UK Post Office Drama Gets 'Incredible Public Response'

In light of the 'incredible public response' to Mr Bates Vs The Post Office, actor and creator Seb Carrington is hopeful for the future of TV factual dramas.

Mr Bates V The Post Office explores how subpostmasters were wrongly convicted over money which went missing due to faulty Horizon accounting software. 

In a recent interview, Seb Carrington hopes that the increasing popularity of this show will provide the catalyst for the creation of more TV factual dramas, including his own show about the UK's infected blood scandal.

"Since the Post Office scandal, everyone is thinking why do we not have a TV drama about the infected blood scandal so now we can go back and double down on our convictions," he said.

Carrington continued, "A TV drama goes into people’s living rooms, it goes into their lives, and you’re made to sit and live with these characters for quite a few hours, which is a substantial amount of time, much longer than just reading a newspaper article". 

"And through that time, you get to see the the layer-upon-layer of scandal and the impact it has emotionally and physically on these victims". 

"so much hope"

Speaking about his blood scandal drama, Seb Carrington revealed that he has haemophilia, as does his brother James, who contracted the disorder through this UK blood scandal in the 1980s. James later died in a car accident.

Carrington explained how he reached out to a number of commissioners including the BBC over this project. However, it was felt "there wasn't much space for more factual dramas on their slate". 

This project itself is based around the boys who contracted hepatitis at Treloar's College, a school for disabled children with a facility on site for haemophiliacs. 

The Crown star also added that he has "so much hope" for the future of the genre, given the "incredible public response" to Mr Bates Vs The Post Office.

"I think it’s brilliant that they’ve had this effect," he said. "I’m delighted for the victims, they’ve been fighting for justice themselves for so long", stated Carrington. "It’s a shame in some ways that it takes a TV drama to force politicians to do the right thing".

"But it seems these days politicians will only do the right thing when it’s in public knowledge and therefore, in some ways, reflecting well on the politician". 

Mr Bates Vs The Post Office stars Will Mellor, Julia Hesmondhalgh, Toby Jones, and Monica Jones, alongside Carrington, and can be watched on Virgin Media Player.