Are you looking for a gripping true story brought to life on screen? The BBC has unveiled the trailer and artwork for its upcoming four-part drama Prisoner 951 – and we can't wait for this one to air. Based on "heart-stopping" and "extraordinary" real-life events, the factual drama follows husband and wife Richard Ratcliffe and Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, whose lives are turned upside down when Nazanin, a British-Iranian citizen, is imprisoned and held hostage by the Iranian state for six years. The series, which drops on BBC iPlayer and BBC One later this month, charts the events of Nazanin's detainment and how her husband, Richard, campaigned tirelessly for justice and her return home.
From the producers behind The Salisbury Poisonings – which dramatised the events of the 2018 Novichok poisoning crisis in Salisbury – Prisoner 951 is also based on the forthcoming book A Yard of Sky, written by Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Richard Ratcliffe. Written by Stephen Butchard (This City Is Ours, Five Daughters) and directed by Philippa Lowthorpe (Three Girls, The Crown), viewers can expect a heart-wrenching yet unmissable watch starring Joseph Fiennes (The Handmaid's Tale) and Narges Rashidi (Gangs of London).
© BBC/Dancing Ledge ProductionsWhat to expect from Prisoner 951
Based on events that "captured the world's attention", the show charts everything from Nazanin's arrest at Imam Khomeini International Airport in Tehran to her release and return to the UK six months later. The synopsis continues: "It tells both the heart-stopping public story which was played out in the media and events behind closed doors."
Leading the series are Narges Rashidi (Gangs of London, Under the Shadow, The Allegation) and Joseph Fiennes (Dear England, The Handmaid's Tale, Shakespeare in Love).
Prisoner 951 will launch on BBC iPlayer and BBC One later this month.
