Vienna Blood series 3 - Meet the cast and creatives
and discover the filming locations
Vienna Blood is set in 1900s Vienna: a hotbed of
philosophy, science and art, where a clash of cultures and ideas play out in
the city’s grand cafes and opera houses
Published:
1 December 2022
https://www.bbc.com/mediacentre/mediapacks/vienna-blood-series-3-cast-filming-locations
The third
series of thrilling crime drama Vienna Blood (3 x 90’) – written by acclaimed
screenwriter Steve Thompson (Sherlock, Deep State, Leonardo) and based on the
best-selling Liebermann novels by Frank Tallis – will air on BBC Two in
December.
Filmed in
English and on location in Vienna and Budapest, season three is directed by
Academy Award® and Emmy® nominee Robert Dornhelm (Anne Frank: The Whole Story)
and stars Matthew Beard (The Imitation Game, Dracula, Avenue 5) as Max
Liebermann, and Juergen Maurer (Vorstadtweiber, Tatort) as Detective Inspector
Oskar Rheinhardt.
Vienna
Blood is set in 1900s Vienna: a hotbed of philosophy, science and art, where a
clash of cultures and ideas play out in the city’s grand cafes and opera
houses.
A brilliant
young English doctor Max Liebermann (Matthew Beard) and Detective Inspector
Oskar Rheinhardt (Juergen Maurer) investigate a series of unusual and
disturbing murders. Max’s extraordinary skills of perception and psychology and
Oskar’s forceful tenacity lead them to solve some of Vienna’s most mysterious
and deadly cases.
Produced by
Endor Productions and MR Film for ORF (Austria) and ZDF (Germany), licensed to
over 100 territories, including the UK (BBC), US (PBS), France (France 3) and
Spain (Movistar), Vienna Blood has been a hit around the world. In the UK, the
premiere of the second season was one of BBC Two’s top performing dramas of the
year, while in France it was the No.1 show of the night, garnering a 14.6%
share for France 3. In Austria, it delivered a huge 25% share for ORF and in
Germany posted a market share of 12.3%, with high online viewing figures.
Sue Deeks,
BBC Head of Programme Acquisition, says: “We are truly delighted to welcome
Vienna Blood back to BBC Two and iPlayer. What better way to spend a winter’s
evening than to watch Max and Oskar as they attempt to solve three more
ingenious murder mysteries in such a gloriously opulent setting.”
Carlo Dusi,
Managing Director of Endor Productions, comments: “It was a pleasure and an
honour to film three more fantastic stories from the brilliant Steve Thompson
across Vienna and Budapest and have the opportunity to bring more of the world
originally created by the great Frank Tallis in his Liebermann novels to a
global audience. We cannot wait for viewers worldwide to discover Max
Liebermann and Oskar Rheinhardt’s latest adventures through Matthew Beard and
Juergen Maurer’s incredible performances, once again under Robert Dornhelm’s
magical direction. The new season also features a range of wonderful supporting
characters, both old and new, and we hope that our loyal Vienna Blood audience
will love the new season as much as we all loved making it!"
Rodrigo
Herrera Ibarguengoytia, VP Scripted Acquisitions & Co-Productions at Red
Arrow Studios International says: “It’s such a pleasure working with MR Film,
Endor Productions and the entire creative Vienna Blood team, who continue to
outdo themselves each season with gripping new crime cases and more sumptuous
locations that fans of the show have come to expect. We can’t wait to bring
this much- anticipated new season to viewers around the world.”
Oliver
Auspitz and Andreas Kamm, co-managing directors of MR Film,say: “It’s always
amazing to produce such a successful series. What is added to Vienna Blood is
the unique atmosphere that builds up over the seasons and is always spiced up
with new thrilling cases. Under Robert Dornhelm’s direction, our outstanding
cast once again draws us into the Vienna at the turn of the century, with all
of its glamour and dark sides. Together with our great and loyal partners at
Endor Productions, RASI and MovieBar as well as ORF and ZDF and various
supporting institutions, we wish joyous and gripping hours with Max and Oscar
to our worldwide audience!”
