Fearless (TV series)

Fearless is a six-part British crime thriller television drama series created by screenwriter Patrick Harbinson and broadcast on ITV in 2017.[1] The series follows human-rights lawyer Emma Banville (Helen McCrory) as she tries to prove convicted murderer Kevin Russell innocent of the murder of schoolgirl Linda Simms 14 years earlier. Russell asserts that he is innocent of the crime, and Emma believes that his conviction was a miscarriage of justice. She goes to extreme lengths to discover the truth.[2]

This article is about the 2017 British series. For other series, see Fearless.
Fearless
GenreCrime thriller
Created byPatrick Harbinson
Written byPatrick Harbinson
Directed byPete Travis
Creative directorRebecca Keane
Starring
Opening themeBack from the Fire by Gold Brother
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes6 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producersPatrick Harbinson
Damien Timmer
Tom Mullens
ProducerAdrian Sturges
Production locationsLondon, England
EditorsMatt Platt-Mills
Sigvaldi J. Karason
Malcolm Crowe
Running time45 minutes
Production companyMammoth Screen
DistributorITV Studios Global Entertainment
Release
Original networkITV
Picture format18:9 (1080i)
Audio formatStereo
Original release12 June (2017-06-12) –
17 July 2017 (2017-07-17)

Supporting cast includes Michael Gambon as influential former Deputy Secretary to the Cabinet Office Sir Alastair McKinnon, Jonathan Forbes as Emma's colleague Dominic Truelove, Wunmi Mosaku as DCS Olivia Greenwood, the Investigating Officer on the Linda Simms case, and John Bishop as Emma's boyfriend Steve Livesey.[3]

Filming for the series began in September 2016 in London and East Anglia.[4] The series debuted on ITV in the UK on 12 June 2017 and has received positive reviews, with critics praising Helen McCrory's performance.[5][6] However, the show was cancelled in March 2018 after one series.[7]

