''Rillington Place'' is a three-part biographical crime drama about the real life case of

serial killer A serial killer (also called a serial murderer) is a person who murders three or more people,An offender can be anyone: * * * * * (This source only requires two people) with the killings taking place over a significant period of time in separat ...

John Christie, and the subsequent wrongful execution of

Timothy Evans Timothy John Evans (20 November 1924 – 9 March 1950) was a Welsh lorry driver who was wrongfully accused of murdering his wife Beryl and infant daughter Geraldine at their residence in Notting Hill, London. In January 1950, Evans was tried a ...

. It premiered on 29 November 2016 on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...

Premise

The miniseries revolves around the home life of John Christie and his wife, Ethel, as he commits a string of murders during the 1940s and early 1950s. Each of the three episodes tells the story as seen from the respective point of view of the three main characters: Ethel Christie, Timothy Evans and John Christie.

Cast

Tim Roth Timothy Simon Roth (; born 14 May 1961) is an English actor. He was among a group of prominent British actors known as the " Brit Pack". After garnering attention in television productions '' Made in Britain'' (1982) and '' Meantime'' (1983), ...

as John Christie *

Samantha Morton Samantha Jane Morton (born 13 May 1977) is an English actress. She is known for her work in independent film with dark and tragic themes, particularly in period dramas. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including the BAFTA Fellowship ...

as Ethel Christie *

Nico Mirallegro Nico Cristian Mirallegro ( ; born 26 January 1991) is an English actor. He is best known for his roles as Barry "Newt" Newton in the soap opera ''Hollyoaks'' (2007–2010), Finn Nelson in ''My Mad Fat Diary'' (2013–2015), Joe Middleton in ...

as Timothy Evans *

Jodie Comer Jodie Marie Comer ( ; born 11 March 1993) is an English actress of screen and stage. She began her career in an episode of '' The Royal Today'' in 2008. Comer gained recognition for appearing in the series ''My Mad Fat Diary'' (2013–2015) an ...

as Beryl Evans

Production

As Rillington Place no longer exists (it was demolished in the early 1970s) the interiors of 10 Rillington Place were recreated at

BBC Scotland BBC Scotland is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Scotland. Its headquarters are in Glasgow, employing approximately 1,250 staff as of 2017, to produce 15,000 hours of television and radio programming per year. BBC Scotla ...

’s

Dumbarton Dumbarton (; , or ; or , meaning 'fort of the Britons (historical), Britons') is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven, Dunbartonshire, River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. ...

Studios near Glasgow, whilst the exteriors of the street were shot on a set created in a parking lot at the same studio, though the exterior set of Rillington Place is scaled down with just eight houses recreated, (four on one side of the street and four on the other). Other locations across Scotland were used to represent London. The

Bo'ness & Kinneil Railway The Bo’ness and Kinneil Railway is a heritage railway in Bo'ness, Scotland. It is operated by the Scottish Railway Preservation Society (SRPS), a Charitable organization, registered charity, and operates a total of over of track (between B ...

for the railway station and train, New Street in Paisley, West Princes Street and West Street in Glasgow, representing the link between Rillington Place and the rest of

Ladbroke Grove Ladbroke Grove ( ) is a road in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England, which passes through Kensal Green and Notting Hill, running north–south between Harrow Road and Holland Park Avenue. It is also the name of the sur ...

in London. Filming also made use of the Western Baths Club. The Ballantine Castings Factory in

Bo'ness Borrowstounness, commonly known as Bo'ness ( ), is a town and former burgh and seaport on the south bank of the Firth of Forth in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. Counties of Scotland, Historically part of the county of West Lothian (historic), ...

was used for the bombed-out section of the factory at the end of Rillington Place.

Broadcast and reception

On 29 November 2016, the first episode premiered on BBC One, to largely positive reviews from critics, who applauded the performances and the storytelling. However, it also attracted mixed reactions from some viewers who complained about the "mumbling" and the "inaudible dialogue" of the actors. Following the second episode on 6 December, Sarah Doran of '' RadioTimes.com'' noted that several viewers had been confused by Mirallegro's use of two different accents while portraying Evans, as the actor switched between

Cockney Cockney is a dialect of the English language, mainly spoken in London and its environs, particularly by Londoners with working-class and lower middle class roots. The term ''Cockney'' is also used as a demonym for a person from the East End, ...

and

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, of or about Wales * Welsh language, spoken in Wales * Welsh people, an ethnic group native to Wales Places * Welsh, Arkansas, U.S. * Welsh, Louisiana, U.S. * Welsh, Ohio, U.S. * Welsh Basin, during t ...

accents. However, writers Ed Whitmore and Tracey Malon told the website this had been deliberate, since it was a trait adopted by Evans himself in an attempt to fit into his surroundings: "Tim moved to London from Wales around the age of eleven, his half-sister told us he was very keen to fit in and soon adopted a London 'barrow-boy' accent, but that he could slip back into his childhood accent when around members of his Welsh family. Nico irallegrowanted to reflect Tim's malleability and that desire to fit in by using different accents according to who he was talking to." Internationally, the series premiered on

BBC First BBC First is an entertainment subscription television channel featuring comedy, crime, drama and film programming, originating from UK and mostly from the BBC. The channel is wholly owned and operated by BBC Studios. The channel began rolling ...

on 8 February 2017.

References

External links

* * {{Use British English, date=September 2020 2016 British television series debuts 2016 British television series endings 2010s British drama television series BBC high definition shows BBC television dramas Television series by Endemol 2010s British crime television series 2010s British television miniseries British English-language television shows Television series set in the 1940s Television series set in the 1950s Television shows set in London Television shows set in Wales Television shows about serial killers