Russell T Davies' chilling new drama takes aim at disinformation

Tip Toe's creator Russell T Davies: 'I wish television could change the world' 19 hours ago Share Save Add as preferred on Google Josh Parry LGBT & identity reporter, the set of Tip Toe Channel 4 Alan Cumming says the role involved some difficult, violent scenes On a stereotypically rainy day in Manchester, we're ushered into a kitchen that at first glance appears to be in a normal terraced house. There are dishes in the sinks and food in the fridge, but a quick look outside at the blue skies and sunshine gives the game away - this is actually a TV set. The occupier of the house? Alan Cumming. And sitting at the kitchen table is TV writing legend, Russell T Davies. The BBC has been exclusively invited behind the scenes to meet the cast and crew of Davies' upcoming thriller, Tip Toe. It 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. Mandy Ingham / BBC News The houses featured in the show were recreated in a Manchester film studio - Alan Cumming spoke to the BBC in his character's kitchen Dealing with such serious topics, but still managing to be funny is well-trodden ground for Davies, but while It's a Sin looked back on the 80s and Years and Years was set in a dystopian future, Tip Toe is dealing with the here-and-now. "I see the world getting worse and worse these days to be honest," Davies says. "I am very worried about the future for my nieces and nephews." Channel 4 Russell T Davies (left) is working with director Peter Hoar (right), who also directed It's a Sin I ask if he hopes the show could have a positive, real-world impact. It's A Sin, for example, saw a huge increase in HIV testing rates , Mr Bates vs The Post Office brought the nation's attention to the Horizon IT scandal . Davies shakes his head. "I wish television could change the world," he says. "I'd have written more and changed it faster if I could. I do feel bound to comment on the world though." Alan Cumming plays Leo Struthers, a 59-year-old who owns a bar in Manchester's Gay Village. Casting him is a personal triumph for Davies, who tells me he's been trying to get Cumming to appear in one of his shows for more than 20 years. The role of Leo was pitched to Cumming before the script was even written, and the actor was "blown away" by the concept because of a twist at the start of episode one: his character is dead. "As the series goes on and we all get to like everybody, and worry for them, you almost forget [I'm dead]," Cumming explains. "But we don't know how it's happened, or when it's happened in the story. It's really clever, it's suspenseful. "It's also so relevant and so needed." Channel 4 The series was filmed in and around Greater Manchester, including a residential street in Salford David Morrissey plays Clive Goss, Leo's next door neighbour. It's the first time Morrissey and Cumming have worked together,