British Crime dramas based on true stories
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- DirectorSkip KiteStarsWalt KissackGary SharkeyAdam LewisThis drama takes you into the mind of one of the UK's most notorious serial killers, while using archive news footage. We are shown his formative years, the biggest manhunt in police history to capture him and finally his time in jail, through actors and newsreels.
- StarsLiza WilliamsDiana MuirTracy BrowneA new three-part look at the story of psychopath Peter Sutcliffe, dubbed "The Yorkshire Ripper", this series focuses on how the flaws of the police investigation and the social attitudes of the time enabled his five-year crime spree.
- DirectorDavid NathStarsSteve PembertonDaniel MaysStuart GrahamA verbatim drama focusing on the 3 days farmer Tony Martin was questioned by police following the shooting of a 16 year old burglar who broke into his farmhouse in 1999. A story that split the nation. Was it self defence or murder?
- DirectorFhiona-LouiseStarsBob FlagMartin Byrne-QuinnGeoffrey GreenhillFictionalized account based on the actions of serial killer Dennis Nilsen.
- DirectorRichard StroudStarsTimothy WestJean AndersonDavid ArlenThe story of an Irish doctor in an English seaside town in the 1950s who was accused of murdering many of his elderly patients.
- DirectorVincent LambeStarsEly SolanLeon HughesCaleb MasonTwo ten year-old boys are detained by police under suspicion of abducting and murdering a toddler. A true story based on interview transcripts and records from the James Bulger case, which shocked the world in 1993.
- DirectorBenjamin RossStarsHugh O'ConorAntony SherTobias ArnoldThis film is based on a true story about a British teenager who allegedly poisoned family, friends, and co-workers. Graham is highly intelligent, but completely amoral. He becomes interested in science, especially chemistry, and begins to read avidly. Something of a social misfit, he is fascinated by morbid subjects such as poisons and murder. His family environment is intolerable to him and, in particular, his stepmother torments him. He decides to poison those who annoy him, first with antimony and later with thallium. He smugly thinks himself cleverer than all those around him, but nevertheless he is caught and sentenced to 'rehabilitation' at a psychiatric institution. Once there, he undertakes to deceive the new eminent psychiatrist sent there to 'cure' him, thereby securing his release.
- DirectorCathy ElliottStarsHelen BaxendaleCharlie BrooksErica RogersA dramatisation of the crimes of Beverley Allitt, a nurse at Grantham and Kesteven Hospital, in 1991.
- DirectorRichard FleischerStarsRichard AttenboroughJudy GeesonJohn HurtWhat happened to the women at 10 Rillington Place? The story of British serial killer John Christie, who committed most or all of his crimes in the titular terraced house, and the miscarriage of justice involving Timothy Evans.
- DirectorPaul Andrew WilliamsStarsChanel CresswellNico MirallegroAbigail LawrieOn August 11, 2007, twenty-year-old Sophie Lancaster was brutally attacked in a park by a gang of teenagers and died 13 days later in hospital. She and her boyfriend Robert Maltby were attacked because they were dressed as Goths.
- DirectorRobert DornhelmStarsHayden PanettiereMarcia Gay HardenVincent RiottaBased on the events surrounding the murder of British student Meredith Kercher.
- DirectorPatrick ReamsStarsNicholas Le PrevostHarriet EastcottSam HeughanA docu-drama which chronicles the experiences and actions of Peter Wildeblood which eventually led to the decriminalisation of homosexuality in Great Britain.
- DirectorAdrian ShergoldStarsEamon BolandAlex HassellJoanne FroggattDramatisation of the real-life road-rage killing in 1996 of Stephen Cameron by Kenneth Noye, who was also implicated in the Brinks Mat bullion robbery and the murder of a policeman. The only witness to the killing of Stephen Cameron was his fiancée, Danielle Cable, who was forced to change her identity after giving the evidence which convicted Noye.
