Arrived in the nick of time
C4, 9pm “WELCOME to hell!” The latest new prison officer recruit doesn’t exactly get a warm welcome as this exciting new crime thriller kicks off.
Starring Nina Sosanya, Jamie-Lee O’Donnell, Laura Checkley, Stephen Wight, Ron Donachie and Faraz Ayub, this drama shows prison from a different point of view – through the embattled, inspiring characters who work there.
The series centres around the staff at Long Marsh, a busy men’s jail where the inmates are unpredictable and dangerous.
But despite action, violence and tension, this is also a darkly comic show as each prison officer has their own unique take on the job.
Leigh Henry (Sosanya) is a career prison officer who lives for her job but has lost faith in the system – so she circumvents the rules, doing whatever’s necessary to help out the prisoners who are in her care.
But Leigh’s position at Long Marsh is under threat – which doesn’t bear thinking about, especially as she appears to be secretly living on the wing.
The arrival of Rose Gill (O’Donnell, best known for her role in Derry Girls), a mouthy young probationer fresh out of training, only adds to the pressure on Leigh, who writes Rose off as a liability.
Rose needs to decide whether she’s going to be known as a straight-downthe-line, hard-faced officer or a soft touch who the inmates will try to turn.
So begins a dramatic, high-stakes battle between the two officers.
Are either of these women who they say they are? And can both of them survive?