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Prisoner 951 Premieres on BBC, Earning Strong Reviews for Harrowing Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe Story

The four-part factual drama draws on Nazanin and Richard Ratcliffe’s testimony with extensive verification by the makers.

Overview

  • All four episodes became available on BBC iPlayer on 23 November, with the first episode airing on BBC One that evening.
  • Narges Rashidi stars as Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe with Joseph Fiennes as Richard Ratcliffe, in a series by writer Stephen Butchard and director Philippa Lowthorpe.
  • The production cites interviews, government sources, meeting minutes and other records to underpin events, with some changed names and imagined scenes typical of factual drama.
  • Early reviews praise the performances and the unflinching depiction of imprisonment, diplomacy and UK political fallout, including real footage of Boris Johnson.
  • The narrative reflects the couple’s belief that her detention was tied to a £400m UK debt that preceded her release, a linkage the government has not acknowledged, while viewers also reported subtitle issues.