When the high-profile climate activist Marcus Calderwood is left for dead in a violent hit and run, he uses his dying moments to apparently identify his killer - a serving policeman. But who is this unnamed 鈥極fficer X鈥�? What does his own history reveal about the nature of trauma and revenge, and was Marcus鈥� death actually a careless accident or cold-blooded murder?
From Calderwood鈥檚 last breath to the jury鈥檚 final verdict, Showtrial takes us into the worlds of the charismatic and cocky officer PC Justin Mitchell (Michael Socha); Sam Malik (Adeel Akhtar), an anxious defence solicitor with a reputation for winning lost causes; and Leila Hassoun-Kenny (Nathalie Armin), a wry and rigorous CPS lawyer leading the case against the accused.
As public outrage reaches fever-pitch, Showtrial questions if a fair trial is possible when tensions are riding so high, and if the truth is ever clear cut.
A five-part series for 麻豆官网首页入口 iPlayer and 麻豆官网首页入口 One, Showtrial is written and created by Ben Richards and made by World Productions (Vigil, Malpractice, Line of Duty) for the 麻豆官网首页入口.
- Watch Showtrial on 麻豆官网首页入口 iPlayer on Sunday 6 October from 6am and add to your Watchlist now.
- Watch Showtrial on 麻豆官网首页入口 One on Sunday 6 October from 9pm.
HC2
Meet the Cast
Adeel Akhtar (Sam Malik)
How would you describe Sam?
He鈥檚 a defence lawyer who takes on cases that aren鈥檛 very popular in the public eye, but are for people who he feels need representing. In PC Justin Mitchell鈥檚 case some people might look unfavourably on him because he鈥檚 a policeman accused of murder, but Sam sees something in Justin that needs defending.
Where do we find Sam at the beginning of Showtrial?
Sam is by all accounts quite a successful lawyer, but it would seem he鈥檚 sacrificed a lot for that to happen. He鈥檚 neglected his home life, and his mental and physical health in pursuit of trying to be the best lawyer that he can be. We find him on edge at the start of the series. Mentally Sam seems fine to the outside world when he鈥檚 at work, but in his home life we find out that he鈥檚 really not looking after his own needs.
Did you do any specific research for your role?
My dad鈥檚 a solicitor so I did a little bit of research into what their workload is like, and the typical amount of hours a solicitor would spend in the office. They鈥檙e not doing a nine to five kind of job, they often have to go way into the night, waiting for CPS and other results to come in. I already knew though that these guys work really hard, and if it鈥檚 a tough case it can be a real slog.
What were the challenges of playing this role?
There were a lot of challenges in playing Sam, specifically with the relationship he has with his son, Mani, played by Ali Khan. Sam鈥檚 an insomniac, who relies on sleeping pills to sleep 鈥� pills he runs out of at one point in the series 鈥� and his depression takes him to an incredibly dark place at one point, which obviously takes a toll on Mani. So that was quite a challenge, working out how to mend that relationship between the two. Ben Richards has written some really beautiful scenes between them. At the end of the day, I think this Showtrial is about imperfect people living their lives, trying to do the best they can. Even the people that you go to for help, such as lawyers and the police, they are all humans with imperfections too. We have to look at those imperfections with charity and forgiveness, which is what Sam does. He looks at people, sees their imperfections and knows that doesn鈥檛 mean they鈥檙e necessarily bad or automatically guilty.
You worked a lot with Michael Socha鈥�
I had a lot of scenes with Michael, and I really appreciated how we got to build these two characters and their relationship together from the inside out. With the help of our director, Julia Ford, we could only really work out what our intentions were for each scene once we were in the room together, hearing the other actor speaking and playing off each other. We never really put an idea on how the scenes were going to turn out until we were there on the day, collaborating together, trying to get the scenes to be the best they could be.
What did you think of the scripts when you first read them?
To me the mark of a good script is how easy it is to commit to memory, and how easy it is to know how to say the bits of dialogue. Ben鈥檚 writing is very easy to remember and very easy to speak. Nothing he writes feels extraneous to the story - all the dialogue feels essential and lean. It鈥檚 been a pleasure to say his words. It鈥檚 often very funny too. In Ben鈥檚 writing, he allows space for humour even in the most serious of topics or situations, which kind of mirrors the world of solicitors, barrister, the CPS and the police. Even in the most dire situation, people still have a laugh, which is in the script and I think viewers will really enjoy.
Nathalie Armin (Leila Hassoun-Kenny)
How would you describe the new Showtrial?