- DirectorTerry WinsorStarsCaroline QuentinGerard HoranChristine EllerbeckA team of cleaners plot to steal thousands of pounds from the Bank of England by taking it from the incinerators and hiding it in their underwear.
- DirectorTristram PowellStarsPatricia RoutledgeNicola RedmondGeorgina SutcliffeBased on the true story of Sheila Bowler, accused of murdering her elderly aunt.
- DirectorTom HooperStarsLee BoardmanJim BroadbentTam Dean BurnA portrait of Lord Longford, a tireless British campaigner whose controversial beliefs often resulted in furious political debate and personal conflict.
- DirectorDavid GreenStarsPhil CollinsJulie WaltersLarry LambBased on the story of Ronald Christopher "Buster" Edwards (Phil Collins), one of the thieves involved in "The Great Train Robbery" of 1963.
- DirectorNicolas Winding RefnStarsTom HardyKelly AdamsLuing AndrewsA young man who was sentenced to seven years in prison for robbing a post office ends up spending three decades in solitary confinement. During this time, his own personality is supplanted by his alter-ego, Charles Bronson.
- DirectorFergus O'BrienStarsDaniel MaysRichard GaddCharlie Creed-MilesPeter Wildeblood's affair with a handsome serviceman he met in Piccadilly during the time homosexuality was a crime and the devastating consequences of their relationship.
- DirectorGavin HoodStarsKeira KnightleyMatt SmithMatthew GoodeThe true story of a British whistleblower who leaked information to the press about an illegal NSA spy operation designed to push the UN Security Council into sanctioning the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
- DirectorTerry WinsorStarsSean BeanTrevor ByfieldLarry LambA dramatized speculation of what happened in November 1983 when Micky McAvoy and some of his mates planned a heist and were surprised when they discovered they'd stumbled across a large stash of gold. But getting the gold away without getting caught is only the beginning of their troubles. Realizing the riches the gold represents is difficult, and honor among thieves may only be a myth.
- DirectorMichael BeckhamStarsMartin ShawJohn HurtRoger AllamIn 1974, a pair of pub bombings rocked Birmingham, England. The terrorist attacks killed dozens of innocent civilians, and wounded many more. But another tragedy took place in their aftermath: the wrongful conviction of six men for the crime. This docudrama follows researchers Chris Mullin (Sir John Hurt) and Ian McBride (Martin Shaw) as they investigate the case of the "Birmingham Six". As the pair uncover Police misconduct, they embark on a search for the true perpetrators of the mass murders.
- DirectorNick HoltStarsBilly BarrattJames TarpeyTom BurkeFactual drama, based on true cases in the UK, following Ray (a 12-year-old boy) and his experience of the UK legal system that puts him on trial for murder.
- DirectorAdrian ShergoldStarsTom BeardJames BellamyRobin BerryA chronicle of 36 hours in the lives of a number of interconnected gay men in Clapham, South London.
- DirectorPhilip GoodhewStarsNatasha LittleNick MoranIoan GruffuddA woman is wrongly accused of murdering her husband in the early 1920s, in London.
- StarsRafe SpallAnne-Marie DuffAnnabel ScholeyThree episode, fact based drama from the BBC, about the 2018 Novichok poisoning crisis in the city of Salisbury.
- CreatorChris ChibnallStarsRobert GlenisterJack RothLuke EvansA two-part drama which portrays The Great Train Robbery of 8 August 1963, firstly from the point of view of the robbers and then from the point of view of the police who set out to identify and catch the robbers.
- StarsMatthew MacfadyenSian CliffordMark Bonnar'Quiz' tells the story of Charles Ingram, a former British army major who caused a major scandal after being caught cheating his way to winning £1 million on the game show 'Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?'
- StarsJason WatkinsShaun ParkesBen CaplanA retired teacher's tenant is murdered. He is wrongly accused of the crime, leading the police to arrest him. His life is turned upside down as he proclaims his innocence.
- StarsSharlene WhyteSteve CooganHugh QuarshieFollows the Lawrences and their quest for justice 18 years after the death of Stephen Lawrence.
