A hard-hitting new ITV drama is set to expose the sinister link between the notorious News of the World phone hacking scandal and the decades-old murder of private detective Daniel Morgan. This seven-part series promises a gripping dive into one of Britain’s darkest media and police scandals.
David Tennant and Robert Carlyle Star in Explosive New Drama
Leading the cast are David Tennant and Robert Carlyle in this intense drama set between 2002 and 2012. Tennant plays investigative journalist Nick Davies, the man who uncovered the shocking phone hacking at News of the World. Parallel to this, Carlyle portrays former Met Police Detective Chief Superintendent Dave Cook, tasked with reopening the cold case of Daniel Morgan’s gruesome axe murder. Written by Emmy-winning writer Jack Thorne, best known for Netflix’s Adolescence, the show peels back the curtain on media corruption and police cover-ups that have haunted the UK for years.
Daniel Morgan: The Axe Murder that Rocked London
Daniel Morgan, co-founder of Southern Investigations, was brutally hacked to death with an axe in a Sydenham pub car park in March 1987. Despite multiple arrests—including his business partner Jonathan Rees and ex-detective Sid Fillery—no one has ever been convicted. For over 30 years, the murder case has been mired in controversy. It has been linked to deep-rooted corruption within the Metropolitan Police, with countless stalled investigations and cover-ups. Dave Cook’s 2002 reinvestigation uncovered a maze of police corruption stretching back decades. His findings contributed to a damning 2021 Home Office report that branded the Met “institutionally corrupt” in how they handled the case.
Shocking Ties: Phone Hacking, Corruption and Crime
The case took an explosive turn after the 2011 Old Bailey trial collapsed. It emerged that Jonathan Rees had been paid a staggering £150,000 a year by News of the World for illegally-obtained intel on high-profile figures. Rees, later jailed for perverting the course of justice, had connections with corrupt officers who helped him hack bank accounts and confidential records. He also spied for rival tabloids like the Daily Mirror, targeting royals and celebrities. Despite mounting evidence, the Met failed to thoroughly investigate this vast web of corruption and crime for over a decade.
“The Metropolitan Police’s handling of the Daniel Morgan murder case revealed shocking institutional corruption,” the Home Office said in its 2021 report.
What’s Next? New Revelations Fuel the Fire
In a dramatic 2023 twist, the Met Police apologised after discovering key documents hidden away in a locked cabinet—evidence previously kept from investigators. This shocking find ramps up the anticipation for the new ITV series, which aims to bring the murky connections between tabloid hacking and police corruption out into the light. Watch ITV and ITVX for this explosive series uncovering Britain’s most notorious media scandal.