This Showtrial is based on another enormous, high-stakes criminal case 鈥� with a mystery at its core - but this time a police officer is accused of murder. The stakes are really high because it鈥檚 the murder of a famous climate activist, which generates very strong feelings for and against activism. And what鈥檚 unique about this drama is that the victim potentially names the perpetrator of the crime before they die.
What can you tell us about Leila?
Leila works for the CPS. She helps put the case together and makes the decision about whether or not there is enough evidence, and whether it鈥檚 in the public interest to prosecute and charge somebody for the crime. She鈥檚 incredibly rigorous and is quite accomplished professionally. What鈥檚 fascinating about her, and the way Ben has written her, is that all of this professionalism and composure can waver somewhat in her family life. She has a particularly interesting relationship with her sister 鈥� Tamara, played by Anna Wilson-Jones 鈥� and the two both regress and antagonise each other. There鈥檚 a lot of love there, but they drive each other pretty crazy. It鈥檚 lovely getting a character who is so many things in so many different situations, and I suppose that鈥檚 what makes a character so truthful. She鈥檚 not very good at maintaining her composure and rigorousness in front of her sister.
Did you do any specific research for your role?
I had to find out exactly what the crown prosecution does and what, if anything, distinguishes them from any other type of lawyer. And how easy it would be to bring a case like this court and how much evidence they鈥檇 need before they could. I also looked into how many hours a week they鈥檇 typically work to get a sense of how fatigued or stressed Leila might be in a case like this.
What has the experience of filming Showtrial series two been like?
Filming has been so fun, really an absolute joy. You couldn鈥檛 ask for more really with our remarkable director Julia Ford and wonderful producer Ken Horn. Everyone is so encouraging and open, I also got the added bonus of knowing a great number of people working on this beforehand as well.
Michael Socha (PC Justin Mitchell)
How would you describe this Showtrial?
Showtrial is an anthology series, so this second one is completely different from the first. It covers a lot of things happening in today鈥檚 society, in terms of climate change, police misogyny and toxic masculinity - themes that are quite relevant for today鈥檚 audience.
The joy of playing Justin comes with his ambiguity, and you never really know what he鈥檚 thinking. There鈥檚 a lot of behind-the-lines intentions with Justin, and reasons behind his bravado. Ultimately Justin is a damaged character who is really struggling. He sees Sam, Adeel鈥檚 character, as going through a similar sort of thing, but handling it in a very truthful, raw and vulnerable manner - which Justin isn鈥檛 capable of. He hasn鈥檛 got it in his arsenal but he wants to be like Sam, which is one of the reasons why Justin is so keen to have Sam represent him. Justin sees the truth in Sam, even though he鈥檚 a real merciless man in the courtroom. He sees a rawness and vulnerability in Sam that Justin is quite nervous of. For all his bravado and machismo, I think Justin sees a solace in how Sam deals with things and wears his heart on his sleeve. I should also add that I think viewers will find him very funny, at times. He says it how he sees it, and Ben鈥檚 given him a dry sense of humour which I really enjoyed playing.
What has the experience of filming this series been like?
I had an absolute laugh filming Showtrial. Belfast is up there with my favourite cities, and I felt massively looked after during filming. Because our director Julia Ford comes from an acting background, she let me run riot with Justin, and I felt in real safe hands with her. I鈥檝e got to say this is one of my favourite jobs I鈥檝e done so far, and the cast that I worked with are top notch.
I鈥檓 massively grateful to have worked with Adeel so closely, and I got a lot of inspiration from him. Adeel is a class actor but he鈥檚 also a good laugh. He鈥檚 fun to work with, someone that you can feel no pressure with, and can really get to try new things with and riff off.
How have you enjoyed working with the rest of the cast?
I鈥檝e known Joe Dempsie since I was 14, and I鈥檝e worked with him a lot since then. It鈥檚 lovely doing scenes with Joe because we started in the same place. We both went to Television Workshop in Nottingham together, and my last job before Showtrial was with Joe as well, so we have a shared respect for the craft and I rate him highly. Because we鈥檝e got a bit of history behind us, there will always be a couple of scenes where we just crack up. We鈥檝e got quite a dark sense of humour so sometimes we will keep 鈥榗orpsing鈥�, and screwing up scenes. I trust him because I know he goes home and works hard, just as hard as he does when he鈥檚 on set. We鈥檒l talk about the scenes beforehand and we鈥檙e almost always on the same page.