- StarsSophie CooksonJames NortonEllie BamberStory of Christine Keeler, who found herself at the heart of a political sex scandal that rocked British government in the 1960s.
- DirectorTerry McDonoughStarsRichard OsmanToheeb JimohJulia BrownIn July 2005, black teenager Anthony Walker was murdered by two white men in an unprovoked racist attack in a Liverpool park. He was just 18 years old. This film tells the story of how this talented young man's life might have turned out.
- StarsMichael CaineArmand AssanteRay McAnallyA Scotland Yard police inspector, battling the booze, investigates the Jack the Ripper murders and discovers a conspiracy that leads all the way up to the Queen.
- DirectorReg TravissStarsJames D'ArcyNoel ClarkeFrank HarperThe film is a semi-biographical story based on the experiences of former prison guard Ronnie Thompson who spent seven years working in some of the UK's most dangerous prisons. Based on Thompson's book of the same name, the project stars James D'Arcy (Master & Commander), Noel Clarke (Kidulthood), Frank Harper (The Football Factory), Jamie Foreman (Layer Cake), Andrew Shim (This Is England) and Kate Magowan (Stardust). The story revolves around former soldier Sam Norwood who takes a job as a prison officer when he returns from Iraq and becomes exposed to the underworld of prison culture - including corrupt guards and drug trafficking.
- StarsAdam KotzJuliet AubreyNatalie PressBased on the personal testimonies of many of those most closely involved, "Five Daughters" recounts the final weeks in the lives of the five young women murdered in Ipswich in 2006.
- StarsAlun ArmstrongRichard RidingsJames LaurensonTwo part ITV drama based on the long police investigation and hunt for serial killer the Yorkshire Ripper, in late 1970s Northern England. It shows the effect that it had on the health and career of ACC George Oldfield who led the enquiry.
- DirectorRoger BamfordStarsMichael StaintonOlive PendletonVeda WarwickA dramatisation of the true story of Doctor Harold Shipman, a general practitioner from Hyde, Manchester, who was convicted in 2000 of murdering fifteen of his elderly patients and is suspected of having murdered as many as two hundred others.
- DirectorPaul GreengrassStarsMarianne Jean-BaptisteHugh QuarshieLeon BlackA black teenager Stephen Lawrence is killed. That event strike to his parents, his murderers, police, entire society.
- StarsSheridan SmithLeanne BestStephen MerchantA true-crime drama. Four young gay men are murdered in similar circumstances between 2014 and 2015 in the Barking area of London.
- StarsTahar RahimBilly HowleJenna ColemanThe twisting, real-life story of Charles Sobhraj, a murderer, thief and seductive master of disguise, who was a hidden darkness in the mid-70's on Asia's hippie trail.
- CreatorSarah PhelpsStarsClaire FoyPaul BettanyOlwen MayThe story of events surrounding the notorious divorce of the Duke and Duchess of Argyll during the 1960s.
- StarsMark Williams-ThomasRick WardenTanya WinsorSeries 1: In June 1985 Carole Packman, a wife and mother mysteriously disappeared and has never been seen since. Her husband Russell Causley is now serving a life sentence for her murder, yet no body has ever been found. Throughout the case he pleaded his innocence and refused to talk. Mark Williams-Thomas re-investigates the disappearance of Carole Packman. With the help of neighbours and friends, he retraces Carole's last known steps. Series 2: The 1988 case of missing 18-year-old Louise Kay.
- CreatorTony MarchantStarsAndrew BuchanLyndsey MarshalRupert GravesGarrow's Law is the true tale of William Garrow, who acted as counsel for the accused, introducing the concept of 'innocent until proved guilty' at London's Old Bailey.
- CreatorCraig PearceStarsToby WallaceAnson BoonSydney ChandlerBased on the memoir of Steve Jones, the legendary Sex Pistols guitarist who helped usher in a punk revolution in Britain.
