Description
Wild Mercury Productions and True Vision for BBC One
The Sixth Commandment tells the story of how the meeting of an inspirational teacher, Peter Farquhar (Timothy Spall), and a charismatic young student, Ben Field (Éanna Hardwicke), who bonded over their love of books and involvement with the Church of England, set the stage for one of the most complex and confounding criminal cases in recent memory.
It also focuses on how suspicions around Ben’s relationship with Peter’s deeply religious neighbour Ann Moore-Martin (Anne Reid), also targeted by Field, unlocked a series of stunning revelations, culminating in a headline-grabbing trial.
The Sixth Commandment captures the initial seductions, the extreme gaslighting, the gripping police investigation and Peter’s killer finally being brought to justice four years after his untimely death.
While poignantly highlighting the damaging effect of isolation and loneliness, it also celebrates both Peter and Ann’s lives as cherished mentors, much loved relatives and adored friends.
This series, written by Sarah Phelps (A Very British Scandal, The Pale Horse) and directed by Saul Dibb (The Salisbury Poisonings), is inspired by the critically acclaimed and BAFTA nominated documentary Catching A Killer: A Diary From The Grave.
Ratings:
- Across the whole series, THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT delivered a consolidated average audience of 7m viewers and a market share of 21.6% - this was +26% up on BBC One’s slot average
- Exceeded BBC One’s slot average share for Adults 35-54 (+6%), Adults 55+ (+37%), ABC1 Adults (+32%), Housewives (+31%), Men (+20%) & Women (+30%)
- #1 show on BBC One during the whole of July for all viewers winning a peak audience of 4.9 million (it was also #1 show for ABC1 Adults)
- Across the whole series THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT has accumulated a total of 4.1m average iPlayer audience
- Impressive viewing on iPlayer, with all its episodes in the top ten titles on the platform and the programme accounting for 6% of total iPlayer hours
- The Sixth Commandment is the 3rd-biggest drama series this year across all VOD platforms