Tom Cullen Talks About The BBC’s The Gold Series Two

The Only Guy Who Got Away With It

The BBC’s The Gold returns for a second series on 8 June and here’s one of its stars Tom Cullen, who plays John Palmer, talking about it…

How would you describe John Palmer in this series?

In series one we leave John Palmer as really the only guy that got away with it. He was found not guilty in the Old Bailey for his part of the smelting of the gold, through saying that he didn’t know that it was Brink’s-Mat, which of course is highly suspect.

There’s quite a large leap in terms of John Palmer from series one to series two. We pick him up at his kind of zenith. He ran a very large timeshare business which we see the genesis of in series one but now it’s at its absolute peak and it was an incredibly successful business for a long time. We also see him on The Sunday Times Rich List next to the Queen where he’s worth a reported £150,000,000. I think that he sees himself being on the Rich List as a chance to distance himself from the Brink’s-Mat robbery because it puts his money down to his legitimate business affairs in Tenerife as a timeshare king. We start with him in a Rolls Royce, beautiful suits, feeling very good about himself. He’s a man who is consumed with a need and a drive to be more than his beginnings. John Palmer came from an extraordinarily impoverished background. He left school at a really young age unable to read or write and he bettered himself within the world in which he knew how to do, and that was in crime.

What are the themes of the series?

The themes of the show are a continuation of series one, in that it’s about class, it’s about money, it’s about greed. It’s about how money can be like an infection, and it can change the very makeup of a person. I also think it is about consequences. What happens if you push beyond your limits?

How would you describe Palmer’s look in series two?

Palmer’s style has definitely evolved since series one. In series one he was in big baggy jumpers and ill-fitting jeans. The more money that he’s got, the more he’s stepped into what he perceives is that world. So, the world of affluence. He’s fully embraced the 90s baggy suit which is hilarious. When I was wearing them, I just felt like I was a little boy wearing my dad’s clothes – they are enormous, but they are fantastic. He’s also got a plethora of ties that only your kind of horrible, funky uncle would wear. John Palmer in real life, I think the word would be to describe him was softer. In series one, I physically embraced that and was softer but for this series I’ve got a little bit fitter, but still kept the John Palmer element to him. He never looked like a supermodel, but I think that it’s all about looking good for him. Stylistically I think the show’s evolved beyond series one anyway. Purely because we have a different creative team – we have a new director, new DOP and they are moving it into the 90s. It’s all about hope and colour and money, and that’s where our show has gone.

What can you tell us about John & Marnie’s relationship in this series?

One of John’s key relationships is with his wife Marnie (Stefanie Martini) who was in series one. She kind of acts as a reminder of who he was and where he came from, she was just trying to ground him. She can see that he’s disappearing, and she wants him back. Marnie constantly reminds him that they have enough and that it’s time for him to stop. But he just can’t. He’s on the train and he’s putting more coal into the fire.