- DirectorChris LongStarsAriel BruceGordon GoodyHarry MacqueenIn 1963 in the countryside in England, fifteen men pulled off 'The Great Train Robbery' netting today's equivalent of $85million. This incredible film features Gordon Goody, one of the instigators of the crime, for the first time ever, revealing the identity of the missing mastermind behind Britain's most famous heist- the elusive and mysterious 'Ulsterman'.
- StarsNiamh AlgarEddie MarsanHarry TreadawayFollows the true story of a controversial honeytrap at the heart of the 1992 police investigation into the murder of a young mother in London.
- DirectorJesús FrancoStarsKlaus KinskiJosephine ChaplinHerbert FuxA serial killer whose mother was a prostitute starts killing streetwalkers as a way of paying back his mother for her abuse.
- StarsMartin ClunesArsher AliCharles EdwardsSir Arthur Conan Doyle recaptures his zest for life by pursuing and challenging a notorious miscarriage of justice.
- StarsDominic CooperLara PulverSamuel WestLook at the 007 creator, Ian Fleming, and his early life set against the permissive society of war-torn WWII London.
- StarsRuth WilsonIain GlenFiona ShawA grieving widow discovers that her seemingly ideal husband lived many secret lives.
- StarsTimothy SpallEleanor Worthington-CoxJuliet StevensonAn 11 year-old Janet terrorized by the paranormal activity permeating every room - or so she'd like everyone to believe; especially Mr. Grosse, the doting researcher who goes to great lengths to protect her from the strange, dark forces.
- CreatorSarah SolemaniStarsAgnes O'CaseyRory KinnearHenry Wilton-HuntWhen Vivien Epstein follows her lover into danger and he is caught between life and death, Vivien finds herself going undercover with the fascists, not only for him but for the sake of her country.
- StarsKeeley HawesMark StanleyMichael JibsonDCI Caroline Goode vows to bring justice for a young girl, murdered by her family for falling in love with the wrong man.
- StarsHugh GrantBen WhishawAlex JenningsBritish Liberal Party leader Jeremy Thorpe is accused of conspiracy to murder his gay ex-lover and forced to stand trial in 1979.
- StarsRory KinnearCatherine McCormackChristopher EcclestonA two-part drama about infamous aristocrat John Bingham, 7th Earl of Lucan, who mysteriously disappeared in 1974 after being accused of murdering his children's nanny.
- StarsMartin FreemanSiobhan FinneranImelda StauntonDSU Stephen Fulcher intends on catching a killer of a missing woman, even if that may cost him his career and reputation.
- DirectorHarry BradbeerStarsMartin ClunesKeeley HawesRichard HopeJohn George Haigh, the notorious "acid bath murderer" in 1940s England, becomes the subject of this dramatization.
- DirectorHarry BradbeerStarsMartin KempRichard GriffithsCharlotte RandleDramatisation of the real-life case of George Joseph Smith who was hanged in 1915 for the murder of his three wives, each of whom he killed in turn by drowning them in the bath while trying to make the deaths look like accidents.
- StarsJohn SimmAnna MadeleyDavid ThrelfallThe story of Sir Alec Jeffreys' discovery of DNA fingerprinting and its first use by DCS David Baker in catching a double murderer.
- StarsJames NesbittGenevieve O'ReillyPatrick O'KaneThe true-crime story of a respectable dentist and pillar of the community who became a killer in partnership with a Sunday school teacher.
- StarsDouglas HenshallMartin CompstonJoanne ThomsonA three part TV miniseries about Lanarkshire's Detective William Muncie and his quest to bring to justice notorious killer Peter Manuel.
- StarsTim RothNico MirallegroSamantha MortonA three-part drama about serial killer John Christie and the murders at 10 Rillington Place in the 1940s and early 1950s.
- StarsJoanne FroggattAlun ArmstrongIsla McMonigleA two-part drama about the Victorian serial killer Mary Ann Cotton.
