Radio Times

Review by:

Alison Graham

A mother clutches her son’s neatly ironed clothes. He died in the London terrorist attacks on 7 July 2005 and she’s kept his belongings: “It means I’ve got him here. I need to cling on to something that is his.”

Ben Anthony’s profoundly moving documentary, executive-produced by Morgan Matthews (Britain in a Day), talks to the bereaved, the survivors and the emergency workers bound together by the actions of four suicide bombers. Martine Wright lost both of her legs in the Circle Line blast and remembers little apart from seeing her new, bloodied trainer lying amid the wreckage.

A survivor recalls gently laying the severed torso of a man on the track and closing the victim’s eyes. He says: “It seemed incongruous to me that he was still looking at a world he was no longer part of.” It’s a phrase of haunting beauty that will linger long in your memory.

About this programme

The day after London won the bid for the 2012 Olympic Games, terrorists attacked the capital's public transport network, killing 52 people and injuring more than 700. Seven years later, as the eyes of the world are once again on the city, this documentary gathers the testimony of people directly affected by the bombings, from commuters to emergency services workers and victims' families, many of whom tell their stories for the first time. Among those appearing are Anthony Stavely, Bill Mann, Kathy Lazenbatt and Rachel Mayes.

Cast and crew

Crew

Director

Ben Anthony

Executive Producer

Morgan Matthews

Writer

Ben Anthony

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