Colin Firth To Star In Sky & Peacock Limited Series ‘Lockerbie’ As Campaigner & Grieving Father Jim Swire

Jesse Whittock
·3 min read
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Colin Firth will star as a grieving father in Sky and Peacock’s true-life drama series Lockerbie.

The The King’s Speech and A Single Man actor has signed on to play Dr Jim Swire, a man who tragically lost his daughter when Pan Am Flight 103 exploded over a small town on December 21, 1988. Swire and his wife, Pam, have doggedly pursued justice ever since.

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Sky and Peacock’s limited series, a five-part Comcast co-production between Carnival Films, which is part of Universal International Studios, and Sky Studios, has also brought on Scottish playwright David Harrower (Blackbird, Knives in Hens) as lead writer. Maryam Hamidi (Vigil) is guest writer on an episode, while Otto Bathurst (Peaky Blinders, The Winter King) is lead director. Jim Loach (Save Me) will also direct an episode.

The Lockerbie air disaster killed 259 passengers and crew, and a further 11 residents lost their life as the plane came down over the quiet Scottish town.

The series will see Swire nominated spokesperson for the UK victims’ families in the wake of the disaster, as they unite to demand truth and justice.

Travelling across continents and political divides, Swire embarks on a relentless journey that not only jeopardises his stability, family and life, but completely overturns his trust in the justice system. As the truth shifts under Jim’s feet, his view of the world is left forever sullied.

The drama is based on The Lockerbie Bombing: A Father’s Search for Justice, which Swire and Peter Biddulph co-wrote, as we first told you in February 2022.

A Libyan intelligence officer, Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, was convicted of the killings in 2001, confining the incident as the most deadly terrorist attack in UK history. Former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi later admitted Libya was responsible and paid compensation to the victims’ families, but maintained he did not give the order for the attack.

Swire, meanwhile, became a campaigner for the release of al-Megrahi, who he did not believe was truly responsible. Al-Megrahi died in 2012 after being released on compassionate grounds.

The limited series will explore events from the disaster and its aftermath, and provide “an intimate account of a man, a husband, and a father who risks everything in memory of his daughter and the unflinching pursuit of truth and justice.”

Production on the series will commence early 2024. There had been some rumors in European drama circles that the project had stalled, and Netflix and the BBC moved ahead with another Lockerbie drama, from Line of Duty producer World Productions in association with MGM Television and Night Train Media. We hear that project is edging forwards.

For Sky and Peacock’s series, Gareth Neame and Nigel Marchant are executive producers for Carnival Films and Sam Hoyle takes on the same role for Sky Studios. Other EPs include David Harrower, Liz Trubridge, Jim Sheridan, Kirsten Sheridan and Oskar Slingerland. Brian Kaczynski is producer and Maryam Hamidi is also associate producer.

Lockerbie will be available on Sky and streaming service Now in the UK, Ireland, Italy, Germany, Switzerland and Austria, and on Peacock in the U.S. NBCUniversal Global Television Distribution will handle international sales of the series.

Firth is represented by Independent Talent in the UK, CAA in the U.S. & Prosper PR.

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