Is BBC child abuse drama Unforgivable based on a true story?

Starring Bobby Schofield, Anna Friel, David Threlfall and Anna Maxwell Martin, among others, the 90-minute drama unpacks the devastating impact of child sexual abuse on a family from Liverpool, who live in the permanent shadow of what was done to them by one of their own.

"When it ended, there was complete and utter silence," said Friel of the private screening for those involved and their friends and family (via The Guardian).

"Before there was applause, you could have heard a pin drop. And we thought, 'Gosh, I wonder what people are going to feel, because it's so thought-provoking, such a challenging piece.'"

Schofield plays the perpetrator, who has just been released from prison after serving time for abusing his 12-year-old nephew.

Over the course of the film, we also learn that Joe was abused when he was a child, something he hadn't really understood until he begins undergoing rehabilitation

To help inform his performance, the actor immersed himself in some real-life stories, including TO Walker's Not My Shame, a graphic novel about "the intrusive traumatic memories and distress experienced by a victim of childhood sexual exploitation in her adulthood".

He also watched I, Pedophile, "a Canadian documentary about paedophiles who hadn’t acted upon the thoughts, they didn't want to be paedophiles, but they were still paedophiles".

But while those true stories helped Schofield to understand the subject matter, you might have found yourself wondering if Unforgivable is based on a single real-life case.

Read on to find out.

Is BBC drama Unforgivable based on a true story?

Unforgivable is a fictional drama, but writer Jimmy McGovern was "compelled" to write the film after receiving a letter from a woman who works with sex offenders.

"I went down to talk to the psychologist and she told me this story," he told the BBC. "It was about a young man who had become a child abuser and he realised that he had been abused as a child himself.

"Understandably, he decided to take the child abuser – the man who abused him – to court."

During that conversation, the psychologist also shared "certain facts and figures that are quite unbelievable".

"So I want people to watch the film and learn things about child abuse," he added. "I've always been quick to condemn child abusers... as we all should be. This is not a film that goes easy on child abusers at all. [But] if they [the audience] watch it, they will learn things.

"Even though we're talking about child abusers, I still think there's a need for compassion. Caution, yes, punishment, yes, justice, yes. These are enormous crimes, they must be punished, you must go to prison.

"But alongside all that, an element of compassion. To understand a bit more and equally condemn."

So, not what many people would be comfortable with, then, which is what makes it "so controversial", said executive producer Colin McKeown, (via The Telegraph), who has worked with McGovern for years.

"I think the BBC sat on it for a year," he added. "People always think that if Jimmy drops a betting slip, it will get produced. That isn't true. The journey of all the projects is always difficult, and it’s always an awful lot of persuasion."

Chatting separately to the BBC, McGovern has assured viewers that he doesn't try to be controversial.

"I go along and talk to people and I think 'these people will be very interesting' and I get sucked in," he explained. "I always say to people, 'Why write about things that do not matter?'"

Anyone affected by this story can find support via the NSPCC website. You can also call the helpline on 0808 800 5000.

Unforgivable will arrive on BBC iPlayer at 6am on Thursday 24th July, and air on BBC Two from 9pm that evening.

Add Unforgivable to your watchlist on the Radio Times: What to Watch app – download now for daily TV recommendations, features and more.

Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.