BBC Orders New Jimmy McGovern Drama

The BBC has commissioned a new original drama from screenwriter Jimmy McGovern (Time, Cracker, The Street) that will explore the impact of grooming and sexual abuse on one family.

Directed by Julia Ford (Showtrial, The Bay, Safe), the as-yet-untitled 90-minute single drama will be made by LA Productions (Broken, Anthony, Care) for BBC iPlayer and BBC One. It centers on the Mitchell family, who are dealing with the aftermath of an act of abuse and the knowledge that it was perpetrated by a member of their own family who, after serving his sentence, has just been released from prison.

The cast includes Anna Friel (Marcella, Pushing Daisies), who was BAFTA-nominated for her previous work with McGovern in Broken, alongside Bobby Schofield (Time, Anne, SAS Rogue Heroes), Anna Maxwell Martin (Motherland, A Spy Among Friends, Poppy Shakespeare), David Threlfall (Nightsleeper, Shameless, Housewife 49) and Mark Womack (The Responder, Playing the Field, Moving On).

Colin McKeown, executive producer for LA Productions, said: “This is a profoundly challenging and sensitive subject, tackled with intelligence and care by Jimmy McGovern. It’s a privilege to be working with him again following the success of our previous collaborations on single dramas: Common, Care, Reg and Anthony.”

McGovern commented: “I can’t believe the cast and crew that have been assembled for this production. It’s a challenging film, yes, but I can’t wait for it to be shown.”

Lindsay Salt, director of BBC Drama, added: “Jimmy McGovern is one of our greatest dramatists and a master at writing about today’s world. His new film sensitively examines the pain of abuse and how it affects not only the victim but ripples out across the whole family. To see it brought to the screen with such a high caliber cast and creative team is further testament to the quality of Jimmy’s writing.”