Our take
A courtroom ghost story, played with relish by Peter Capaldi as a prosecutor and Elliot Levey as a sneering Judge Jeffreys. It is wordier and less frightening than some, as more than one critic noted, but the period detail is rich and the trial gives it an unusual shape. It was BBC Four's most-watched programme of 2019.
What happens
In 1684 John Martin, a well-to-do young man, stands trial for his life before the notorious hanging judge, George Jeffreys. He is accused of murdering Ann Clark, a poor servant girl at an inn, with some form of mental impairment, with whom he struck up what looked like a romance, although he was already engaged to a young woman of his own class. The affair cost him his engagement, and Ann pursued him relentlessly. The prosecutor Dolben claims Martin cut her throat and left her body in a pond, but the evidence is circumstantial and his motive unclear. Then witnesses tell the court that the girl was seen alive after she was supposed to be dead, and there are stories of a misshapen creature hiding in a cupboard at the inn. Jeffreys presides with sneering incredulity as the case turns on the supernatural.
Can the kids watch it?
No BBFC rating found for this film. It concerns a murder trial with a supernatural witness, so best for teenagers and up.
Cast and crew
Starring
- Peter Capaldi as Dolben
- Elliot Levey as Judge Jeffreys
- Wilf Scolding as John Martin
- Sara Crowe as Sarah Arscott
Guest stars
- Simon Williams as Stanton
- Fisayo Akinade as William
Writer
- Mark Gatiss
Director
- Mark Gatiss