Plebs (TV series)

Plebs
Genre	Comedy
Starring	Joel Fry Tom Rosenthal Ryan Sampson Tom Basden Bella Dayne Karl Theobald Doon Mackichan Tom Davis Lydia Rose Bewley Sophie Colquhoun Adrian Scarborough
Theme music composer	Oliver Julian
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of series	3
No. of episodes	22 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers	Caroline Leddy Sam Leifer
Producers	Tom Basden Caroline Leddy Sam Leifer Teddy Leifer
Production locations	Nu Boyana Studios, Bulgaria
Running time	25 minutes
Production company	Rise Films
Original release
Network	ITV2
Release	25 March 2013 (2013-03-25) – present

Plebs is a British television series broadcast on ITV2. It was first broadcast in March 2013, and is produced by Tom Basden, Caroline Leddy, Sam Leifer and Teddy Leifer. It stars Joel Fry, Tom Rosenthal and Ryan Sampson, who play young residents of ancient Rome. The format has been compared to The Inbetweeners, Up Pompeii and Blackadder. The first two episodes were shown on 25 March 2013. A second series of eight episodes was broadcast between 22 September and 3 November 2014. A third series of eight episodes was broadcast between 4 April and 16 May 2016.

The style is contemporary and anachronistically uses modern language especially by the character Stylax.

The series uses predominantly ska/rocksteady music during all the opening and closing titles and during each episode as background music.

Premise

The show follows Marcus, Stylax, and their slave Grumio, as they go through daily life in ancient Rome. Marcus and Stylax work in the scriptorium of a grain company with their manager, Flavia, the water-carrier Aurelius, and communications officer Claudius. They live next door to two Britons, Cynthia, an aspiring actress, and her slave Metella.

Series 3 replaces Cynthia and Metella with a woman from Gaul called Delphine who begins a relationship with Marcus. However Marcus is struggling with the relationship as their personalities do not mix together at all.

Cast

• Tom Rosenthal as Marcus, works as a copier in the scriptorium (2013 - Present)
• Joel Fry as Stylax, Marcus' friend, and shredder in the scriptorium (2013 - Present)
• Ryan Sampson as Grumio, Marcus' dimwitted and lazy slave (2013 - Present)
• Tom Basden as Aurelius, the scriptorium water-holder (2013 - Present)
• Sophie Colquhoun as Cynthia, a Briton who aspires to be an actress (2013 - 2014)
• Lydia Rose Bewley as Metella, Cynthia's slave (2013 - 2014)
• Doon Mackichan as Flavia, the manager of the scriptorium (2013 - Present)
• Karl Theobald as the Landlord (2013 - Present)
• Adrian Scarborough as Claudius (2013 - 2014)
• Tom Davis as Davus, the Landlord's henchman (2014 - Present)
• Bella Dayne as Delphine, a young woman from Gaul, with whom Marcus is in a relationship until the end of series 3 (2016)
• Maureen Lipman as Landlady, who takes over after the Landlord goes missing (2016 - Present)

Production

Plebs is filmed at Nu Boyana Film Studios, Sofia, Bulgaria, as were popular films such as Gladiator and 300.

Series overview

Series	Episodes		Originally aired
			First aired	Last aired
1	6		25 March 2013 (2013-03-25)	22 April 2013 (2013-04-22)
2	8		22 September 2014 (2014-09-22)	3 November 2014 (2014-11-03)
3	8		4 April 2016 (2016-04-04)	16 May 2016 (2016-05-16)

