Line of Duty creator Jed Mercurio recently revealed the filming of a new drama series in Northern Ireland.
Line of Duty creator Jed Mercurio has co-written a drama about the early days of the Covid pandemic. The new series is based on doctor-writer Rachel Clarke’s personal memoir of working on the frontlines during the pandemic.
The drama titled Breathtaking will be a three-part series filmed in Northern Ireland.
Joanne Froggatt – one of the stars of the Downton Abbey series
Joanne Froggatt is a famous British actress best known for her performance as Anna Bates in the hit ITV period drama series Downton Abbey.
She received three Emmy nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her performance in that role. Also, she won the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress on Television in 2014.
Joanne said about the opportunity to star in this new drama: “I feel truly honoured to be playing Dr Abbey Henderson in Breathtaking, based on Dr Rachel Clarke’s beautifully written, poignant and shocking book of the same name.
“When I first read the incredible scripts, they moved me to tears on many occasions. I felt so passionately that I had to be a part of telling this story, the real story, of what was really happening behind the closed doors of the hospitals during the pandemic.
“Our NHS staff are nothing less than absolute heroes in my eyes, and I hope telling this story goes a little way towards us understanding their truth, their lived experience and honouring their unbelievable commitment and sacrifice on behalf of us all”.
Dr Abbey Henderson – based on the real-life Dr Rachel Clarke
In the show, Froggatt will play the role of acute medicine consultant and mother of two, Dr Abbey Henderson. The character is based on the real-life doctor and writer Rachel Clarke.
The drama, set in a fictional hospital, will narrate the experiences of frontline medical staff during the pandemic. It will weave together the experiences of her fellow doctors, patients, nurses, and paramedics.
Rachel Clarke said of the importance of the show: “There is so much misinformation and rewriting of history around what really happened inside our hospitals during the pandemic. The truth is NHS staff gave everything they had in impossible conditions that sometimes cost them their lives.
“It is an honour to try and depict the courage and decency of my NHS colleagues on screen, and I’m so grateful to ITV and HTM Television for giving me the chance to show the public the truth”.
Jed Mercurio – creator of the hit Line of Duty TV series
Jed Mercurio is best known for creating the successful Line of Duty series on BBC, also filmed in Northern Ireland. He has teamed up with Rachel Clarke herself to adapt her memoir into a TV drama.
Speaking about the process of creating the Breathtaking TV show, Mercurio said: “Everyone at HTM Television has felt privileged to dramatise Rachel Clarke’s hauntingly illuminating memoir of health workers struggling to cope with the extraordinary challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I’m honoured to have collaborated with Rachel and Prasanna [Puwanarajah] on this important drama and thrilled to be working with a cast led by Joanne Froggatt and crew led by director Craig Viveiros”.