Tom Padley is also great at his job and such a good laugh. This set was full of happy people that were able to have a good laugh and not take it too seriously, but who were also really grateful for the opportunity to be here. They were all dead hard workers, and really good at what they do which just made for a great atmosphere. Our director Julia Ford and producer Ken Horn made sure that atmosphere was nurtured, which is why we had so much fun, but were also about to take so many risks and make the best show possible.
Joe Dempsie (DI Miles Southgate)
What鈥檚 the premise of this Showtrial, and does it have anything in common with the first?
The main thing that the new Showtrial has in common with the first is that at the centre of the story there is a crime and a subsequent trial that really captures the public imagination and interest.
Our Showtrial delves into the increasing urgency of climate change, the extremity of climate activism and their tactics. It shows both sides of that debate - the people who are in support of that activism, and also the antipathy towards it.
What can you tell us about DI Southgate?
DI Miles Southgatehas been drafted in from a neighbouring force in Hampshire to investigate this case. The prime suspect, Justin Mitchell, is a serving police officer, so protocol dictates they can鈥檛 have someone from within his own force investigating him. Southgate is a bit of an outsider, not just in this story, but in life in general. It鈥檚 fair to say that the job he鈥檚 been given doesn鈥檛 make him especially popular with all of the officers he鈥檚 joining.
The stakes are really high for Southgate as he鈥檚 got it in his head that his ability to solve this case will define him. He鈥檚 not your average young detective, he very much swims in his own lane.
How did you find the experience filming on set?
We were shooting in Belfast, which is a place that over the years I鈥檝e been lucky enough to spend a lot of time in. It鈥檚 where we shot the majority of Game of Thrones and it became like a second home to me on and off for five years of my life. Having the opportunity to go back was lovely and there were so many familiar faces in the crew from Thrones.
Did you do any specific research for your role?
I didn鈥檛 necessarily do what I would call active research to play Southgate, but I watched a number of really well-made police-centric documentaries that my mate recommended to me. I watched a great one about the Met, a six-part 麻豆官网首页入口 documentary series, as well as Taking Down an OCG, and then also shows like 24 Hours in Police Custody. I think detective dramas are really hard shows to write, it鈥檚 quite a tricky dance between showing how competent your detective character is by solving the crime before the audience does - but not too soon so that the audience doesn鈥檛 have a chance to figure it out themselves.
Southgate is incredibly competent and I felt like I got to show that in the various interrogation scenes that Ben has written. There鈥檚 a real 鈥榗at and mouse鈥� game going on with Justin for a while and the way Southgate interrogates Justin鈥檚 partner, Sandra, had to be done in a very nimble, deft way. Watching documentaries that show how real-life police officers draw the truth out of people was very helpful. A lot of the time detective work is about getting suspects to make a rod for their own backs in some way, putting them in a corner, or leaving them to fill in the gaps and give you the information that they need.
How do you connect with the themes of Showtrial S2?
The central theme of climate activism is an interesting one to me and it鈥檚 great that writer Ben Richards has picked it up and ran with it. It鈥檚 something getting a lot of air time and coverage in this country at the moment. There are a lot of elements in climate activism that are highly debatable which I think Ben incorporates into the script. For example, if your own relative needed urgent treatment but the roads were blocked due to a climate protest, it鈥檚 understandable that you鈥檇 be frustrated, panicked and angry.
But on the other side, like in the film Don鈥檛 Look Up, if we carry on the way that we are there might not be a human race left to be frustrated, panicked and angry about. I think it鈥檚 an existential crisis that we all have to address at some point. Whilst the series deals with serious issues like climate activism and police abuse of power, the show doesn鈥檛 take itself too seriously and is done with a lightness of touch. I hope viewers will find it incredibly compelling, but also very funny in places.
Fisayo Akinade (Felix Owusu)
What can you tell us about Felix?
Felix is a rather divisive journalist who has a large following on social media. He likes to push stories of interest to him, like climate stories. He was good friends with the victim, the famous climate activist Marcus Calderwood, which spurs him on to investigate his death. Through his research he begins to realise there鈥檚 an even bigger story going on here. I think his favourite phrase is probably 鈥渢here鈥檚 a bigger picture鈥�. He is deeply passionate and prepared to cross certain lines in order to get to the heart of the truth. He鈥檚 got a real integrity and drive, but there鈥檚 a bit of self interest in there underneath all of that.