- StarsReece ShearsmithKate FleetwoodJames LaurensonA three-part drama based on the crimes of convicted murderer Malcolm Webster.
- StarsMolly WindsorRia ZmitrowiczLiv HillThree young girls were groomed, sexually abused, and trafficked by a group of men in Rochdale, as well as the authorities failed to do anything about it.
- StarsSinéad KeenanBrían F. O'ByrneMatthew DevlinThe true story of the 2007 murder of Rhys Jones in Liverpool. The story of the aftermath and police investigation.
- StarsFreddie FoxAlexa DaviesMark AddyRevolves around the true story of a fateful night in August 1985 when five members of the same family are murdered at an Essex farmhouse, and the ensuing police investigation and court case that follows.
- StarsJoanne FroggattMaxine PeakeSean HarrisA vivid drama which documents the notorious Moors murderers; Ian Brady and Myra Hindley.
- StarsEmily WatsonDominic WestRobert GlenisterDramatisation of the case of serial killers Fred and Rose West, focusing on the way in which they were brought to justice.
- StarsDavid TennantDaniel MaysJason WatkinsIn 1983, Scottish serial killer Dennis Nilsen was arrested after the discovery of human remains which had blocked a drain near his London home.
- StarsLuke EvansKeith AllenCaroline BerryDSU Steve Wilkins reopens two unsolved murder cases from the 1980s. Forensic methods link the crimes to a string of burglaries. Steve's team has to find more evidence before the perpetrator is released from prison.
- CreatorSteven KnightStarsCillian MurphyPaul AndersonSophie RundleA gangster family epic set in 1900s England, centering on a gang who sew razor blades in the peaks of their caps, and their fierce boss Tommy Shelby.
- StarsMartin ClunesClaudie BlakleyMatthew GravelleDetective Chief Inspector Colin Sutton tracks down a serial killer.
- StarsSheridan SmithSian BrookeFaye McKeeverA two-part drama about the search for missing Yorkshire schoolgirl Shannon Matthews in 2008.
- StarsIan BaileyBarry RocheEugene GilliganThe documentary follows the investigation of Sophie Toscan Du Plantier, a French film and TV producer who was killed while at her isolated holiday cottage in West Cork, Ireland, in 1996.
- StarsSinéad KeenanLola PetticrewAmy James-KellyDramatisation of three real-life stories of how three families were each affected by Northern Ireland's restrictive abortion law before it was lifted in 2019.
- StarsIan RichardsonCharles EdwardsSimon ChandlerCertain events which had an impact on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, while he was still a medical student under the supervision of Dr. Bell, his teacher and mentor, on whom the character of Sherlock Holmes is partly drawn from.
- StarsMonica DolanEddie MarsanMark StanleyFour-part drama based on the extraordinary story of how prison officer John Darwin faked his own death to claim life insurance and avoid bankruptcy - unbeknownst to his two sons.
- DirectorKristoffer NyholmStarsPeter MullanGerard ButlerEmma KingThree lighthouse keepers on the remote Flannan Isles obtain a mysterious trunk, leading to their mysterious disappearance.
- StarsSheridan SmithDaniel MaysCaroline GoodallThe true story of Charmian Brent (née Powell), the rebellious product of a strict 1950s upbringing, and her whirlwind romance with Ronald Biggs leading to a descent into crime, most infamously 1963's Great Train Robbery.
- DirectorRoger MichellStarsJim BroadbentHeather CraneyStephen RashbrookIn 1961, Kempton Bunton, a 60 year old taxi driver, steals Goya's portrait of the Duke of Wellington from the National Gallery in London.
- DirectorDeclan LawnAdam PattersonStarsJames NortonMatthew DouglasRob MaloneThe extraordinary and chilling story of career conman Robert Freegard who masqueraded as an MI5 agent and fooled people into going into hiding, and the woman who fell for him, and then brought him down.
