The Sixth Commandment

6.6
202357m

A series that dramatises the shocking story of the true-life murder of former Stowe schoolmaster and deeply closeted evangelical Christian, 69-year-old Peter Farquhar by his 28-year-old student and young churchwarden Ben Field in October 2015.

Production

Logo for Wild Mercury Productions

Trailers & Videos

Thumbnail for video: Trailer

Trailer

Thumbnail for video: The Sixth Commandment wins Limited Drama | BAFTA TV Awards

The Sixth Commandment wins Limited Drama | BAFTA TV Awards

Thumbnail for video: Timothy Spall wins Leading Actor for his role in The Sixth Commandment | BAFTA TV Awards

Timothy Spall wins Leading Actor for his role in The Sixth Commandment | BAFTA TV Awards

Seasons

4 Episodes • Premiered 2023

Still image for The Sixth Commandment season 1 episode 1: Episode 1

1. Episode 1

A meeting between an inspirational teacher and a charismatic student in Buckinghamshire ends up setting the stage for one of the most complex criminal cases in recent memory.

Still image for The Sixth Commandment season 1 episode 2: Episode 2

2. Episode 2

As a community mourns, Ben begins a relationship with Peter’s neighbour, Ann Moore-Martin, to the increasing concern of her niece Ann-Marie.

Still image for The Sixth Commandment season 1 episode 3: Episode 3

3. Episode 3

The true picture comes to light when Thames Valley Police open an investigation and close in on their prime suspect, making some alarming discoveries along the way.

Still image for The Sixth Commandment season 1 episode 4: Episode 4

4. Episode 4

The case comes to court, and the victims’ families discover the truth of what happened to their loved ones as new revelations emerge.

Cast

Photo of Timothy Spall

Timothy Spall

Peter Farquhar

Photo of Anne Reid

Anne Reid

Ann Moore-Martin

Photo of Annabel Scholey

Annabel Scholey

Ann-Marie Blake

Photo of Anna Crilly

Anna Crilly

Natalie Golding

Photo of Jonathan Aris

Jonathan Aris

DCI Mark Glover

Photo of Peter Sullivan

Peter Sullivan

David Jeremy

Photo of Ben Bailey Smith

Ben Bailey Smith

Simon Blake

Photo of Sheila Hancock

Sheila Hancock

Elizabeth Zettl

Photo of Adrian Rawlins

Adrian Rawlins

Ian Farquhar

Photo of Amanda Root

Amanda Root

Sue Farquhar

Photo of Conor MacNeill

Conor MacNeill

Martyn Smith

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Reviews

N

Peter McGinn

8/10

I have pretty much stopped watching these British dramas based on real murder cases because, even though they are all separate cases, these investigations seem to often cover the same story arc. So they have little room for imaginative storytelling or structure.

I decided to watch this show, however, because I really like Timothy Spall and Anne Reid, him all the way from his Mike Leigh films and her from her Coronation Street role decades ago. They also seem to only pick good productions to appear in. They were both excellent in this miniseries, Spall perhaps award-worthy in fact. Their and other performances in the cast covered up what indeed did strike me as the usual story arc I mentioned above. The detective inspective shone while not showing anger, violent tendencies, or other outbursts that afflict many tv mystery dectectives.

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