Alan Cumming Opens Up About 'Traumatic' Shoot For Tip Toe's Brutal Final Episode

This article contains major spoilers for the final episode of Tip Toe.

The finale of Tip Toe made for one of the most difficult TV viewing experiences of the year so far – and it was clearly no walk in the park to shoot, either.

In the final episode of Russell T Davies’ hard-hitting drama, Alan Cumming’s character is seen being strung up on a lamppost outside of his home by his next door neighbour and a baying mob, after being falsely and baselessly accused of grooming.

Alan previously told HuffPost UK that he knew going into Tip Toe that these were going to be difficult scenes to film, and is now opening up to Metro about just how much the shoot “affected” him.

“Everyone was so kind and caring about it, but obviously, it was so traumatic to do,” he recalled. “Just having something around your neck like that is so traumatic.”

The Emmy winner went on to share that the similarities between himself and his character, Leo, made his fate even more difficult to stomach.

He explained: “Inevitably, any character [you play], there’s you in it, your spirit. So I was murdered by a group of people who think I am worthless, and it takes you a while to get over that.

“I really connected with Leo. I’ve got a lot in common with [Leo]… it was really, really difficult, and I am very emotional about it.”

Alan recently opened up about taking an “immediate” digital detox after filming on Tip Toe was complete.

“I think that was not unconnected [to the show’s themes],” he told us. “I think the story of Tip Toe just shows the toxicity of our social media world, and so it was so amazing to get away from all that.”

He also admitted: “I was glad to leave Leo behind – much as I loved him. But, it was also a nice bridge away from the show, to not have to deal with anything online.”

Alan and his co-star David Morrissey have also spoken candidly about how being friends for 40 years before being cast in Tip Toe helped them through the show’s more difficult scenes.

During a separate interview with HuffPost UK, Russell T Davies shared his intentions for Tip Toe’s brutal final scene.

The Bafta winner has since admitted, as part of another interview, that there had been “arguments” about exactly how best to end the show, all five episodes of which are now streaming on Channel 4.