ITV has released first-look images from the upcoming true crime drama ‘Believe Me’, a powerful four-part series based on the real story of the women who fought to expose one of the most prolific sexual predators in British history. The series stars Aimée-Ffion Edwards (Slow Horses, Peaky Blinders, Dreamland, Mr Burton), Aasiya Shah (Raised by Wolves, Bloods, The Beast Must Die), Miriam Petche (Industry), and Daniel Mays (Des, A Thousand Blows, The Long Shadow, Moonflower Murders).
The drama tells the story of the victims of John Worboys, widely known as the “black cab rapist”, who preyed on women while posing as a respectable licensed taxi driver in London. Worboys was convicted in 2009 for crimes including sexual assault and drugging with intent against twelve women between 2006 and 2008, though investigators later linked him to allegations from more than a hundred women.
In ‘Believe Me’, Edwards plays Sarah and Shah portrays Laila, two women who reported being sexually assaulted by Worboys, played by Mays. Their experiences highlight how the Metropolitan Police initially failed to properly investigate their allegations, leaving them feeling dismissed and disbelieved while the attacker remained free.
The drama also explores the difficult and often traumatic process many victims face when reporting sexual assault, including repeated interviews, invasive evidence gathering, and sceptical questioning. In one instance depicted in the series, Laila is asked by a police officer whether her red nail varnish says something about her character.
After Worboys’ conviction, it emerged that the scale of his crimes was far greater than first believed. Sarah and Laila joined forces with solicitor Harriet Wistrich and barrister Phillippa Kaufmann QC to take legal action against the Metropolitan Police under the Human Rights Act. The case centred on the force’s failure to properly investigate their allegations, which they argued amounted to degrading treatment and contributed to their distress. The women won their case, and when the Metropolitan Police appealed all the way to the Supreme Court, they won again.
The series also follows the later fight to keep Worboys behind bars after a parole decision threatened his release just eight years after his conviction. Joining the campaign was Carrie Symonds, portrayed in the drama by Petche, who had narrowly escaped being attacked by Worboys years earlier and later became a senior figure in the Conservative Party press team. She put her career on the line to help lead a major political and media campaign that ultimately succeeded in overturning the Parole Board’s decision.
Sarah, whose identity has been protected, said:
“Believe Me is about the courage of every woman who came forward to help put John Worboys behind bars.
“What happened to me changed my life, but in many ways the hardest part was not being believed for so many years. Without the people who stood by me, Worboys would have been freed and continued to pose a huge risk to women.
“Seeking justice shouldn’t mean more trauma. We shouldn’t have to fight to be believed or feel like we’re the ones on trial. The shame never belongs to the survivor.”
Carrie Johnson (née Symonds) added:
“I hope Believe Me serves as a wake-up call to the police, the CPS and the parole board. Far too often, women and girls are failed by the very institutions meant to protect them.
“The treatment of the victims in this case was truly shameful. Reform matters but what we urgently need above all is a profound shift in culture.
“It takes enormous courage for women to come forward. They must know that when they do, they will be treated seriously and with respect, and that every effort will be made to ensure justice is done.”
The drama comes from Academy Award-nominated and BAFTA and RTS award-winning screenwriter Jeff Pope, whose previous work includes Suspect: The Shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes, The Walk-In, A Confession, Little Boy Blue, Mrs Biggs and Lucan. His film credits include Stan & Ollie, Philomena and Pierrepoint, as well as the acclaimed television biopics Cilla and Archie.
Pope serves as executive producer alongside Saurabh Kakkar for Etta Pictures. RTS Award winner Julia Ford (Until I Kill You, Showtrial, Unforgiveable) directs the series, with Catrin Lewis Defis (The Winter King, Hollington Drive, The Pact) producing.
Filmed in Cardiff, the drama was produced with the support of the Welsh Government via Creative Wales, and is produced in association with and distributed by ITV Studios.
‘Believe Me’ does not yet have a premiere date but will air on ITV1 and ITVX in the UK. If you want to keep track of this or any other shows, you can add them via our Never Miss system, and you’ll be notified when it gets a UK premiere date. Visit Never Miss.
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