Maxine: I could have been victim of child sex abuse gangs
Star of new BBC drama reveals how her childhood friends were targeted
THE star of a powerful new BBC docu-drama about the horrific sexual abuse of young girls by Asian gangs in Rochdale has revealed how she could have become a victim in real life.
Award-winning actress Maxine Peake grew up in nearby Bolton and knew girls who suffered similar abuse.
‘I had two friends who were fostered and they went through this,’ she said. ‘We used to hang around street corners at 12, 13, and cars would pull up, driven by men aged 26, 27. I witnessed young girls getting in the cars and coming back and not talking about what had happened. I was quite prudish. I had friends who lost their virginity at 13 and I’d be like, “Disgusting!”’
Peake was speaking ahead of the controversial new BBC1 drama Three Girls, which is based on the true story of those who were groomed and abused in Rochdale between 2005 and 2012. The scandal led to the conviction of nine Asian men for sexually abusing white teenage girls. But the victims were initially ignored by local police and council staff for years.
Peake, 42, who has also starred in TV legal drama Silk and in Victoria Wood’s Dinnerladies, plays Sara Rowbotham, the social worker who courageously exposed the Rochdale scandal.
The £3 million drama will be screened over three consecutive nights from May 16 but the BBC is said to have considered delaying it until after the General Election. ‘There has been a lot of concern about showing it before the Election because Right-wing groups like the EDL or Ukip may use it to their own advantage,’ said a programme source.
‘The drama shows that there was something racial about the way that this gang of Asian men chose these white girls to abuse, like they were just meat.’
Actress Lesley Sharp plays a detective who finally listens to the girls’ stories, while EastEnders star Ace Bhatti plays Nazir Afzal, the Crown prosecutor who led the court case against the child sex gang. In a scene at Rochdale Town Hall, his character declares: ‘Most sex offenders are white British, but when it comes to this type of grooming, Asians are disproportionately involved.’
A victim known as Girl A in the court case is shown being brutally raped in a flat above a takeaway restaurant. In another scene, children are taken to a party where Asian men gang-rape them.
During the scandal, at least 47 females aged between 13 and 22 were abused by a gang led by Shabir Ahmed – the 63-year-old was jailed for 19 years for his role. However, the programme will focus on just three victims. The BBC said the drama had been made with the full co-operation of the girls and their families.
A spokesman added: ‘It shows how the girls were ignored by the authorities directly responsible for their protection and how the abuse has impacted their lives. It raises awareness of an ongoing issue of national significance that has affected hundreds of victims.’