When it comes to source material for decent drama, police archives have a track record for delivering the goods. If you’ve binge-watched all the best true crime documentaries already, here are eight of the best fictional adaptations to keep you on the edge of your seat:
The Salisbury Poisonings
iPlayer
Televised back in spring 2020, this portrayal of the shocking events in Salisbury came with uncomfortable topical parallels: not least a frazzled public health official trying to identify and contain a mysterious deadly pathogen. Screenwriters Adam Patterson and Declan Lawn wisely choose to eschew the geopolitical intrigue and instead focus on the everyday Brits whose lives were turned upside down by the state-sponsored attack. Rafe Spall stars as DS Nick Bailey, the heroic police officer whose survival is left hanging in the balance after just the briefest of encounters with novichok poison.
Quiz
BritBox
If true crime has a fault, it’s that too many productions work to that simple rule of thumb that the grislier the better.
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