National Treasure, Channel 4: six things you need to know about Robbie Coltrane's sex abuse drama

Jack Thorne’s four-part series boasts a stellar cast to match its complex topic
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Ben Travis20 September 2016

Channel 4 aren’t ones for shying away from big, complex topics in their dramas – and their latest, National Treasure, certainly comes under that banner.

The four-part series offers up a thorny and highly topical issue: following a beloved TV personality as he's hit with historic allegations of sexual offences.

Here’s what you need to know.

1) It’s from acclaimed writer Jack Thorne

If that name looks familiar to you, it’s probably on your bedside at the moment – Thorne is the writer of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.

He’s also co-written the likes of Channel 4’s This Is England TV series, and Sky Atlantic thriller The Last Panthers.

2) It’s got at incredible cast

Robbie Coltrane stars as the titular national treasure, Paul Finchley – one half of a beloved comedy duo, now in the later years of his career. Allegations of sexual abuse from the 1990s are brought up against him, throwing his life, career, and reputation into ill repute.

Coltrane isn’t the only heavy-hitter here – Julie Walters stars as Paul’s wife Marie, Andrea Riseborough is his daughter Dee, while Blackadder’s Tim McInnerny stars as Paul’s former comedy partner Karl.

It’s an incredible selection of British actors, doing top work from Thorne’s strong writing.

3) It’s all about doubt

National Treasure isn’t just about whether Paul did or didn’t do it – it’s about doubt, and the way it affects all areas of the investigation and Paul’s family. Do people trust the person they think they know, or should they doubt them when the allegations arrive?

“The more research we did the more it became apparent that this was a case where doubt affects every part of investigating these crimes,” said Thorne.

“There isn't categorical evidence that says this person is innocent or guilty, it's very nuanced and so capturing that became increasingly important.”

4) It’s set in ‘our’ world

By which we mean, National Treasure takes place in a post-Savile Britain. The disgraced former entertainer even gets a namecheck, as Paul tells his lawyer: “They think I’m Jimmy f****** Savile!”

Elsewhere are appearances from the likes of Alan Carr and Victoria Derbyshire playing themselves, giving a real-world grounding to the drama.

Channel 4 / Joss Barratt

5) It’s not attempting to encompass all real-life allegation scandals

There have been a number of high-profile abuse cases in recent years, from Savile, to Rolf Harris, and Bill Cosby.

Thorne has been keen to stress that, while National Treasure deals with a similar topic, he can’t explore the entirety of this complex issue.

“An awful lot of people have been damaged by this, how do you write something which manages to be a drama but has a responsibility at the heart of it?” he said, talking of the key challenges in writing the show.

“It wouldn't be responsible to tell a story which tried to encompass all stories involved in this case – so that being the case, it wouldn't be responsible because the drama wouldn’t be good and you're not then doing justice to the people involved.”

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6) There are no easy answers

Nothing is clear cut in the world of National Treasure – and it’s bound to generate discussion and prompt contemplations from audiences.

“I hope [viewers] sit there and say – this is really complicated, how do I feel about it?” Thorne says.

“How has it affected me in ways that I wasn't necessarily thinking it might affect me? What is the right way to do these things? How do we catch these men without doing massive damage to innocent people? How do we do justice to the victims of these crimes?

“And I hope that we've asked enough questions that the Gogglebox generation will genuinely talk about what it means.”

Channel 4, 9pm

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