They fear Sheridan drama will reignite hatred over kidnap
THE family of “Britain’s most hated mum” Karen Matthews are furious over a TV drama about the fake kidnap of her daughter Shannon.
Relatives of Matthews – who plotted the phony abduction – say they were not consulted about the BBC1 show and fear it will drag their name through the mud.
The Moorside goes out on Tuesday and stars Sheridan Smith as a trusting pal of Matthews, who is played by Game of Thrones actress Gemma Whelan.
The family are understood to have disowned mum-of-seven Matthews years ago and have had virtually no contact since she was jailed.
Now they are distraught the show will dredge up the ill feeling and heartache which tore them apart.
Matthews and accomplice Michael Donovan were both jailed for eight years after Shannon was found drugged and tethered to the base of a double bed. The plotters hoped to bag a £50,000 reward for “finding” Shannon, who was nine at the time. Two family members, who asked not to be named, slammed the TV show and vowed not to watch it. One said: “We just want to be left alone. We want it all forgetting because we don’t bother with them and they don’t bother with us.” They said they felt they had been “hounded” because of Matthews’ actions. A family friend said: “None of them asked for this to happen and now it’s all being brought up again. They’re furious. They just want to forget.”
The drama tells the story of the abduction in Dewsbury, West Yorks, in 2008.
It focuses on women on the Moorside estate who led the search for Shannon, who was “missing” for 24 days.
Matthews made several TV appeals for her daughter’s return. But as the charade began to fall apart she confessed to police. Cilla star Sheridan, 35, plays Julie Bushby, while Sherlock actress Sian Brooke, 37, is neighbour Natalie Brown, who suspected her friend wasn’t telling the truth.
Both Sheridan and Sian spent time with their characters’ real-life counterparts.
Sheridan said: “Julie never wanted to see bad of Karen. She never wanted to give up hope. Me and Julie are still friends. I’ve such admiration for everyone on that estate, but especially Julie. She helped me with the whole journey all along.”
Writer Neil McKay said they had not contacted Matthews and admitted having ethical concerns about putting her back in the public eye.
But he said: “We don’t tell it from her point of view, we don’t defend her or condemn her, we just call it as we saw it.”
Matthews, 41, was released from prison after serving half her sentence. Last month it emerged she has joined a Bible group to meet friends and has become teetotal.
She has moved hundreds of miles away from Dewsbury and adopted a new name.