A lot of my scenes are either me getting or being given information, or leading some sort of protest to garner more public interest leading up to the trail. My character uses public outrage to force the police to take more action. Filming those scenes is amazing as the dialogue is super buzzy. It鈥檚 basically me and Zoe Telford who plays Police Press Officer Helen McGuire going at it, trying to figure out the best way to proceed as she鈥檚 got her agenda and I鈥檝e got mine. Those scenes were really fun as they had me screaming about justice for Marcus into a big megaphone in front of a big crowd. On screen it looks like there are thousands of people there, which is a real testament to the camera crew as well.
Did you do any specific research to play Felix?
I didn鈥檛 do too much research into journalism, because I felt that Felix鈥檚 function in the show was a far more emotional one. Yes, he鈥檚 a journalist which has given him the certain skills that can help him achieve his goal of writing this great story, but the driving force for him is that a friend of his has been murdered. Journalistically he needs to discover who the culprits are but he has a real personal stake in it.
For me it was much more about finding Felix鈥檚 emotional heart rather than his intellectual one, and also knowing he puts up this front in a lot of his scenes. There鈥檚 a little fracture in him and you get to see the driving force behind how he quite clinically tries to solve this crime. I didn鈥檛 look too much into investigative journalism because I felt he was much more driven by emotion and a quest for justice, rather than how good a journalist he is.
What attracted you to the role?
It鈥檚 a much more serious and intellectual role than I鈥檝e got to play before, and Felix was somebody that I felt I could do. He鈥檚 very straightlaced and a bit like a very smart dog with a really attractive bone.
Another huge factor for me was the script as I鈥檝e not read anything that was so sharp and pertinent. The show feels really timely and I think a lot of people will resonate with it. You can empathise with every single character in the series and see how they became the people they are and why they operate in the way they do. What Ben has done is create a really dramatic, entertaining, huge story and infuse the bones of it with empathy.
What makes the series unique?
The thing that鈥檚 unique about this show is that it goes from the truly personal to the epic. There鈥檚 some really powerful stuff that goes on. You鈥檝e got a really 鈥榢itchen sink鈥� vibes drama mixed with a kind of epic, political protest drama all in one. It coalesces in this potential atomic bomb trial that could have massive repercussions across the country.
Meet the Creatives
Ben Richards (Showtrial Creator and Writer)
How did you initially approach a second series of Showtrial?
After the success of series one we were faced with a big question - what do we do, how do we take the show forward, and what鈥檚 the format we鈥檙e going to use? We decided that we would start with a new case, and a new case demands new personnel. It would be too much of a coincidence to have the same lawyers working on another emblematic case and that鈥檚 the premise of Showtrial. The case has to be big, it can鈥檛 just be an ordinary murder trial, or drug smuggling case, it has to be a big emblematic case with grit that takes the imagination of the country. It has to say something about the country in which we live. We decided to make the show more of an anthology, so that each series is a distinct case with a completely new set of characters - a new suspect, new defence and prosecution lawyers.
What inspired this Showtrial?
The stories merge in different ways and in different stages. It鈥檚 not that there鈥檚 an immediate blueprint so the starting point for any story in Showtrial is what makes it special, what makes it different, what makes it feel as if it isn鈥檛 just a normal trial. This is a trial that will have everybody watching. I鈥檝e always been interested in trials that say something about the current climate in which we live. I鈥檓 not a fan of issue-driven, editorialising or 鈥榝inger wagging鈥� dramas that tell you what to think I鈥檓 interested in dramas that take lots of opinions to be aired and expressed.
At the time I was thinking about, not so much climate change actually, but activism and protest. That was a kind of starting point - what happens if a big, emblematic climate activist gets murdered? That was the starting point, from then it fed into an idea of what if the victim had been the subject of stalking by a police officer. That then takes you into another whole area because obviously the police have very much been under the microscope for a number of different reasons after some high profile cases of serving police officers鈥� own criminality and various other problems that exist, in particular in the Met.
I was also interested in the whole idea that the police are facing challenging situations at the moment. One of the officers in the series themselves says they can鈥檛 really win because they鈥檙e perceived by one sector of the population as being 鈥榯oo woke鈥�, while they鈥檙e perceived by another sector of the population as being systemic, racist oppressors and misogynists. Then there鈥檚 probably another sector of the population that doesn鈥檛 care about either of those things and wishes they鈥檇 just catch more shoplifters.
I also wanted to look at the big topic of the day which is mental health. We are absolutely bombarded at the moment with information and demands. We are more aware of mental health but I wanted to put that in the context of a trial because here this question of 鈥榤ad or bad鈥� has always been a very strong one. I wanted to explore those questions about free will versus responsibility.
