Twelve jurors. One verdict. Can the jury decide?
When high-profile company director Virginia Hart fights a libel case against journalist Pat Carver, twelve ordinary people find themselves navigating the complex and unfamiliar world of the civil court. A woman’s reputation is on the line, and they alone must decide whether the allegations made against her in the satirical magazine Shady Tales count as freedom of speech, or scurrilous defamation.
But it soon becomes clear to the jury members that the trial will have an impact on their own lives. From big-shot banker Tyrone to shy, illiterate Shane; chatty, overly helpful Carol; feisty fashion model Samantha and aspiring businesswoman Folosade, they are each dealing with their own issues – and they all bring their own flaws, fears, values and prejudices to the case.
The prosecution has barely made its opening statements before two of the jurors are at loggerheads, and tensions quickly begin to rise within the group. The lies, scandal and intrigue unfolding in the courtroom are mirrored in the jury room, and as the trial moves towards its climax, can the jurors work together to ensure justice prevails?
Written by acclaimed actor and dramatist Matthew Solon, whose radio credits include Takeover, The Bid and Five Days in May, this thrilling drama features a star cast including Bill Nighy, Maggie Steed, Patrick Robinson, Gary Olsen, Tracy-Ann Oberman and Bhasker Patel.
Production credits
Written by Matthew Solon
Directed by Andy Jordan and Jocelyn Boxall
Cast
Virginia Hart – Suzanne Bertish
Tyrone Spencer – Patrick Robinson
Gilly Baxter – Maggie Steed
Megan Evans – Rachel Atkins
Pat Carver – Bill Nighy
Michael Whitely – Gary Olsen
Dermot O'Connor – Denys Hawthorne
With Joseph Bennett, Philip Bretherton, Colin Bruce, Harry Ditson, Abi Eniola, Robert Hands, Jenny Howe, Kelly Hunter, Frances Jeater, Jonathan Keeble, Don McCorkindale, Tracy-Ann Oberman, Bhasker Patel, Dominic Power, Christopher Scott, Irene Sutcliffe, Badi Uzzaman, Geoffrey Whitehead
First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 14 September-16 October 1998
© 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd
- ISBN10 1529959322
- ISBN13 9781529959321
- Publish Date 12 June 2025
- Publish Status Forthcoming
- Publish Country GB
- Publisher BBC Audio, A Division Of Random House
- Imprint BBC Digital Audio
- Format Audiobook (WAV)
- Duration 6 hours and 15 minutes
- Language English