Well I won't be watching it, if only because I don't have a TV licence now, and have unplugged the TV aerial in case the TV Licensing inspector arrives with a search warrant
I suppose it would be worth a watch if you're interested in this kind of thing from a licensing and crime perspective, which I am. On the other hand, it's not at all typical of the normal modus for this kind of thing that we constantly read about on here, so it's more about the policing and crime detection angle per se, as opposed to stuff like fake taxis, plying for hire, rank management, signage and booking stuff like identification. (And I've watched a previous TV program on Worboys, and have read plenty as well.)
Anyway, the one odd detail here is the roundabout way this refers to Carrie Symonds/Johnson as a Conservative Party press officer, as opposed to what she eventually became, as is still to this day. Although no prizes for guessing which one of the actresses in the photograph is playing her
(The Daily Echo has at least one other piece on Worboys, not because most of his crimes took place when he was a London black cab driver, but because he also worked in the Bournemouth trade.)
ITV crime drama on ex Dorset taxi driver John Worboyshttps://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/26058 ... rue-crime/A new ITV true crime drama that tells the chilling story of the ‘Black Cab rapist', a former Dorset taxi driver, is set to be released."Believe Me" is a four part true crime drama exposing Metropolitan Police failures in the case of former Bournemouth taxi driver John Worboys, now notorious as one of the UK’s most prolific sex offenders.
Worboys was convicted in 2009 for crimes, including sexual assault and drugging with intent against twelve women between 2006 and 2008, with their cases selected from a large number of suspected further victims.
Worboys, who once owned a flat in Poole, would pick up women in his cab after they’d been on a night out, claim that he’d had a win at a casino or on the lottery, then persistently offer them a drug laced glass of champagne to help him ‘celebrate’ which then rendered his victims unconscious.
"Believe Me" focuses on Sarah (played by Aimée-Ffion Edwards) and Laila (played by Aasiya Shah), who reported sexual assaults by Worboys (Daniel Mays), and how the Metropolitan Police failed to thoroughly investigate their allegations, leading the victims to feel that they were not believed. According to the ITV, Laila was asked by an officer if her red nail varnish was "indicative of her character" when reporting the assault.
Image: ITV/Bournemouth EchoITV confirmed "Believe Me" will relate how the Met’s failings effectively left Worboys free to commit assaults undetected for many years, however following his trial came the realisation that he was linked to allegations of further sexual offences against over a hundred women.
Sarah and Laila then joined forces with solicitor Harriet Wistrich, played by Philippa Dunne and barrister Phillippa Kaufmann QC, played by Rachael Stirling, to sue the Metropolitan Police under the Human Rights Act for their failure to properly conduct investigations into their allegations of sexual assault.
Sarah and Laila won this case.
The Met then appealed this judgement all the way to the Supreme Court, however Sarah and Laila won a second time.
Their story continues as only eight years after his crimes, Worboys' victims were made to fight again to keep him behind bars.
Image: ITV/Bournemouth EchoSarah, Laila, Harriet and Phillippa are then joined by Carrie Symonds (played by Miriam Petche), who was targeted by Worboys in her youth but had a narrow escape, and who was now a senior figure in the Conservative Party press team.
Risking her career, Carrie lead a huge media and political campaign pushing for an unprecedented judicial review of the Parole Board’s decision. The campaign, with Sarah, Laila and Carrie at the forefront, was successful, and Worboys’ parole was eventually denied.
Sarah, one of the victims portrayed in the series, whose identity is protected, said: “Believe Me is about the courage of every woman who came forward to help put John Worboys behind bars.
“What happened to me changed my life, but in many ways the hardest part was not being believed for so many years.
"Without the people who stood by me, Worboys would have been freed and continued to pose a huge risk to women.
“Seeking justice shouldn’t mean more trauma.
"We shouldn’t have to fight to be believed or feel like we’re the ones on trial.
"The shame never belongs to the survivor."
Jeff Pope serves as executive producer on the drama alongside Saurabh Kakkar for Etta Pictures, with RTS Award winner Julia Ford directing and Catrin Lewis Defis producing.
Carrie Johnson (played by Nee Symonds) said: “I hope Believe Me serves as a wake up call to the police, the CPS and the parole board.
"Far too often, women and girls are failed by the very institutions meant to protect them.
“The treatment of the victims in this case was truly shameful.
"Reform matters but what we urgently need above all is a profound shift in culture.
“It takes enormous courage for women to come forward.
"They must know that when they do, they will be treated seriously and with respect, and that every effort will be made to ensure justice is done."
Exact dates for the release of "Believe Me" have not yet been announced, but ITV has confirmed it will air on ITV1 and STV and will also be available to stream on ITVX and STV Player.
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