Lucan

Series 1 - Episode 1

Review

by Alison Graham

Lord “Lucky” Lucan, a blandly handsome, impecunious professional gambler, remains at the heart of the most infamous of all British crime mysteries. After the murder of his children’s nanny Sandra Rivett on 7 November 1974, Lucan apparently vanished without trace and the British public’s fascination with his fate has never dimmed.

In Jeff Pope’s necessarily dry, flat and inexorable drama, a lavishly moustachioed Rory Kinnear adds another remarkable performance to his portfolio in the title role. He plays Lucan with a certain blankness, signalling a curious, unknowable man who, during a bitter custody battle for his three children after the collapse of his marriage, became poisoned by hatred of his wife Veronica (Catherine McCormack).

We follow Lucan as he spirals from casual cruelty to planning her brutal killing, goaded by his gambling buddy, zoo owner John Aspinall (an extraordinary performance from Christopher Eccleston).

Summary

First of a two-part drama written by Jeff Pope, based on the life of flamboyant aristocrat Lord Lucan. In 1974, with escalating gambling debts and his marriage collapsing, Lucan becomes obsessed with regaining custody of his children. On one fateful night in November that year, the youngsters' nanny Sandra Rivett is bludgeoned to death in the basement of the family home in London's Belgravia district - and the earl is never seen again. Starring Rory Kinnear, with Christopher Eccleston, Catherine McCormack, Michael Gambon, Paul Freeman, Rupert Evans, Gemma Jones and Leanne Best.

Cast & Crew

Lord Lucan Rory Kinnear

Lady Veronica Lucan Catherine McCormack

John Aspinall Christopher Eccleston

John Burke Michael Gambon

John Pearson Paul Freeman

Susie Maxwell-Scott Jane Lapotaire

Dowager Duchess of Lucan Gemma Jones

Dominic Elwes Rupert Evans

Sandra Rivett Leanne Best

Lady Osborne Ann Bell

Bill Shand-Kydd Andrew Woodall

Christine Shand-Kydd Claudia Harrison

Jimmy Goldsmith Alistair Petrie

Nanny Roberts Ruth McCabe

Younger Susie Maxwell-Scott Helen Bradbury

Ian Maxwell-Scott Alan Cox

Kiki Olivia Llewellyn

Younger John Burke Rufus Wright

Jane Aspinall Anna Walton

Coles Miles Richardson

Gleaves Tristram Wymark

Annabel Birley Annabel Mullion

Charlie Benson James Bradshaw

Frances Mabel Watson

George Leo Hart

Dr Flood Michael Mueller

Billy Glyn Grimstead

Ulrich Aleksandar Mikic

Doctor John Albasiny

Judge Stuart Organ

Director Adrian Shergold

Executive Producer Francis Hopkinson

Producer Chris Clough

Writer Jeff Pope

Drama

Full Episode Guide

Series 1 - Episode 1

Review

Summary

Cast & Crew

Latest News