What can you tell us about the main characters of this Showtrial?
I think there are three principal characters in Showtrial and in many ways there is a sort of hierarchy, because of the nature of trials.
The suspect, PC Justin Mitchell, played by Michael Socha is everybody鈥檚 focus. He鈥檚 a compulsive gambler, he鈥檚 suffering - even though he doesn鈥檛 think he is - from PTSD. The key thing about the suspect is that they have to be unlikeable - like Talitha Campbell in the first Showtrial, she鈥檚 not likeable either. She wasn鈥檛 everybody鈥檚 cup of tea but she was interesting, and ditto Justin. Justin is even more of a challenge in some ways because it鈥檚 much more clear that he鈥檚 involved in this crime, our job is to unpack in what way and why.
Then you have the defence lawyer. I鈥檓 only putting the defence lawyer first because I think they鈥檙e closer to the suspect and therefore to the real heart of the trial. Sam Malik, played by Adeel Akhtar, is for me dramatically the character at the heart of this Showtrial - in some ways he also operates as a kind of narrative voice.
He鈥檚 sceptical as his son laughs at him, he looks down on both sides of the culture war. He鈥檚 sceptical of cliches and ideologies, social media and a lot of the things we鈥檙e very familiar with these days. He doesn鈥檛 like the 鈥榚asy answers鈥� of the internet, so to speak. Crucially, he is also in the grip of terrible anxiety and insomnia that relates to an earlier tragedy in his life. For me, what Sam expresses is that in a time when we are being told we should be aware of mental health, as we should be, he doesn鈥檛 agree that it defines a person. Sam understands his debilitating condition causes him enormous unhappiness and struggle and he wishes he didn鈥檛 have it, he wants to fight it. There is friction between this and the way Sam perceives the current conversation as 鈥榗elebrating鈥� conditions like his. Sam believes work is solution, he threatens to resign periodically but he knows his work is what drives him and keeps him going - so that鈥檚 an important element to the character.
The third, slightly more removed character is the CPS lawyer, Leila Hassoun-Kenny, played brilliantly by Nathalie Armin. Her dad was an Iraqi exile, her mum is a sort of post-modern academic and she has both of these elements feeding into her. She has a sense of humour and we see that in the dynamic between her and Sam when they clash over certain aspects of identity politics. She is also cross with Sam for representing defendants who are in her opinion bad people. One of the debates I was really interested in looking at is that people are entitled to a fair trial no matter who they are and what they have done, that鈥檚 a cornerstone of civilised society. Unfortunately in Leila and Sam鈥檚 past, Sam has 鈥榤uddied the waters鈥� on a particularly nasty sexual violence case and got somebody let off - Leila has never quite forgiven Sam for this.
Leila and Sam鈥檚 personalities aren鈥檛 so dissimilar in the end because both of them are tolerant and humorous, both of them are not ideologically driven, they鈥檙e not particularly vicious in their opinions. Whilst they enjoy teasing each other, they actually have common ground and crucially at the end they鈥檙e both lawyers; her job is to prosecute this guy and his job is to defend him.
Julia Ford (Director)
What attracted you to Showtrial?
I think Ben鈥檚 a phenomenal writer, he鈥檚 a brilliant story-teller and all the characters are fantastic. The dialogue is brilliant - it鈥檚 very funny, smart and the landscape of the show is very relevant. It鈥檚 bang up to date with the sorts of things people are really arguing about and discussing right now. The show feels really relevant, contemporary, exciting and there are many, many layers to it.
Can you take us through the casting process?
We had a fantastic casting director called Daniel Edwards, who did an amazing job. At the point where I came on Adeel Akhtar was already onboard with the show, it was a completely inspired idea to cast him as Sam because he鈥檚 just wonderful, he鈥檚 a brilliant actor and a beautiful human being. He was the first to be cast and we built up around him. Michael Socha did an absolutely wonderful casting audition and we knew his work so we were thrilled when he said yes, and all the others followed. Joe and Nathalie are also fantastic.
What can you tell us about the setting and locations?
Brighton is where I live so I opened the script and read 鈥渕an on a bike cycling from Lewes to Brighton鈥�, and I thought that was brilliant for me. We shot it in Belfast and I thought it was going to be a real challenge putting these places together. Our locations department, production designer Gillian Devenney, producer Ken Horn and I all got on a zoom and looked at images of places they鈥檇 been to see in Belfast - I was absolutely staggered by how many places look like certain parts of Brighton.