Cast

Main cast

Supporting cast

Episodes
No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateUK viewers
(millions)
1"Episode 1"Pete TravisPatrick Harbinson12 June 2017 (2017-06-12)7.16
After being contacted by his ex-fiancée Annie Peterson, human rights lawyer Emma Banville takes up the case of convicted killer Kevin Russell, who is serving a life sentence for the murder of Linda Simms, 15, who had been assaulted and buried alive at the school where Kevin was working as a janitor at the time of her death in February 2003. The audio tape of his confession and a visit to the school where Linda's body was found leads Emma to suspect Kevin was wrongfully convicted. Linda's grieving parents alert the press in an attempt to change Emma's mind, leading to Kevin's family being harassed and him being assaulted in prison. Emma successfully gets his conviction thrown out on the basis of a clearly coerced confession, but he will be tried a second time. Emma faces the wrath of the original investigator, Olivia Greenwood, who plans to introduce new evidence of his guilt. Events in Emma's personal life fail to make the case any easier. While taking care of a Syrian refugee and her baby, Emma prepares to adopt a child with her boyfriend, Steve, all while dealing with negative headlines and comforting her terminally ill father, Arthur.
2"Episode 2"Pete TravisPatrick Harbinson19 June 2017 (2017-06-19)4.92
Kevin is forced to move in with Emma after he is released on bail, as even his own 14-year-old son, Jason, believes he is guilty. Ambitious young MP Matthew Wild, who knows Linda's family, refuses to appeal to them to approve the request for their daughter's body to be exhumed. Emma receives provocative photos of Linda Simms taken at Kevin's former janitor shed. The photos, professionally taken by photojournalist Tony Pullings, include one of Linda in only her bra wearing an F-14 pin. This plus the forensics report, which indicate Linda had inhaled soil with traces of jet fuel before suffocating, lead Emma to suspect the teenager had originally been buried at a nearby air base in Suffolk, which at the time of her murder was being used by the Americans in the lead up to the Iraq War. Meanwhile, CIA agent Heather Myles, who would rather Kevin stay in prison, wants access to the Syrian refugee staying with Emma, Miriam Attar, whose husband, Dr. Yusef Attar, is accused of being in ISIS and is being represented by Emma. Myles approaches DCS Olivia Greenwood, who now works with the Counter Terrorism Command (CTC), and promises her access to NSA surveillance on Emma's home. Greenwood at first refuses, but changes her mind when Emma leaks the photos of Linda to the press. Dominic Truelove, Emma's legal assistant, is the victim of a hit-and-run ordered by Myles when he is observing Pullings. The police raid Emma's home and take Miriam after they claim a call from there was made to a known ISIS number in Raqqa. Kevin is arrested and returned to prison when he comes to Miriam's aid.
3"Episode 3"Pete TravisPatrick Harbinson26 June 2017 (2017-06-26)4.90
A young woman named Siobhan Murphy contacts Emma and tells her Pullings took pornographic photos of her as well when she was 15, and that she was brought to parties to meet rich men. Matthew Wild's wife, Laura, meets Linda's family and, appearing moved after visiting Linda's old room, suggests writing Kevin and appealing to him as a father to stop the exhumation. Dominic tracks Pullings to a safehouse, where he spots the same van that hit him. Olivia wants the SIM card that was missing from Miriam's phone, which she slipped into Emma's pocket before being taken away. Emma informs Olivia about Pullings and asks her to look up the plate number of the van, which Olivia discovers belongs to a firm that provides additional security to U.S. embassies. Already suspicious of Myles, Olivia demands to know why the Americans are so interested in Kevin's case. After Myles subtly threatens Olivia's career, Olivia lies to Emma and says the car belongs to a UK firm that does security for media. A judge grants the request to exhume Linda's body; the new coroner's report contradicts the police theory of the crime. Linda had not been struck in the legs and in the head with a shovel, as Kevin said in his false confession. Linda's leg injuries were consistent with bumper fractures from being struck by a car, and trace residue from bitumen showed her head injury came from striking the road. Annie, Kevin's former girlfriend, confirms that the weekend Linda disappeared, she had taken their car out of town for one final trip before she gave birth. At Kevin's trial, Pullings confirms taking photos of Linda but claims he didn't know how young she was; he also says he never took girls to any parties. Siobhan refuses to testify after Myles approaches her with Pullings' naked photos of her and gets her to believe that the photos will become public record and ruin her life. Two associates of Yusef Attar demand Miriam's SIM card, but Emma refuses, saying she will only give it to Yusef. After the police raid on her house, Emma's approval to become a foster parent is revoked.
4"Episode 4"Pete TravisPatrick Harbinson3 July 2017 (2017-07-03)5.23
Kevin's trial appears heading toward an acquittal until a crime scene photograph from his workshop shows a set of keys to the school van, which he is forced to admit he could have driven that weekend. Against Emma's advice, he takes a deal in which he pleads not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter. The terms of the deal allow him to walk free as he had already served the sentence he would have received for manslaughter. Kevin, bolstered by his son's presence in the court during the trial, is sure Jason now knows he is innocent, and he is eager to establish a relationship with his son. When Annie brings Jason to meet his father at a café, Jason calls his father a murderer for hitting Linda and burying her alive. Heartbroken, Kevin walks into the street and is hit by a lorry. He barely survives and ends up in a coma. Emma wants to find Pullings, but Olivia wants to know where Yusef is, which Emma cannot reveal. Emma, though she knows she is being tracked, travels to Birmingham and turns off her phone. This attracts the attention of Olivia and her CTC team. Emma is taken by the same two men to a house where Yusef is. She questions him and realises he is working with ISIS. When she tells him she did not bring the SIM card, he angrily has the two men take her away. She confirms he has fired her as his lawyer before she covertly reactivates her phone, alerting the CTC to Yusef's location. Olivia texts her Pullings' location, and with Dominic's assistance, they get the name of the American soldier Linda was involved with: Logan Bradley, then just 17 himself. Emma travels to Washington, D.C. to meet Logan, who at first denies knowing Linda. When Emma tells him she knows he was transferred off the base within 24 hours of Linda's death, Logan panics but insists he never hurt anybody and warns her to leave. Air Force police then arrive and arrest Emma.
5"Episode 5"Pete TravisPatrick Harbinson10 July 2017 (2017-07-10)5.04
Under Myles' orders, Emma is taken to Andrews Air Force Base under armed guard. Myles refuses to answer questions and insists the matter is national security. Another soldier, however, allows Logan to secretly meet with Emma. He explains that he met Linda in England through her uncle, who delivered supplies to the base from the Simms' pub. He said he and Linda were lovestruck teenagers and planned on getting married when he returned from Iraq. The night Linda disappeared, she had planned on going to the base with her friends but the base was closed to civilians because of the arrivals of VIPs. He said that when he found out that Linda was missing, he told his commanding officer that he had been dating her, and was immediately sent to the Mid East, and that if he ever told anyone he had been involved with her, he would be sent to Guantánamo. He informs Emma that once again, he is being sent overseas, this time with his wife and daughter. Back in England, Matthew Wild is elected Leader of the Opposition, after campaigning to support his fellow veterans and not repeat the mistakes of the Iraq War. Dominic and others discover she is being held at Andrews, where she is interrogated and threatened, but she refuses to divulge any information. Myles tries stall on releasing her, but Jack Kretchmer, the former Under Secretary of Defense during the Iraq War, tells her to give it up. Olivia, who was promoted to Chief Superintendent after Yusef's arrest, calls Myles and tells her documents on Yusef's computer prove that Emma was more involved than they suspected, and that she knows the name of his financial backers. Myles is happy to send Emma back, but Olivia's phone call turns out to be a ploy to secure her release.
6"Episode 6"Pete TravisPatrick Harbinson17 July 2017 (2017-07-17)5.26
Banville arrives at the hospital, Kevin having already passed away. Blaming herself for his death, she leaves a meeting at the firm where they discuss the closing of the Attar and Russell cases. Greenwood provides the information for Emma to reach Rachel's mother, revealing that she has been suspended for her actions with Banville. Brooks presses Greenwood for information on why Myles is so interested in Banville. While visiting she discovers that Wild's wife is the missing Rachel who agreed to help cover up the death of Simms in exchange for a better life. Myles prepares to set up the murder of Banville and to make it look like it was revenge from Attar's people. Greenwood warns her of the risks. Banville confronts Rachel, Matthew arrives and realizes that Banville's car has a bomb and chooses to tell her about it. She prompts him to tell her what happened the night of Simms' death.

References
  1. "ITV Media | Fearless". www.itvmedia.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-06-27.
  2. "Fearless Press Pack" (PDF). ITV Press Centre. 6 June 2017. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  3. "Sir Michael Gambon joins the cast of ITV's Fearless". ITV Press Centre. Retrieved 2017-06-27.
  4. "ITV Media | Fearless". www.itvmedia.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-06-27.
  5. Mangan, Lucy (2017-06-13). "Fearless review – Helen McCrory shines in a fabulously classy thriller". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2017-06-27.
  6. "Fearless episode 1 review: Homeland comes to East Anglia". The Telegraph. Retrieved 2017-06-27.
  7. "ITV ditches the Nightly Show, Bigheads and Fearless for 'underperforming'". March 2018.
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