind of thing. But I remember watching that on the playback and being quite moved, actually. She was amazing in that scene. It was actually a tough day to shoot that one as well, we were pushed for time and stuff.

RT: Yeah, we shot that scene in like 15 minutes.

AT: That’s right. But it’s fine because the blood tastes really good. It’s minty. Treacley and sweet.

BE: And, lastly, who is the coolest person you’ve heard from that’s a “Being Human” fan?

RT: Alan Bennett liked it.

LC: Stephen Fry.

AT: Stephen Fry! I’m a huge fan of Stephen Fry. I love him. He’s a man of incredibly high intellect, and if he likes our show, I think that’s a huge thumbs-up for us. So, yeah, I think that was a big one for me.

LC: Absolutely.

RT: Russell T. Davies is right here.

LC: Oh, gosh, yeah Russell.

RT: He loves it, so that’s always good. A lot of writers have said they’re fans. You don’t really realize who’s seen it because you just do these shows and they go out and you don’t realize who’s watching it. But if someone I run into like that goes, “Oh, I’ve seen it and it’s great,” you’re, like, “Wow, I really respect you, and that’s really lovely. Thank you.”

LC: We’ve had an incredible response from people within the industry, which is always, I think for actors, where you really start to feel, you know, touched by those compliments.

I could hear a lot of you suddenly exhaling with relief after reading where the show was airing, and it’s understandable. The concept sounds positively ridiculous, but there’s something about the knowledge that it’s airing on BBC America that lends credibility to even the most ludicrous of premises, simply because you know they’re going to treat it seriously. You might not know how, but you know they will. And, of course, it adds immeasurably to the show’s credibility to know that it was created by Toby Whithouse, who’s written for “Doctor Who” and “Torchwood.”

Still, it’s comforting to know that the cast of “Being Human” – Russell Tovey (the werewolf), Aidan Turner (the vampire), and Lenora Crichlow (the ghost) – were equally uncertain when they were pitched the idea of the series.

“We’ve been asked the question quite a bit about how we felt when we first heard it,” said Crichlow, “and even when I explain now to people what the show is about, I see them…”

“Glaze over,” chimed in Tovey.

“To be honest with you, it’s in the scripts and in the characters,” Crichlow continued. “I mean, it just works. But it’s almost the most ridiculous idea in the world. I remember getting the call, and I didn’t know if it was comedy or drama or what the hell it was. But I was two or three pages in, and, ‘Oh, wow, I get it now.’ It’s the fact that these guys want to be human, that it’s steeped in this realism, and that makes it work so well. It’s a credit to Toby. He just made it very easy for us. This was a job that you couldn’t say ‘no’ to. First on, we knew it was something quite special and different and, dare I say, even kind of original in some ways.”

“Yeah, it’s an actor’s show,” agreed Tovey. “The characters go through so many emotions, and there’s so much you can do. I mean, I’m screaming one minute and naked the next minute. I’m crying. I’m laughing. Naked again, screaming again. It’s just such an amazing writing and a great concept and exactly what you want to do as an actor in your mid-20s.

“Oddly enough, I think we’re playing real people in this as opposed to playing supernatural,” said Turner. “That’s why it’s so interesting for us to play a vampire, to play a werewolf, and not the sort of typical way, if there is one, which wouldn’t be as interesting as playing these real characters with real afflictions and real problems and real issues. It’s just so much fun.”

There are a lot of easy comparisons to various bits within the show, most notably Tovey’s transformation into a werewolf. When one critic observed that one sequence came within a hairsbreadth of being a shot-for-shot recreation of a scene in “An American Werewolf in London,” Whitlow merely smiled and replied, “Yes, it is, isn’t it?” And as far as the timing of having a show which features a vampire turn up just as the second season of “Twilight” has premiered and the next “Twilight” movie is forthcoming…well, it’s a darned nice bit of luck, but it’s also completely coincidental.

“I don’t know if you know, but the development process for this show was very circuitous and very frustrating,” Whithouse revealed. “It started off as a straight drama about a group of college graduates who buy a house together, and consequently, I was hired to devise this. I created the three characters, and went into a lot of detail with them, had them all sort of mapped out, but they were all completely human. Because we had a lot of difficulty finding a story for this, I suggested rather in a kind of kamikaze fashion, saying, ‘Well, we could always turn George into a werewolf,’ and then it just seemed like a natural progression to give way to characters where we were already pointing that Mitchell could become a vampire and Annie could become a ghost. I mean, that’s a condensed version of a process that took about two years. It’s incredibly fortuitous that it happened to be happening at a time when vampire stock is very high.”

Whithouse has managed to blend comedy, drama, and horror in a very interesting way, but it’s one that, at least to him, seems very natural. “My thing is you don’t live in one genre constantly, and I’ve always tried to replicate that in my writing,” he explained. “You can be having a perfectly normal conversation with somebody. That doesn’t negate something either extremely tragic happening or extremely comedic. When those things happen, when life suddenly takes a left turn, you don’t suddenly think, ‘Oh, my God, we changed genre.’ Generally, life is constantly evolving and shifting, so this is a very natural human thing. You can have an incredibly comedic scene and then suddenly something awful can happen, and I think the weight of that is then magnified. By the same token, in real life, you can have a very tragic situation and to lighten the mood, to leaven it, somebody will make a gag. I think you see shows that kind of stay in one group and stay in one tone constantly. My feeling has always been that life doesn’t stick to one thing and never change tonally. It’s constantly shifting.

“I think one of the kind of successes about the show has been that you can tell a massive, massive story and also a very tiny story. So you’ve got vampires uprising, for example, and at the same time, you’ve got somebody thinking, ‘Oh, my God, can I actually enter into a relationship?’ So you’re telling huge stories and tiny stories, yet for the characters, the stakes are exactly the same level. You can kind of look at humanity in a completely different way, even if it’s kind of minutiae, because it’s that minutiae of these characters that’s kind of fundamentally important. because they’ve lost their humanity, and that was something they’re actually striving for, aspiring to, each in a different level.”

“Being Human” can currently be seen on BBC America.