Simon Heath (Executive Producer)
Why did you choose Brighton as the setting for this new story?
In lots of ways this new instalment of Showtrial plays into the contemporary obsession with the culture wars and we felt that Brighton was a very recognisable backdrop for that conflict.
Tell us about the format of Showtrial
Showtrial takes a controversial murder case and dramatises it through the eyes of the competing legal teams fighting for the guilt or innocence of the accused. In this season, the defence team is led by Adeel Akhtar鈥檚 character Sam, representing Justin Mitchell, a police officer accused of murdering a notorious climate change activist in a deliberate hit and run. The CPS team prosecuting the case against Mitchell is led by Nathalie Armin鈥檚 character Leila supported by the SIO in the investigation, Joe Dempsie鈥檚 Miles Southgate.
Where is this new season filmed?
We鈥檝e filmed a number of dramas in Northern Ireland in the past decade, including Line of Duty. What鈥檚 great is that areas of Northern Ireland double well for the south coast of England. Those locations were supplemented by second unit filming in and around Brighton itself.
What makes Showtrial so appealing to audiences?
First and foremost there鈥檚 a compelling mystery at the heart of the drama, driven by a fantastic cast. In terms of the themes, the story speaks to our fears around climate change, but also questions the methods used by activists to combat that. The series also looks at the way the police operate - are they given too much responsibility for preserving law and order without the powers to enforce it? Or are they a law unto themselves? Those elements will speak to a broad audience.
What is unique about Showtrial?
Showtrial is a legal drama, but one that looks at both sides, and takes a case from the murder scene right through to the jury鈥檚 verdict. That鈥檚 unique on British television. The anthological nature of the show, with a brand new setting, story and group of characters each series is also very different for UK television and gives us the chance to reset each season with new themes and controversies.
Emma Luffingham (Executive Producer)
What discussions went into finding and researching this story?
The case in Showtrial is entirely fictional, but we spent a lot of time in the early development of this series looking at cases that sparked public debate and touched on who we are as a society and a country. We were especially interested in the trials that divide opinion both in the press and over the dinner table. Ben was taken by lots of recent cases around police officers鈥� conduct, and also the rise in activism and the divisive nature of it.
It became very clear that we wanted to combine those two things into one case that could provide us with the twists we needed and give our characters strong personal opinions on the themes we explored. Like series one, we wanted to ensure our case could be viewed from the multiple viewpoints of our characters and their own moral codes and beliefs. The debate around our public services and the actions of activists are very live topics playing out in the country today, and this case felt like a really fitting way to combine them both.
Why was the story set in Brighton?
We were really clear that we wanted this series to be set on the South Coast, and Brighton in particular jumped out as city very focused on the climate agenda. For Marcus and his group, 鈥楽top Climate Genocide鈥�, Brighton felt like a natural home, and as a vibrant and politically engaged city, it provided us with a perfect location to explore activism and the opposing views to it.
How does this new Showtrial relate to the first?
Showtrial is an anthology series and moving on from series one we鈥檙e delving into another 鈥榟ot button鈥� issue that ignites public debate and reflects the world we live in. In the new series the case is very different, but I think it retains much of the DNA of series one as we follow the case all the way through to the verdict and the different opinions that inform it.
In Justin, Ben has created a brilliantly complex defendant. He may not be everyone鈥檚 cup of tea, but beneath the surface there鈥檚 more to unpack in a deliciously satisfying way. And a defence lawyer who鈥檚 doing everything they can to defend them to the best of their ability, regardless of the noise surrounding the trial. It鈥檚 a different cast and a different world but, once again, Ben has created a compelling case and a cast of smart and engaged characters that will intrigue a new audience and raise questions about the nature of truth and justice.
Cast
Sam Malik - Adeel Akhtar
Leila Hassoun-Kenny - Nathalie Armin
PC Justin Mitchell - Michael Socha
DI Miles Southgate - Joe Dempsie
Felix Owusu - Fisayo Akinade
Helen McGuire - Zo毛 Telford
Claudia Wood - Nina Toussaint-White
Mani Malik-Cohen - Ali Khan
Adrian Gilligan - John Light
Alex - John Marquez
Tamara Baudin-Kenny - Anna Wilson-Jones
Dame Harriet Kenny - Francesca Annis
Creatives
Written and Created by Ben Richards
Producer by Ken Horn
Directed by Julia Ford
Executive Producers - Simon Heath, Ben Richards, Emma Luffingham