By Matthew Mohan,Matthew Mohan-Hickson
Copyright scotsman
Waterloo Road is back for another season on the BBC. The hit show will have a new teacher joining the staff. But who plays the character and what to expect?
School is back and Waterloo Road is about to be in session once again. The 16th series of the beloved drama will be welcoming some new faces this time around.
Jon Richardson is the biggest name who has been added to the cast, but there will also be some other additions as well. The show makes its return after the conclusion of The Great British Sewing Bee last week.
But who can you expect to see in the cast this time around? Here’s all you need to know:
What time is Waterloo Road on TV today?
The beloved and long-running show will start its 16th series this evening (September 23). Revived back in 2023 with season 11, Waterloo Road has again become a fixture on the Beeb.
For the premiere of its 16th series, Waterloo Road will start at 9pm on BBC One. It follows the latest episode of Stacey & Joe,
The full boxset landed on BBC iPlayer at 6am today, if you can’t wait to watch more. There will be eight episodes in total – the same length as series 15.
The preview for tonight’s episode, via Radio Times, reads: “The classroom drama returns for a new term. Headteacher Stella is forced to navigate a fresh set of challenges when her estranged grandchildren land at the school.
“New teacher Darius Donovan (played by comedian Jon Richardson) is soon shaking things up in the staffroom, while Jack Rimmer finds himself tackling the troubles of a new generation as he returns as school counsellor. Schuey and Agnes cause uproar when they rebel against Stella’s new rules.”
Who is new to the cast for series 16?
The major addition to Waterloo Road this time around is comedian Jon Richardson. He is playing the new media teacher Darius Donovan.
Having had a guest role in the previous season, Jason Merrells is back as Jack Rimmer and has been promoted to a regular spot. Fintan Buckard and Savannah Kunyo will be playing Waterloo Road head teacher Stella Drake (Lindsey Coulson)’s grandchildren and Christine Bottomley plays Stella’s daughter.
Christopher Jeffers has also joined the cast of Waterloo Road for series 16. He plays Mitch Swift, the school’s new special educational needs coordinator.
Speaking about joining the cast, Jon Richardson said: “I’m very excited. Waterloo Road is an institution. I’m pleased to be here and making a heck of an entrance.
“I was nervous because it was all filmed in an actual school. I had all the anxiety you’d get being back at school, the smell of the canteen, the sound of boots in the corridors, and all that.
“But also, the nerves of coming into a big job like that. I was very lucky to, in my first acting job, be given something like Waterloo Road. It was an absolute gift.”
He continued: “This series is very intense. There’s addiction being dealt with, but also a death in this series. It doesn’t get more serious than the death of a person due to a certain degree of negligence.
“Whether I work in acting again or not, I don’t think I’ll ever film stuff as intense as what we filmed in episode four. Ruth, the director we had for those episodes, was phenomenal. She came from a live background and has done a lot of theatre, and made those scenes feel like theatre.”
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