SPARE A THOUGHT for any diners at London’s Jones & Sons restaurant who haven’t seen Boiling Point. “People keep going in and taking pictures of themselves lying in the spot where [Andy, played by Stephen Graham] collapses at the end,” says Philip Barantini, director of the tense one-take kitchen drama, which was shot in the restaurant in March 2020. The filmmaker concedes that that must be a pretty perplexing sight for anyone not acquainted with the film. Then again, there’s much that’s perplexing right now regarding Boiling Point — not least the news that it’s been commissioned as a TV series, featuring the character many presumed died at the film’s end.
“Well, we wrote it as a heart attack. In our minds, he lived,” grins Barantini. “It was definitely left open to interpretation. So when the BBC approached us about doing a TV show and we spoke to Stephen, it felt like the right thing to do.” The This Is England actor is a supporting character this time rather than the show’s lead. “Stephen’s incredibly busy so wasn’t able to do the full series,” Barantini reveals. Instead, the show — which is currently in production — picks up six months after the film, and focuses on Carly, Andy’s sous chef from the movie, played by The Lazarus Project’s Vinette Robinson. However, each episode also “goes on a journey with a different character from the kitchen, diving into their little pocket of life”, exploring what they get up to without their aprons, too.