- DirectorJohn LandisStarsBill BaileyTom WilkinsonMichael SmileyA black comedy about two 19th-century grave robbers who find a lucrative business providing cadavers for an Edinburgh medical school.
- StarsKeith AllenJayne AshbourneJudy CornwellThe life story of compulsive gambler and spendthrift William Palmer, nicknamed "Prince of Poisoners" who killed various friends and family members (including his own children) for financial gain without anyone so much as batting an eye.
- DirectorPeter MedakStarsGary KempMartin KempBillie WhitelawThis fact-based movie follows the life of the twin crime-lords in London's '60s underworld.
- DirectorBrian HelgelandStarsTom HardyEmily BrowningTaron EgertonIdentical twin gangsters Ronald and Reginald Kray terrorize London during the 1960s.
- DirectorJohn HustonStarsJohn HurtPamela FranklinNigel DavenportThe humorous adventures of the notorious Scottish highwayman and thief Davey Haggart during the 1820s in Britain.
- DirectorJames ClavellStarsTommy SteeleStanley BakerAlan BadelThe adventures and the exploits of notorious English thief and prison-breaker Jack Sheppard in 1720s London.
- DirectorIan MerrickStarsDonald SumpterDebbie FarringtonMarjorie YatesA gung-ho ex-military man pursues a secret life of crime, culminating in the kidnapping of a teenage heiress.
- DirectorFarhad SafiniaStarsMel GibsonSean PennEddie MarsanProfessor James Murray begins work compiling words for the first edition of the Oxford English Dictionary in the 19th century, and receives over 10,000 entries from a patient at Broadmoor Criminal Lunatic Asylum, Dr. William Minor.
- DirectorSheree FolksonStarsNatalie DormerCraig ParkinsonAneurin BarnardAn 18th-century drama details the scandalous life of Lady Seymour Worsley.
- DirectorKen HughesStarsPeter FinchYvonne MitchellJames MasonA chronicle of Oscar Wilde's libel suit against the Marquis of Queensberry and the tragic turn his life takes because of it.
- DirectorPaul GreengrassStarsRupert GravesKate HardieDouglas HodgeAn authentic story from 1983: The young police officer Finch is awarded a medal for the courage he showed in arresting a dangerous criminal. Meanwhile transvestite David Martin is released once again from prison - he's provocative and aggressive, escaped from prison twice. When he's caught again during a burglary, he shoots one of the police officers. Until 1983 he advances to the most wanted criminal in UK. After a chase through half of London, a suspect is shot by police officer Finch - an innocent, as it turns out, so Finch is suspended. The case becomes a police scandal, when he's even accused of murder.
- DirectorAlan ClarkeStarsCharles BoltonBilly HamonRoland CulverThe true story of Derek Bentley, whose conviction and execution for a murder committed by someone else provoked a public revulsion.
- DirectorRobert LynnStarsDonald PleasenceSamantha EggarCoral BrowneThe real-life story of Dr. Hawley Harvey Crippen, who was hanged in London in 1910 for poisoning his wife so he could be with his young lover. But was he truly guilty of murder?
- DirectorPaul GreengrassStarsSteve CooganJason IsaacsMaggie O'NeillLives of numerous football players and coaches have changed after they were accused of participating in contractual matches.
- StarsAdam HugillLorraine AshbournePerry FitzpatrickTwo shocking and unexpected murders shatter an already fractured community leading to one of the largest manhunts in British history.
- DirectorTrevor NunnStarsJudi DenchSophie CooksonStephen Campbell MooreThe story of Joan Stanley, who was exposed as the K.G.B.'s longest-serving British spy.
- CreatorEd SinclairStarsOlivia ColmanDavid ThewlisKate O'FlynnA devoted and mild-mannered British couple become the focus of an extraordinary investigation when two dead bodies are discovered in the back garden of a house in England.
- StarsNatalie BrittonJemma CarltonLesley ConroyExamine the investigation into school assistant Maxine Carr and her fiancé Ian Huntley, who was imprisoned for the killings of school girls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman.