About!
Rivals is a British period comedy-drama television series based on the novel Rivals by Jilly Cooper.
In 1986, the British nobleman and MP Rupert Campbell-Black and, coming from the bourgeoisie nouveau riche (though married into old money), Tony, Lord Baddingham, have a rivalry that seeps into the world of Baddingham's Corinium independent commercial television station, located in the (fictional) county of Rutshire, in the Cotswolds region of southwest England. Lord Baddingham brings American producer Cameron Cook to help strengthen Corinium's programming, and hires dynamic Irish newsman Declan O'Hara, husband of actress Maud, away from the BBC.
The Rutshire Chronicles
The Rutshire Chronicles, written by Jilly Cooper, are a bestselling series of novels set in England’s countryside, where ambition, rivalry, and romance collide. From horse-racing stables to lavish country estates, the books follow unforgettable characters navigating love, power, betrayal, and passion.
About
Set in the fictional county of Rutshire, England, the show follows the cutthroat and hedonistic world of 1980s television. The central plot revolves around media mogul Lord Tony Baddingham (David Tennant) and ex-Olympian Rupert Campbell-Black (Alex Hassell) battling over a major regional television franchise.
“People used to sit around the fire for their stories. Now we sit around the television. We point our chairs at the corner of the room, and that is where we commune. Television has the power to bring us together.”