New BBC drama from Jimmy McGovern to start filming in Liverpool

Filming taking place in Liverpool earlier this month for a different drama
-Credit: (Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)


The BBC has announced a gritty new drama which will be set and filmed in Liverpool. Written by multi-award-winning screenwriter Jimmy McGovern, the new drama will explore the impact of grooming and sexual abuse on one family.

Directed by Julia Ford, the yet to be named drama will be made by LA Productions for BBC iPlayer and BBC One. Set and filmed in Liverpool, the fictional single drama centres around the Mitchell family who are dealing with the devastating 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.

Emmy-winner Anna Friel, who was BAFTA-nominated for her previous work with Jimmy McGovern in Broken, leads the cast alongside Liverpool-born actors Bobby Schofield and Mark Womack, BAFTA-winner Anna Maxwell Martin and BAFTA-winner David Threlfall. Further casting is set to be announced in due course.

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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.”

Writer Jimmy McGovern said: "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, said: "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."

She added: "To see it brought to the screen with such a high calibre cast and creative team is further testament to the quality of Jimmy’s writing."

The 90-minute drama will be produced by LA Productions for BBC iPlayer and BBC One. It is produced by Donna Molloy. Executive producers are Jimmy McGovern, Colin McKeown for LA Productions, and Nawfal Faizullah and Katherine Bond for the BBC.