Red Arrow
Studios International has led the co-financing of the series and is the
international distributor. Germany’s ZDF and Austria’s ORF are co-production
partners and will premiere the show in their respective territories. Other
funding partners include National Film Institute Hungary, Televisionfund
Austria & TV-Filmfund Vienna
Vienna Blood Filming Locations
Film 7: Deadly Communion
The Loos
House is the exterior of Kristina’s Vogl’s fashion house. The house contrasts
vividly with the other buildings in Vienna’s Michaelerplatz square thanks to
its sleek, relatively unadorned design. Those qualities proved quite
contentious when architect Adolf Loos built the place back in 1912 for the
tailors Goldman und Salatsch. Apparently, the less architecturally adventurous
among the Viennese (which included Emperor Franz Joseph) did not take kindly to
the design, though the Loos House now counts as an iconic example of Viennese
Modernism.
Another
historical building, the Hazai Bank, provides the interior of Mode Salon Vogl.
This monumental building was originally constructed in Secessionist style by
Károly Reiner to be the stately headquarters of Hazai Bank in Budapest, opening
for business in 1914. Following the German occupation of Hungary in 1944, Swedish
consul Raoul Wallenberg rented space in the bank. Wallenberg declared it as an
official Swedish Consulate that could not be entered by Nazi authorities to
eventually shelter many Magyar Jews. At the same time Wallenberg sometimes
lived in the building himself, until his mysterious disappearance in early
1945. After WWII, British diplomats moved in and the new embassy became a
bastion of Western culture. Throughout the Cold War the local authorities
closely observed every person who entered or exited the building. More recently
the embassy relocated.
Max’s
Apartment is found in the Bedo House building in Budapest. Also known as the
Hungarian Art Nouveau House, the building was designed in 1903 by Emil Vidor.
Vidor was responsible for ensuring perfect stylistic unity between the
buildings, their furnishings, and even the ornate stained-glass windows which
we see in Vienna Blood. Today Bedo is a unique collection of the early 1900s.
The funeral
parlour where Max and Oskar search for a man with a special connection to
death, was shot in Vienna’s Central Cemetery (Wiener Zentralfriedhof) which is
one of the largest cemeteries in the world and opened in 1874.
Párisi
Udvar Hotel is the location for the cafe where Leah and Clara drink to Clara’s
success as a journalist. It is situated in Budapest’s city centre on the Pest
side next to the river Danube.
Film 8: The God of Shadows
Kirche am
Steinhof - Max’s hospital’s exterior is shot in the Steinhof. It was originally
a psychiatric hospital and centre for pulmonology.
The
hospital lies in Penzing, the 14th district of Vienna, was built according to
the plans of architect Otto Wagner and opened in 1907.
The Postal
Museum is where we find Mendel Liebermann’s haberdashery business. This museum
in Budapest holds a collection that started in 1881. Today, the Postal Museum
holds numerous antique items of postal, telegraph, radio and television
history, while also possessing a collection of significant pieces from recent
times.
Michaelerplatz:
Max and Oskar race through an elegant square in Vienna towards the end of the
film. One side of Michaelerplatz forms the entrance to the Hofburg palace
complex. The fountain we see, was created by the sculptor Edmund Hellmer and is
called “Macht zu Lande” (“Power on Land”).
The
National Museum of Hungary is the setting for an auction in this episode. This
institution traces its foundation to 1802 when Count Ferenc Széchényi set up
the National Széchényi Library. In 1846, the museum moved to its current
location where it resides in a neo-classical style building designed by Mihály
Pollack. In 1848 the Hungarian Revolution was partially spurred by the reading
of Sándor Petőfi's 12 points and the famous poem Nemzeti dal on the front steps
of this museum which helped make it a major part of Hungary’s national
identity.
Dr Ignaz
Seipel Platz, formerly known as Universitätsplatz (University Square) is the
stage for Oskar and Max running in search of a masked assailant. This was once
the heart of Vienna’s old university quarter. Today, the Austrian Academy of
Sciences is located inside the Alte-Uni (Old Uni) building. The old
university’s assembly-hall building was built by Jadot de Ville-Issey in 1753
with a façade structured by light and shadow and an astronomic observatory
behind. On the right of the narrow square is the Early Baroque Jesuit Church.
Film 9: Death is Now a Welcome Guest
The
Vígszínház Theatre is the setting for the rehearsals of Ibsen’s Doll’s House
that we watch in Film 9. This 125-year-old comedy theatre is one of the most
beautiful theatres in central Europe. At the turn of the century, as Budapest
became a world renowned city, its citizens wanted a theatre that suited its own
tastes and needs. In 1896, the imposing Vígszínház was built in one year,
designed and created by two brilliant architects, the Austrian Ferdinand
Fellner and the Prussian Hermann Helmer.
Belvedere
Palace Gardens: Film 9 ends with Max and Oskar walking through the Baroque
gardens of Vienna’s Belvedere Palace. The main garden is situated between the
Lower and the Upper Belvedere and extends over three large terraces. The
design, by Dominique Girard, garden architect of the Elector of Bavaria,
showcases all the essential elements of Baroque Garden architecture:
symmetrical flower parterres, water basins, tiers and steps, trimmed hedges and
more. On the south side of the Upper Belvedere, the reflection pond offers a
sophisticated visual: the mirroring effect creates a visible duplication of the
monumental palace façade.
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Max’s Apartment is found in the Bedo House
building in Budapest. Also known as the Hungarian Art Nouveau House, the building
was designed in 1903 by Emil Vidor. Vidor was responsible for ensuring perfect
stylistic unity between the buildings, their furnishings, and even the ornate
stained-glass windows which we see in Vienna Blood. Today Bedo is a unique
collection of the early 1900s.
Where the glory days never ended: the Hungarian Art
Nouveau House
https://visithungary.com/articles/where-the-glory-days-never-ended-the-hungarian-art-nouveau-house
Budapest
Greater
Budapest
If you also
find the aristocratic world of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy fascinating, we
have good news for you: there is a place, deep in the heart of Budapest, that
will transport you back to the early 20th century. The Hungarian Art Nouveau
House is a unique collection, where everything spins a tale of the early 1900s
– from the walls and furniture, down to the very last coffee cup.
This tale
of adventure begins in 1903, when the land was purchased by a wealthy factory
owner, Béla Bedő and his family. Emil Vidor was the architect commissioned to
design the house. He had previously studied the architectural trends of the
time in various Western European capitals, and had even worked with Miklós Ybl
in designing Saint Stephen’s Basilica, the Opera House and a number of other
high-profile buildings in Budapest. With such extensive experience under his
belt, it is hardly surprising that both the interior and the exterior of the
Bedő House display characteristic elements of Art Nouveau, such as natural
motifs and asymmetrical forms.
Art
Nouveau, down to the smallest detail
The façade
of the house, with its special enclosed balconies, is adorned with ceramic
flowers made in the famous Hungarian Zsolnay porcelain manufactory. The unique
bean-shaped windows open onto the magnificent fountain in the inner courtyard.
It is worth
noting that – as was customary at the time – Vidor designed not only the
building, but also the furnishings intended for it, as there were no interior
designers at the time, but for wealthy families, tasteful furnishings were just
as important as they are today. Thus, the architect was the one responsible for
ensuring perfect stylistic unity between the buildings, their furnishings, and
even the ornate stained-glass windows.
The house
included a number of individual apartments, where staff employed by the Bedő
company could rent homes adjacent to the owner’s family, as well as a number of
offices.
The ravages
of time
However,
hard times fell upon the once-flourishing house. The two World Wars, the siege
of Budapest, and the 1848 and 1956 wars for Hungarian independence all severely
impacted the building, and its successive owners gave it ever-new functions.
Over the years, it was repurposed as an antique shop, a carpentry workshop, a
large-scale kitchen, and even a college lecture hall.
A second
chance
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REVIEW
Vienna Blood: Deadly Communion, review: Freudian drama
relishes its own perversions
2/5
By
Anita
Singh,
ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
14 December
2022 • 10:30pm
When Vienna
Blood (BBC Two) first appeared in 2019, this period detective drama had a whiff
of Sherlock about it, owing to the fact that the two shows shared a
scriptwriter, Steve Thompson. It was nowhere near as good, but it was at least
trying to perk things up with a bit of quirkiness and an awkward, odd-couple
chemistry between the two leads: a gruff detective inspector and a young
psychoanalyst.
Based on
the novels by Frank Tallis, the show proved a ratings hit for BBC Two. Now
we’re into series three, and, on the evidence of the first episode, the plots
are taking a darker turn. It has also abandoned all pretence of being anything
out of the ordinary. Detective Oskar Rheinhardt (Jürgen Maurer) and the (now
famed) Freudian analyst Max Liebermann (Matthew Beard) no longer have a quirky
chemistry – the older man finds the younger one annoying and a little
distasteful in his preoccupation with sex, opinions which the viewer may share.
Vienna
Blood’s main selling point is its setting in turn-of-the-century Vienna, which
allows for some beautiful buildings and costumes but otherwise lends things a
chilly air. In this episode, a seamstress was found murdered with no obvious
sign of injury. Closer inspection (like so many dramas of this type, it loves a
beautiful female corpse) revealed that she had been stabbed with a hat pin
through the brain stem. Then a second victim was identified, and our detective
duo had a serial killer on their hands.
Liebermann
very quickly deduced that the women had been murdered at the point of sexual
climax. “It’s a kind of penetration,” he explained. “What’s the matter with
you, Max? Why do you find it so fascinating? Sometimes you actually sound like
you’re enjoying it,” an unhappy Rheinhardt told Liebermann. My thoughts
exactly. There is a happy medium between Silent Witness and Midsomer Murders,
and this isn’t it.
The drama
is a German-Austrian co-production, and perhaps we should expect more
acquisitions like this as the BBC’s budget shrinks. It does have a charismatic
lead in Maurer, who is the main reason for watching it. But the plot was
plodding – an uninspired cast of male suspects, and a female fashion designer
who was clearly hiding something. The next episode at least sounds promising:
the case of a retired soldier convinced that he is living under a curse.
Fin-de-siècle Vienna: Politics and Culture is a 1979
transdisciplinary non-fiction book written by cultural historian Carl E.
Schorske and published by Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. Described by its publisher as a
"magnificent revelation of turn-of-the-century Vienna where out of a
crisis of political and social disintegration so much of modern art and thought
was born," the book won the 1981 Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction.
The book is lavishly illustrated with both color and black-and-white reproductions
of key artworks, helpfully referenced from the text which explains their
relevance to the themes in question.
Partly reconstructed from Schorske's articles
published in the American Historical Review, the book is structured into seven
thematically interlocking chapters. Each chapter considers the
interrelationships between key artists with the development of psychoanalysis
and what was — at the time — viewed as an end of history.
In the 'Introduction' the author claims that the text
was born from his desire 'to construct a course in European intellectual
history, designed to help students to understand the large, architectonic
correlations between high culture and socio-political change' (p. XVIII). In
his view, Vienna was a peculiar cultural environment due to the late ascendancy
and early crisis of its liberal middle class between the 1860s and the 1890s.
This compression of the socio-political liberal hegemony provided the
opportunity for a 'collective Oedipal revolt' against the liberal inheritance,
promoted by "Die Jungen" (the Young Ones), spreading from politics in
the 1870s to literature and art in the 1890s. The chronologically compressed
and socially circumscribed character of the Viennese experience created a more
coherent context for studying the different ramifications of its high culture
(p. XXVI).
The second essay, "The Ringstrasse, its critics,
and the birth of urban modernism" looks back to explore the liberal
cultural system in its ascendancy through the medium of urban form and
architectural style ... but it looks forward too … to the critical responses on
the part of two leading participants in it — Otto Wagner and Camillo Sitte —
reveal the emergence of conflicting tendencies, communitarian and
functionalist, in modern thought about the built environment (p. XXVIII).
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