Episodes

Series 1

No. overall	No. in series	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	UK viewers (millions)
1	1	"The Orgy"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	25 March 2013 (2013-03-25)	1.16
Marcus and Stylax are pleased when two attractive young women, Cynthia (a would-be actress) and her slave Metella, move into the apartment next door. Marcus offers to show Cynthia around the city, but his attempts to form a relationship with her are ruined when he tries to invite her to an orgy. Meanwhile, Stylax arranges to attend the party with their boss, Flavia, but discovers that he is part of the entertainment.
2	2	"The Gladiator"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	25 March 2013 (2013-03-25)	0.94
Cynthia's charming new gladiator boyfriend Cassius (Danny Dyer) impresses everyone except jealous Marcus, who arranges with their sleazy landlord to have him put up against a formidable opponent in his next bout. In the meantime, Cynthia breaks with Cassius when she finds out what he really does for a living, but Marcus is unable to call off the fight. However, a devastated Cassius is not in the right frame of mind for the occasion.
3	3	"The Erotic Vase"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	1 April 2013 (2013-04-01)	0.80
It's Grumio's birthday and he receives an erotic vase featuring a girl that the boys think looks like Cynthia at a certain angle. Marcus, under pressure from the girls to be nicer to his slave, suggests they swap roles for the day. Grumio takes full advantage of the situation by blackmailing Marcus, threatening to tell Cynthia about the vase. Meanwhile, Stylax hangs out with his cousin Lucretia (Naomi Bentley), with whom he has an unusually close relationship. Marcus and his other friends consider this to be incest, and he is forced to break it off with her.
4	4	"The Herpes Cat"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	8 April 2013 (2013-04-08)	0.69
To endear himself to Cynthia, Marcus befriends a mangy cat she's rescued from the courtyard, but the cat is accidentally killed. Stylax is suffering from a disturbing itch and visits a sexual health clinic where he falls for an attractive nurse. Flavia recommends an ointment for his condition. Meanwhile Grumio buys a lottery ticket from the landlord.
5	5	"Bananae"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	15 April 2013 (2013-04-15)	Under 0.59
Mass immigration from Thrace puts the boys into contact with a sexy Thracian lodger Irina and a dazzling yellow exotic fruit, the banana (plural, "bananae"). Meanwhile, Marcus has an unfortunate encounter with an aggressive elderly war veteran (played by Brian Murphy) who is collecting for charity. Irina, far from being the useful addition to the household that Stylax anticipates, has brought along her husband, and yet more Thracian couples turn up, overcrowding the apartment. The bananae catch on and become a craze with Marcus' fellow-workers. When Marcus is approached again by the veteran, he fights back and injures him, and has to avoid the veteran's friends who are looking for revenge. Grumio points the old soldiers in the direction of Irina's husband. The Thracians flee Rome, leaving behind a pineapple.
6	6	"Saturnalia"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	22 April 2013 (2013-04-22)	Under 0.66
It is the festival of Saturnalia and the celebration on the stroke of midnight is the perfect opportunity for Marcus to make a move on Cynthia, but she thinks she is cursed and doesn't feel like coming out. They think they have struck lucky when Flavia invites them to her party along with Aurelius the water carrier, until all three discover that they are expected to wait on the real guests; to escape in time for the public festivities, they rig the water clock so that Flavia thinks it is already midnight. Meanwhile, Grumio goes on a mission to make sure that sacrificial meat doesn't go to waste. Befriended by a priest, he thinks his luck is in until he discovers he is being taken to Cyprus for castration.

Series 2

Series Two began on ITV2 on Monday 22 September 2014 at 10pm with a season opener double bill. Tom's father Jim Rosenthal appeared in episode 1 as a commentator on a chariot race.

