The Jury is a five part drama dealing with unpredictability of jury trials and questioning whether the wild card of 12 good men and true is really the best way of deciding the fate of those standing trial in the UK. The writer behind the stellar series, which stars Julie Walters, said of the strange tradition:
“By their very nature, the jury members are supposed to be a diverse bunch. What a gift for a dramatist. The ability to have as a precinct not just an A&E ward, or a veterinary surgery or a police station, but the whole of society – that’s a joy in itself. But when those characters are then commissioned to solve a whodunit it makes it so much the better.
“I hope it doesn’t sound too presumptuous or pompous when I say that when you write about a modern British Jury, you automatically write about modern Britain.
“So the Jury is first and foremost a story about individuals, and the intimate circumstances of their lives. It is also – I hope – a compelling statement about the way we live in Britain in 2011, a reflection on who we are and what we have become – all framed within a courtroom drama leading an audience to that knottiest of questions that all dramatists love to ask…
“Did he do it? Or didn’t he?”
The drama questions the ethics of placing great responsibility for someone’s guilt or innocence upon the shoulders of the morally inept, the mentally ill, gamblers, cheats and non-citizens. What may or may not prove to be the result of the trial is that despite their many biases, the sheer diversity of a jury ultimately balances the result of a trial and ordinary people are able to rise above their restrictions to provide a just verdict.
Seventeen year old Aqib Khan was only sixteen when he played the part of an eighteen year old with Asperger’s Syndrome who gets picked for jury service. He took the role in his stride, having hired an agent after a successful audition for West is West:
“West is West was my first acting role and The Jury was my second, so it’s all quite new to me and I learned a lot on both. They were both very different experiences, mainly because for West is West we were out in India in the sunshine!
“When the makers of West is West were looking for actors, they contacted some schools as they were holding an open audition. My Head of year asked me to audition. He hadn’t seen me act but he approached me because of my confidence and charisma. I got the role in West is West and whilst I was filming that I got myself an agent and then got the part in The Jury.”
Julie Walters explained that her only previous experience of court was for a driving offence:
“My only previous experience in court was years ago when I was accused of driving through a red light, which I didn’t do. A policeman pulled me over and I said ‘I didn’t go through the red light’, then he asked for my autograph! The annoying thing was that I still had to pay a fine for going through the red light.
“I spoke to my husband and we agreed that out of principle I should fight the case, so I had to go to court. Anyway, I got off, but the weird thing was that when I was in court a female QC came up to me and was shocked that I was by myself. I remember her being really nice. Coincidentally, she is the same QC who has been helping me research this role. “
The series is set against a backdrop of constitutional change to do away with trial by jury – will the star quality of Julie Walter ignite the debate on ordinary people in courtrooms?
The Jury begins on Monday 7th November at 9pm, with five episodes running daily on ITV for UK audiences only.
Table of Contents
Cast
Emma Watts QC…………………………………………………………JULIE WALTERS
John Mallory QC………………………………………………………….ROGER ALLAM
Alan Lane…………………………………………………………………….JOHN LYNCH
Paul Brierley……………………………………………………..STEVEN MACKINTOSH
Rashid Jawar…………………………………………………………………..AQIB KHAN
Lucy Cartrwight…………………………………………………………NATALIE PRESS
Tahir Takana…………………………………………………………IVANNO JEREMIAH
Katherine Bulmore……………………………………………………………JODHI MAY
Ann Skailes…………………………………………………………………..JO HARTLEY
Krystyna Bamford……………………………………………………….BRANKA KATIC
Jeffery Livingstone……………………………………………………RONALD PICKUP
Derek Hatch……………………………………………………………….RORY MCCANN
Brian Bundy………………………………………………………DANNY BABBINGTON
Juror 11…………………………………………………………………STEVE MORPHEW
Juror 12……………………………………………………………………DONA CHITOLIE
Tasha Williams………………………………………………………………LISA DILLON
Theresa Vestry…………………………………………………….SARAH ALEXANDER
Olivia Livingstone……………………………………………………MEG WYNN OWEN
High Court Judge…………………………………………………………IAIN MITCHELL
Court Clerk……………………………………………………………SHAMEEM AHMED
Anna Knight……………………………………………………….ELIZABETH CONBOY
Holly Jackson……………………………………………………..BARBARA DRENNAN
Rashid’s Father………………………………………………PAUL BHATTACHARJEE
Rashid’s Mother………………………………………………………..SHOBU KAPOOR
Rashid’s Sister………………………………………………………RAKHEE THAKRAR
June (Paul’s Mother)………………………………………………………….ANNE REID
DI Bevan…………………………………………………………………MARTIN SAVAGE
Rebecca Cheung………………………………………………..CHARLOTTE WESTON
School Boy………………………………………………………………………ALEX ROE
Head Teacher………………………………………………………………..MEERA SYAL
Tanya Hawkins………………………………………………………..SARAH HADLAND
ITN Newsreader…………………………………………………….ALISTAIR STEWART
Newsreader……………………………………………………………RICHARD PALLOT
Newsreader……………………………………………………………..MARTHA FAIRLIE
Production
Executive Producer / Creative Director……………………………KATE BARTLETT
Writer / Executive Producer………………………………………….PETER MORGAN
Producer……………………………………………………………………….LEE MORRIS
Director…………………………………………………………………..MICHAEL OFFER
Production Executive…………………………………………………..JULIE BURNELL
Line Producer…………………………………………………………CHRISTINE HEALY
Director of Photography…………………………………………………..TIM FLEMING
Production Designer…………………………………………………STEVIE HERBERT
Costume Designer………………………………………………………ANNA ROBBINS
Make-up Designer……………………………………………………..CHRISSIE BAKER
Casting Director………………………………………………………….DAN HUBBARD
Sound Recordist…………………………………………………………….BILLY QUINN
Editor…………………………………………………………………………PHILIP KLOSS
