BBC Picks Up Shadow of Truth

Fremantle has licensed the true-crime series Shadow of Truth to air in the U.K. on BBC Four and iPlayer.

The series will also air soon on ntv and RTL Crime in Germany. Originally broadcast in Israel in 2016, Shadow of Truth will feature a new fifth episode, filmed this year, detailing the aftermath of the murder trial.

In December 2006, the body of 13-year-old Tair Rada was found inside a locked toilet stall at her school. She had been viciously murdered, yet no one had seen or heard anything. The story shook Israeli society to its core. The investigation and quick arrest of Roman Zadorov, an immigrant who worked at the school, sparked widespread conspiracy theories and threw the integrity of the entire justice system into doubt. Aided by the findings from Shadow of Truth’s first four episodes, the supreme court ordered a re-trial for Zadorov, 17 years after Tair’s brutal murder. The finale captures new forensic evidence and tells Zadorov’s story for the first time in an exclusive in-depth interview. The brand-new fifth episode follows the December 2022 re-trial through to March 2023, when Zadorov’s re-trial concluded and became a historic first in Israeli judicial history.

Yotam Guendelman, Mika Timor and Ari Pines, the showrunners at Silvio Productions, said: “We’re thrilled that the series was acquired by the BBC, an unparalleled symbol of quality TV, and we can’t wait to see how the UK audience will react to this important story, which is truly stranger than fiction.”

Mandy Chang, global head of documentaries at Fremantle, added: “I am thrilled that this series, which forensically examines a murder case on many different levels, will soon find a new home on both BBC Four and BBC iPlayer. This story, told by our talented Israeli team, Yotam Guendelman and Mika Timor, from Fremantle company Silvio will include a stunning new update on the case that centers around the accused, Roman Zadorov. It’s an honor to be able to collaborate with my old partners at the BBC and to bring the broadcaster’s audience right up to date on this horrifying and ultimately revealing case.”