A Meeting of Minds

There’s a bonus for buffs of “Heroes”, in this coming Wednesday’s episode “The Fix”, with the guest appearance of not one, but two actors from sci-fi bedrocks: Christopher Eccleston from “Doctor Who” and George Takei, alias Mr Sulu in “Star Trek”. As Claude the Invisible Man, Eccleston is typically perky, and happily rejects the traditional English-actor-in-US-drama accent, while Takei is glimpsed briefly in the role of Hiro’s father. And, although the plot hardly shifts at warp speed, there are enough bite-sized intrigues to keep regular viewers hooked.

Behind the scenes of the science fiction drama series, producers of “Heroes” trawled the globe to pick the right actors and actresses to appear in the show. Creator Tim Kring reveals in the eleventh episode of the supporting documentary series “Heroes Unmasked”, entitled “The Invisible Touch”, why he chose British actor Christopher Eccleston to play the role of Peter Petrelli’s reluctant mentor. Greg Grunberg, who plays police officer Matt Parkman, describes how he caused chaos at his audition, and George Takei talks about his role as Kaito Nakamura.

Save the Cheerleader, Save the World!

The smash-hit US drama series “Heroes” makes champions - and villains - of ordinary people, by gifting them with extraordinary abilities: a Japanese office worker able to manipulate time; a cheerleader with incredible regenerative powers; a struggling single mother with a deadly alter ego; a drug-addicted artist whose work predicts a catastrophic future; and a serial killer capable of absorbing all their abilities. Meanwhile, geneticist Mohinder Suresh continues the work of his murdered father - have these gifted men and women entered a new phase of evolution, or are their abilities the result of something far more sinister? Hayden Panettiere is Claire Bennet, the high school cheerleader from Texas with a key role to play in uncovering the truth…

Of particular interest to fans of “Doctor Who”, ninth Doctor Christopher Eccleston joins the cast of “Heroes”, midway through its first season, as Claude for five of its twenty-three episodes. The former Time Lord appears in “Godsend”, “The Fix”, “Distractions”, “Unexpected” and “Company Man” (episodes 12, 13, 14, 16 and 17). And, of note to “Star Trek” fans, Sulu-actor George Takei also guest-stars in five episodes, as Kaito Nakamura, namely “The Fix”, “Distractions”, “Company Man”, “Landslide” and “How to Stop an Exploding Man” (episodes 13, 14, 17, 22 and 23). I draw your attention to the fact that three episodes (13, 14 and 17) feature both actors, though whether or not they are in any scenes together remains to be seen! “Heroes” starts on Wednesday 25th July at 9pm, on BBC TWO, with a double bill comprising “In His Own Image” (broadcast in the States as “Genesis”) and “Don’t Look Back”…