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THERE WILL BE MURDER

When is Agatha Christie’s Witness For The Prosecution on BBC1, who is in the cast and what is it about?

CRIME novelist Agatha Christie's gripping books have been adapted into films and TV dramas for years.

Now, following on from the success of And Then There Were None last Christmas, another adaptation is coming to the BBC this festive season.

Sex and the City's Kim Cattrall is the victim Agatha Christie's The Witness for the Prosecution
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Sex and the City's Kim Cattrall is the victim Agatha Christie's The Witness for the ProsecutionCredit: BBC Press Handout

Here's everything you need to know about The Witness for the Prosecution, before it hits TV screens this Christmas.

When is The Witness for the Prosecution on TV?

The Witness for the Prosecution is on BBC1 on Boxing Day and 27 December.

While Billy Howle plays the chief suspect
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While Billy Howle plays the chief suspectCredit: BBC Press Handout

It will be on at 9pm each night, and available on BBC iPlayer thereafter.

The festive two-part drama, written by Sarah Phelps, will take you and your family on a journey into the brutal and bloodthirsty world of 1920s London.

Last Christmas, 8 million Brits settled down to watch And Then There Were None - and the BBC are hoping to get similar hits with this gripping show.

Who's starring in The Witness for the Prosecution?

The show has an all-star cast - including:

Toby Jones plays the defence lawyer tasked with proving his innocence (pictured with Hayley Carmichael)
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Toby Jones plays the defence lawyer tasked with proving his innocence (pictured with Hayley Carmichael)Credit: BBC Press Handout
  • Tinker Tailor Solider Spy star Toby Jones
  • Oblivion actress Andrea Riseborough
  • Sex and the City star Kim Cattrall
  • The Thick Of It actor David Haig
  • Cider With Rosie star Billy Howle
  • And The Casual Vacancy star Monica Dolan.

What is The Witness for the Prosecution about?

In 1920s London, a murder has stained the plush carpets of a London townhouse.

The two-part Christmas special involves a gripping court case
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The two-part Christmas special involves a gripping court caseCredit: BBC Press Handout
The BBC will be continuing to bring Agatha Christie's classic novels to British TV screens over the next four years
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The BBC will be continuing to bring Agatha Christie's classic novels to British TV screens over the next four yearsCredit: BBC Press Handout

The victim is the glamorous Emily French (played by Kim Cattrall), and all evidence points to the ruthless young 'chancer' who has been left her fortune, Leonard Vole (Billy Howle).

What follows is a dramatic court case, and Leonard's battle to prove his innocence.

The classic drama has been sexed-up for TV audiences, and will feature foul language, attempted rape and police brutality.

Sarah Phelps said: “When I read the short story it felt like the most perfect Film Noir for 1920s London, and, like the famous Noir of post World War II America, there is an incredible focus on the context of the times and how that might lead someone to commit a terrible murder.

“Dark, strange, unsettling and thrilling, you feel the rug of your certainties twitched from under your feet. I couldn’t wait to get going on it.”

BBC bosses have secured a deal which will see seven new Agatha Christie adaptations be brought to TV screens, over the next four years.

Ordeal by Innocence and Death Comes As The End are currently in the pipeline.

The Witness for the Prosecution is on BBC1 at 9pm on Boxing Day and 27 December.

READ MORE

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