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'Canal Street is magical - like living on a movie set'

Lauren HirstNorth West
News imageChannel 4 Alan Cumming is standing behind the bar during a scene from the filming of Tip Toe. BottleChannel 4
Alan Cumming stars as Leo Struthers in the new Channel 4 series

Actor Alan Cumming who stars in the new thriller Tip Toe said he felt like he was on a movie set while filming in Manchester's Gay Village.

The Channel 4 series tells the story of two neighbours - one gay, one straight - whose ongoing feud gets darker and darker as one of them falls deeper into the world of online disinformation, with disastrous consequences for both.

Cumming plays Leo Struthers, a 59-year-old who owns a fictional bar called Spit and Polish on the city's famous Canal Street.

"I've never really been to Canal Street because I've just never really spent much time in Manchester so that was really lovely," said the Tony award-winner and Golden Globe and SAG Award nominee.

"I knew it from [British TV series] Queer as Folk so it was actually really magical to come.

"It's like when I first went to New York and I felt like I was living in a movie set because you know New York and so many movies.

"That's what I felt about Canal Street."

News imageChannel 4 Russell T Davies and Peter Hoar are sat on a kitchen table discussing their work, the kitchen is a TV set. Russell is sitting backwards on the chair and gesticulating towards Peter who looks engaged.Channel 4
Russell T Davies (left) is working with director Peter Hoar (right), who also directed It's a Sin

Tip Toe's creator Russell T Davies is no stranger to filming in Manchester's Gay Village having filmed scenes for his TV trilogy Cucumber, Banana and Tofu and It's A Sin there.

He said he always welcomed the opportunity to film in the city he labelled "Manchattan".

"I'm very proud of having never lived in London and never making things in London," he said.

"I'm a very great advocate for that, of telling people to get outside the capital, stop using the same background, stop using the same plots, stop using the same routines.

"It's brilliant out here. There's such workmanship and craft and genius.

"It's the place to be. Very proud of Manchester. I love it here."

News imageChannel 4 Producer Phil Collinson, writer Russell T Davies and actor Alan Cumming are standing around a table and laughing while on set for episode fiveChannel 4
Producer Phil Collinson, writer Russell T Davies and actor Alan Cumming pictured on set

Davies said filming Tip Toe on Canal Street had been a trip down memory lane for him.

"It's strange to be filming there and I was looking around thinking 26 years ago I was on that corner filming with the Queer as Folk cast," he said.

"I've got to say how much the Canal Street welcomed us in.

"In 1998 when we were doing Queer as Folk, there was quite a bit of suspicion of us naturally that we weren't going to let people down or misrepresent them.

"It's very funny all these years later, we're very much welcomed in, which has been gorgeous."

You can catch up the first two episodes of Tip Toe on Channel 4's streaming service or watch new episodes on Sundays.

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