No. overall	No. in series	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	UK viewers (millions)
7	1	"The Chariot"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	22 September 2014 (2014-09-22)	1.09
Having won 100 denarii each through Stylax's betting on a chariot race, he and Marcus have very different ideas on how to spend the money. Marcus, naturally, wants to spend it on Cynthia, whilst Stylax prefers a more laddish approach.
8	2	"The Best Men"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	22 September 2014 (2014-09-22)	0.87
Surprisingly, Aurelius is getting married. Even more surprisingly, he invites his "best mate" Marcus to be his best man. Reluctant to say the least, Marcus plans a night on the cheap, avoiding the hottest club in town.
9	3	"The Baby"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	29 September 2014 (2014-09-29)	0.78
Grumio finds an abandoned baby at the bins; Stylax uses it to get closer to a young wet nurse; Marcus doesn't want to see Cynthia's one-woman play
10	4	"The Patron"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	6 October 2014 (2014-10-06)	0.74
Marcus is unwilling to pay for the medicine that Grumio needs. A nobleman (James Fleet) shows an interest in Stylax's charioteering career, but seems too good to be true.
11	5	"The New Slave"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	13 October 2014 (2014-10-13)	0.84
Marcus and Stylax purchase a new slave (Tim Key) at an auction that might be a psychopath.
12	6	"The Candidate"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	20 October 2014 (2014-10-20)	0.57
Marcus and Stylax get involved in the campaign of Victor of the Gracchi (Simon Callow), a local politician; Grumio takes up with Victor's opponent
13	7	"The Phallus"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	27 October 2014 (2014-10-27)	0.77
The boys bump into a former schoolmate, Fabianus, who is now a lawyer. Stylax fails to connect with an old flame, Cordelia.
14	8	"The Race"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	3 November 2014 (2014-11-03)	0.94
Marcus and Stylax need to raise 3,000 denarii to keep the girls from being deported. Grumio discovers that the landlord is in prison

Series 3

Series Three began on ITV2 on Monday 4 April 2016 at 10pm, with the broadcast of "The Beasts" and "Justin Junior".

No. overall	No. in series	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	UK viewers (millions)
15	1	"The Beasts"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	4 April 2016 (2016-04-04)	1.06
The Games are taking place in the city and the boys are desperate for tickets. Marcus meets Delphine (Bella Dayne), a fiery activist from Gaul who is later revealed to have an interesting past, while Grumio clashes with Landlady (Maureen Lipman), the mother of their missing landlord.
16	2	"Justin Junior"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	4 April 2016 (2016-04-04)	1.04
Grumio's estranged father returns, prompting a father-son reconciliation.
17	3	"The Vestal"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	11 April 2016 (2016-04-11)	1.07
Marcus' parents are staying with the boys, prompting Marcus to attempt to hide Delphine from them. Stylax becomes obsessed with a Vestal Virgin. Grumio begins a business endeavour.
18	4	"The Cupid"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	18 April 2016 (2016-04-18)	1.11
After being accused of being uncultured by Delphine, the boys take their first steps into the theatre where Grumio wins the role of Cupid.
19	5	"The Crime Wave"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	25 April 2016 (2016-04-25)	0.91
After being mugged, Marcus, Stylax and Delphine take up a defence class, where Marcus' manliness is undermined. Grumio begins dating a cake maker.
20	6	"Jugball"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	2 May 2016 (2016-05-02)	1.03
The son of the owner of the office where Marcus and Stylax work visits on work experience; before long Flavia is fired and Marcus finds himself in charge. Stylax invents a new ball game.
21	7	"The New Master"	Sam Leifer	Matt Morgan	9 May 2016 (2016-05-09)	1.15
Grumio is sent to work for another master after injuring his slave, where he then prompts a rebellion. Marcus wants Stylax and Delphine to get on better and gets more than he bargained for.
22	8	"The Weatherist"	Sam Leifer	Sam Leifer & Tom Basden	16 May 2016 (2016-05-16)	1.10
When a Weatherist moves in next door and predicts an earthquake, Marcus and Stylax use the opportunity to improve their love lives. Grumio also plans to take advantage of the impending quake when he is denied a dish of curry.

DVD releases

Name	Region 2	Discs
Series One	29 April 2013	1
Series Two	5 January 2015	1
Series Three	18 July 2016	1

International broadcast

Plebs premiered in Australia on 8 January 2015 on ABC2.

See also

• Plebs

External links

• Plebs on Twitter
• Plebs at IMDb
• Plebs and Ska article