Nick Cutter
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| Nick Cutter | |
|---|---|
 Nick Cutter and some Dodos |
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| First appearance | Episode One |
| Information | |
| Species | Human |
| Gender | Male |
| Occupation | Professor of Palaeontology at Central Metropolitan University |
| Title | Professor |
| Relationships | Helen Cutter (wife) |
| Episode count | 6 |
| Portrayed by | Douglas Henshall |
Professor Nick Cutter is a fictional character in the ITV science fiction television series Primeval. He is played by Douglas Henshall. He is one of the main characters, a Professor of Palaeontology at the fictional Central Metropolitan University. He is one of a group of people who discover that prehistoric and extinct animals are passing through anomalies in time and space. Due to his expertise in prehistoric creatures, he is assigned to tackling the problems these creatures cause for the present civilization by the Home Office.
[edit] Characterisation
Not only is Cutter an expert in Palaeontology and the identification of extinct species, comments made by him in several episodes seem to indicate he may be somewhat familiar with physics; for example his theories about the time anomalies in "Episode Three" seem to be proven true at the end of the episode,[1] describing them as being somewhat like an earthquake in time.[1]
Cutter is a somewhat aloof individual; for example he initially rather briskly brushes off Connor Temple who comes to him with suspicions of a prehistoric creature being loose in modern times, telling him to go and get a girlfriend instead. He also keeps his encounter with his long lost wife, Helen to himself. Connor also notes in Episode One that he never turns up for his own seminars.
However Nick is not incompassionate, his caring side is shown when he reassures Connor on several occasions, most notably when Connor's friend is killed by a parasite, and when Helen's apparent disregard for human life horrifies him in "Episode Three".[1]
He is also very trusting of Helen, despite her comments and the others' suspicions that she may have intentionally set the parasitic dodos on mankind in "Episode Four",[2] although he was angry to discover Helen's real reason for returning the baby future predators to their own time.
Cutter's attitude towards the Home Office involvement seems to be one of mild contempt, at least for the more bureaucratic members such as James Lester. He dislikes hiding things from the public, Helen says she thinks he wants to share the time anomalies the rest of the world in "Episode Three". He also seems to have an overestimated view of his own importance as he tries to make demands of Lester in "Episode Three"[1] when asked to bring Helen back only to be shocked when Lester overrules his desicion and brings his wife back by force. His last words to Steven before heading through the anomaly in episode six are to push Lester through the nastiest anomaly he can find if he doesn't make it back.
His relationship with Claudia Brown is begining to turn to romance, as demonstrated when he rushes to her rescue and later kisses her in "Episode Five" and she herself begs him not to leave her.[3] Before heading into the anomaly, the two share a passionate kiss - much to Helen's surprise.
[edit] Character history
While little is known about his early life, the Official site states that he graduated from his year at University College London with First Class Honours. At some point he met and quickly married his wife Helen. Their marrage proved to be a failure, however, as according to Douglas Henshall's web site, the relationship between them became as stormy as it was passionate. They were estranged at the time of her disappearance, and this added to Cutter's sense of guilt when she vanished. When the series begins it is established that he had a wife, fellow palaeontologist Helen Cutter, who went missing eight years prior to his first encounter with a time anomaly. He tells the others that she went missing sometime after the two of them had a fight.
At first, his insistence that his wife Helen is alive in the first two and a half episodes is seen by some members of the time as initially somewhat foolish and unrealistic, most notably Claudia. He then keeps the details of her visitations to himself, out of hurt pride that his wife could have left him alone for so long.[4] This has terrible consequences later when the government found out.
When the truth is known, not only does he lose the respect of Claudia but also brings the wrath of Lester down on himself. After being tricked into leading Lester's troops to his wife the relationship between the two of them hit a new low as she is adamant that he had set her up and he finally lost patience with her evasions and riddles. She later escapes, and his motives for trying to follow her through the anomaly are open to question.[2]
However Lester now appears to have lost patience and faith in him during the hunt for the Pteranodon when he prevents Captain Ryan from shooting it, claiming that Cutter causes "more problems than he solves".[3]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d "Episode Three". Primeval. ITV. ITV One. 2007-02-24. No. 1, season 1.
- ^ a b "Episode Four". Primeval. ITV. ITV One. 2007-03-03. No. 1, season 1.
- ^ a b "Episode Five". Primeval. ITV. ITV One. 2007-03-03. No. 1, season 1.
- ^ "Episode Two". Primeval. ITV. ITV One. 2007-02-10. No. 1, season 1.
| Primeval |
|---|
| Primeval main pages |
| Impossible Pictures Productions | Time anomaly |
| Main characters |
| Nick Cutter (Douglas Henshall) | Connor Temple (Andrew-Lee Potts) | Abby Maitland (Hannah Spearritt) Stephen Hart (James Murray) | Claudia Brown (Lucy Brown) | James Lester (Ben Miller) | Tom Ryan (Mark Wakeling) |
| Primeval lists |
| Episodes | Creatures | Minor characters |
