Press

The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe

The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe
The four-part drama, written by acclaimed screenwriter Chris Lang tells the true story of how  Anne Darwin’s husband, a prison officer, came up with the hare-brained scheme to defraud insurance companies, unbeknownst to their two sons.The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe, will be produced by Story Films, the company founded by three times BAFTA-winning director, David Nath (The Murder Detectives, My Name is Lizzie) and fellow award-winning director Peter Beard. Susie Liggat (Giri/Haji) also executive produces with Alison Sterling (The Windermere Children) producing. The screenwriter of Unforgotten and Innocent, Chris Lang (The Hookup Plan, Dark Heart, A Mother’s Son), who  is joined by BAFTA-winning director, Richard Laxton, (Honour, Mrs Wilson, Mum). The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe is ...

The Times, The Guardian, Esquire, Empire choose “Unforgotten” as one of the best TV shows of 2021

The Times, The Guardian, Esquire, Empire choose "Unforgotten" as one of the best TV shows of 2021
Unforgotten Season 4 was selected as among the best TV shows of 2021 as chosen by the Guardian, The Timnes, Empire, Paste, and Dead Good: Guardian "Over the years, Unforgotten has turned into one of the finest shows on British television. By the time it reached its fourth series, which attracted more viewers than ever before – thanks to its growing reputation as a sure bet – it was as lean as an elite athlete." Read the full list here The Times Unforgotten, ITV Chris Lang’s dark but consistently high-quality series (spoiler alert) saved its biggest, most shocking gut punch until last. Nicola Walker as DCI Cassie Stewart was unexpectedly killed off, leaving the audience reeling. Read the full list ...

‘The Thief, his Wife, and The Canoe’ commences shooting.

'The Thief, his Wife, and The Canoe' commences shooting.
(See ITV Press Centre) Monica Dolan and Eddie Marsan take the roles of Anne and John Darwin in ITV’s The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe, written by acclaimed screenwriter Chris Lang and produced by award winning producers, Story Films Renowned actors, Monica Dolan and Eddie Marsan, will play Anne and John Darwin in the extraordinary and compelling ITV drama, The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe.  The real life story of how John Darwin, played by BIFA nominee Eddie Marsan (Ray Donovan, Sherlock Holmes, Happy Go Lucky) faked his own death to claim life insurance and avoid bankruptcy is written by acclaimed screenwriter Chris Lang. Commented Chris Lang: “I am beyond delighted to be working with two of the ...

ITV recommissions Unforgotten for a fifth series

ITV recommissions Unforgotten for a fifth series
"ITV would like to thank Nicola Walker for playing the brilliant role of Cassie Stuart in four series of Unforgotten which has become one of the best loved and most critically acclaimed police dramas on TV. Nicola and writer Chris Lang decided that Cassie's story would come to an end last night, but that Unforgotten would continue, in series 5, with a new case, and a new 'Partner in Crime' for DI Sunny Khan. This fourth series has had a record breaking season posting its highest viewing figures. For episodes 1-5 the series has averaged 7.5 million viewers based on seven day consolidated data, which is up by 1.6m viewers and 26% on the last series. The audience for the ...

Chris Lang on creating hit drama Unforgotten

Chris Lang on creating hit drama Unforgotten
A conflicted relationship with the police helped the writer to create the detective drama (Stephen Armstrong, The Sunday Times) When times are tough, we turn to detective fiction. Arthur Conan Doyle’s first Sherlock Holmes story was published during the long depression of 1873-96. Raymond Chandler’s hardboiled ’tec sprang from the 1930s slump. In 2020, as the pandemic ravaged us all, detective fiction offered resolution and even a sense of justice being done. As 2021 gets under way, television is proving the point. Death in Paradise, McDonald & Dodds and the mighty Unforgotten are hauling in ratings and critical plaudits, all offering detectives who are, for want of a better word, ordinary. Wildly different though they are, these are not shows ...

How “Unforgotten” made Cassie Stuart the queen of TV crime

How "Unforgotten" made Cassie Stuart the queen of TV crime
Chris Lang explains how his female lead broke the mould (by Michael Hogan,The Telegraph) Who needs maverick detectives, with their vintage cars, flowing coats and unorthodox methods? The best sleuth on our screens right now is the decent, dedicated and quietly diligent DCI Cassie Stuart, who returns tomorrow in ITV crime drama Unforgotten. Brilliantly played by Nicola Walker, Cassie might not be a mercurial rule-breaker with a drink problem (like Robbie Coltrane in Cracker), a torrid love-life (like Tom Burke in Strike) or a penchant for violence (like Idris Elba in Luther) but she gets the job done. She’s methodical, by-the-book and utterly believable as she brings killers to justice. She’s precisely the sort of reassuringly British, level-headed model of ...