Russell T Davies’s Tip Toe is picked up by Starz in US and Canada
The five-part series, produced by Quay Street Productions and broadcast on Channel 4 in the UK, premiered earlier this month.
By Callum Wells
Starz has picked up the US and Canadian rights to Russell T Davies‘s Tip Toe, starring Alan Cumming and David Morrissey.
The five-part series, produced by Quay Street Productions and broadcast on Channel 4 in the UK, premiered earlier this month.
Set in Manchester, Tip Toe follows Leo (Cumming), who runs Canal Street bar Spit & Polish, and Clive (Morrissey), an electrician with two teenage sons. Despite having lived next door to one another for almost 15 years, the pair find themselves increasingly at odds as tensions in the wider world begin to spill into their own lives.
What is Tip Toe about?
The drama examines how “words become weapons” and how increasingly polarised views can drive people apart, eventually turning the two neighbours into bitter enemies.
“Russell T. Davies has created a gripping and deeply affecting series that speaks directly to the cultural tensions and anxieties shaping modern life,” said Alison Hoffman, president of Starz Networks.
Davies executive produces alongside Quay Street Productions CEO Nicola Shindler, director Peter Hoar and Cumming. Phil Collinson serves as producer, while Andy Pryor handled casting.
Hoar directs all five episodes. The series is produced in association with ITV Studios, which is also responsible for international distribution. The agreement with Starz was brokered by ITV Studios executives Katie Buchanan and Rob Kaplan.
Who else is in the Tip Toe cast?
The cast also includes Denise Welch, Charlie Condou, Elizabeth Berrington, Pooky Quesnel and Paul Rhys.
Davies first announced the project in 2024, describing it as a response to what he viewed as growing hostility towards LGBTQ+ people. Speaking at the time, the It’s A Sin creator said he wanted to explore how divisions in society can affect ordinary relationships and communities.
Starz’s acquisition will bring the series to North American audiences later in 2026.
What did Alan Cumming tell Attitude Uncut about Tip Toe?
Ahead of Tip Toe’s release on Channel 4, lead actor Cumming told Attitude Uncut: “Tip Toe is the most gruelling and intense thing I’ve ever done,” as he appeared on the cover.
Davies said he wrote the show in anger, furious about how the LGBTQ+ community is being treated across the globe in recent years.
“Everything that we’re worried about. Every trans argument, every queer argument, the march of the right and Reform taking away our rights: that is what this is,” said the writer.
“I’m worried about what’s on its way and, so angry, I came home from Cardiff to Manchester and I wrote it very fast.”
Coinciding with the series, Attitude, together with Channel 4, have released a digital series titled Tip Toe or Ta-Da, shot in the Canal Street bar that serves as the real-world setting for Russell T Davies’ Tip Toe.
All episodes are available on Attitude’s YouTube channel upon release.