Riseborough scene steals from two National Treasures

Inspiration for fictional television drama is often found in real life stories, then amplified tenfold to heighten the spectacle.

Jack Thorne’s 4 parter for Channel 4 is treading a finely worked path with no need to exaggerate, as National Treasure draws from the shocking Yewtree operation.

Robbie Coltrane plays a Mr Popular-and-Funny ageing comic, Paul Finchley, presenting awards now instead of receiving them, whose world crashes down when a casual knock on his door heralds a cheery police officer informing him he’s been accused of rape.

Just an allegation of that nature - carefully leaked - is enough to stop his meagre television appearances, and sow doubt among family and friends, who stand by him, for now, at least.

Wife Marie, the phenomenal Julie Walters, has ignored his philandering ways but it appears Finchley has appetites she cannot sate.

Dynamic, savvy lawyer Jerome (played with gusto by Babou Ceesay) exudes an air of having to get Finchley off rather than prove his innocence. His coaching of Finchley’s answers to the cheery police officer’s phishing becomes more urgent lest his client condemn himself.

Captivating central performances all around - and then enters Andrea Riseborough as the Finchley’s daughter Dee: mouthy, sarcastic, a recovering addict unable to live with her own children. And totally compelling - there’s clearly darkness at work there and you can’t help wondering if it stems from childhood trauma.

Riseborough’s trajectory has expanded ever upwards since winning the prestigious Ian Charleson Award under the directorship of Sir Peter Hall (as Isabella in Measure For Measure, and as the eponymous Miss Julie), and the British Independent Film Award in 2012 for her portrayal of Collette McVeigh in Shadow Dancer.

A clutch of awards as part of the ensemble cast for Birdman, and a pivotal role in Oblivion has introduced her to a wider audience and she’s set to stun BBC’s Christmas audience this year, as dark, complicated heroine Romaine, in the Sarah Phelps adapted version of Agatha Christie’s The Witness for the Prosecution.

In the meantime, the story of Dee Finchley is a must-see.

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Images: Channel 4, except last - author’s own.