‘Men Up’: BBC Orders Viagra Drama From Matthew Barry

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The BBC has ordered ‘Men Up‘ a feature-length drama, written by Matthew Barry (‘Industry’, ‘Chilling Adventures of Sabrina’), inspired by the remarkable true story of one of the world’s first medical trials for the drug that became Viagra, held in Swansea’s Morriston Hospital in 1994.

Years before the little blue pill changed the lives for millions across the globe, a group of ordinary middle-aged Welsh men underwent the extraordinary, taking part in one of the first clinical trials for an unknown drug which later became Viagra.

Meurig Jenkins, Colin White, Tommy Cadogan, Peetham ‘Pete’ Shah and Eddie O’Connor all have one thing in common. Impotency. It’s affecting them in every aspect of their lives, as they are drowning in shame and silence. Left feeling as failures as men, questioning their manhood, and having attempted their own fixes to no avail, the group is presented with a lifeline: a place on a trial for an unknown drug thought to cure impotence led by the ambitious Dr Dylan Pearce with support from clinical nurse Moira Davies.

As each man grapples with their own insecurities and hiding the truth from their loved ones – including their wives and partners Ffion Jenkins and Teresa Rigby who are also fighting their own battles – will this little pill be able to bring back their spark?

Mixing drama with humour, ‘Men Up’ is a poignant and beautiful story in which a group of unassuming men rise to the challenge to reclaim their sex lives.

The cast includes Iwan Rheon (‘Game of Thrones’, ‘Misfits’, ‘Riviera’) as Meurig Jenkins, Steffan Rhodri (‘House of the Dragon’, ‘Temple’) as Colin White, Paul Rhys (‘A Discovery of Witches’, ‘Rellick’) as Tommy Cadogan, Phaldut Sharma (‘Sherwood’, ‘Romantic Getaway’) as Peetham ‘Pete’ Shah, and Mark Lewis Jones (‘Gangs of London’, ‘The Phantom of the Open’) as Eddie O’Connor, with Aneurin Barnard (‘Dunkirk’, ‘The Pact’) as Dr Dylan Pearce, Joanna Page (‘Gavin & Stacey’, ‘Dolittle’) as Moira Davies, Alexandra Roach (‘Killing Eve’, ‘Sanditon’, ‘No Offence’) as Ffion Jenkins, and Lisa Palfrey (‘Sex Education’, ‘COBRA’) as Teresa Rigby.

The drama also stars Alexandria Riley (‘The Pembrokeshire Murders’, ‘The Pact’), Nathan Sussex (‘It’s A Sin’, ‘Hollyoaks’), Dyfan Dwyfor (‘A Very English Scandal’, ‘Requiem’) and Katy Wix (‘Ghosts’, ‘Stath Lets Flats’).

“Men Up is one of those truly remarkable true stories that is a joy to be able to bring to the screen,” said Davina Earl, executive producer for Quay Street Productions, who co-produce the drama. “This is the type of story that we love at Quay Street – one of heart, soul, complex characters, with humour and drama at the centre. With Matthew Barry’s fantastic script coupled with our stellar cast, audiences are in for a treat.”

Quay Street Productions is an independent production company set up by award-winning producer Nicola Shindler (‘Years and Years’, ‘It’s A Sin’, ‘The Stranger’) in 2021. Their first production was Russell T Davies’ ITV drama ‘Nolly’.

“This little-known story deserves to be shouted from the rooftops and Matthew Barry’s deft writing has brought a human, hilarious slice of Swansea in the 90s to life,” adds Rachel Evans, executive producer for Boom, who also co-produce. “Boom is delighted to be co-producing with Quay Street Productions to feature the Welsh men and women who pioneered the use of a drug which became known right across the globe.”

Boom is one of Wales’s largest production groups, producing over 400 hours of content annually for S4C, BBC, ITV, C5 and UKTV/Dave across various genres from drama, music, entertainment, factual and kids programming.

‘Men Up’ is written by Matthew Barry, directed by Ashley Way (‘White Lines’, ‘Stella’, ‘Merlin’), and produced by Karen Lewis (‘The Salisbury Poisonings’, ‘Years and Years’, ‘Happy Valley’). The executive producers are Nicola Shindler (‘Nolly’, ‘It’s A Sin’, ‘Happy Valley’) and Davina Earl (‘Safe’, ‘Come Home’) for Quay Street Productions, Rachel Evans (’35 Diwrnod/35 Days’, ‘How This Blind Girl…’) for Boom, Matthew Barry and Russell T Davies (‘Nolly’, ‘It’s A Sin’, ‘Doctor Who’) and Rebecca Ferguson for the BBC.

“Who knew that one of the first Viagra trials in the world took place in 1994… in Swansea! I’m beyond delighted to be working with Nicola, Russell, and the entire team to bring this extraordinary tale to the screen,” said Barry. “People hear the word impotence, and they wait for the punchline. But this story is about so much more. And with an incredible Welsh cast, led by Iwan Rheon and Alexandra Roach, I can’t wait to bring it to the screen.”

Matthew Barry has previously worked with Shindler and Davies on their 2015 drama ‘Banana’, which was part of the ‘Cucumber, Banana, Tofu’ series for Channel 4.

‘Men Up’ has received Welsh Government support via Creative Wales and is produced in association with Cineflix Rights as exclusive worldwide distribution partner. Quay Street Productions and Boom are both part of ITV Studios.

‘Men Up‘ does not yet have a premiere date, but if you want to keep track of this or any other show, you can add it via our Never Miss system, and you’ll be notified when it gets a UK premiere date.