Rivals star reveals Jilly Cooper visited set just days before her death

Author also watched three episodes of new season, says Alex Hassell

Rivals star Alex Hassell has revealed Dame Jilly Cooper visited the set of the hit Disney+ adaptation of her 1988 novel days before her death.

The celebrated author died after a fall, aged 88, earlier this month. Rivals, the second book in her Rutshire Chronicles series, depicts the sordid ongoings between two television companies in the Cotswolds.

Hassell, who plays the central lothario heartthrob Rupert Campbell-Black in the series, said Cooper visited the cast while they were filming season two “just the week before” she died.

“Obviously, her voice and her character and her sense of creativity were such a huge driving force of the show in terms of the source material,” the actor told Metro.

“She would okay everything, or we would hear that things have changed because she didn’t think that certain things characters do are quite right or representative of her view of the characters.”

Hassell revealed Cooper got to see “every single one” of the new season’s scripts before she died and “had notes about every single one of them”. The author also watched the first three episodes.

The actor said: “[She] was just absolutely over the moon about it, which means so much to us all that she was so renewed by it.

‘Rivals’ star Alex Hassell has revealed Jilly Cooper visited the set of the show just days before her death (Instagram/@alexanderhassell)

He continued: “So, yeah, it’ll be really tough when it comes out that she wouldn’t have gotten to see it [all] but, nonetheless, it’s our tribute to her.”

Hassell revealed season two will be “so much [more] interesting because it’s bigger, it’s funnier, it’s darker, it’s more serious, it’s more challenging. It’s brighter, as well, it’s wilder.”

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He added: “It’s everything pulled into it, every dimension.”

Rivals was turned into a hit show for Disney+ in 2024, starring Danny Dyer, Emily Atack, David Tennant, Katherine Parkinson, Hassell, Nafessa Williams and Aidan Turner.

A release date for season two of the hit series is yet to be announced.

The beloved author died aged 88 after a fall earlier this month (PA)

Following Cooper’s death on 5 October, Hassell shared a photo of himself with the late author, saying that he was “incredibly grateful” to have known her.

He wrote: “This magical woman changed my life. Quite aside from the great wealth of joy, comfort and excitement her writing has given so many, she was such a generous spirited person to be around.”

Hassell added: “She was so kind and supportive to me in portraying her hero Rupert. I’m so pleased I got to see her on set the other day, and pretty much the last thing she said to me was that she was proud of me. Gorgeous and caring to the last. She shall be greatly missed.”