A dramatized retelling of a real-life miscarriage of justice
The rising price of postage stamps is not the biggest scandal related to the Post Office in recent years.
Sadly, this British institution has been involved in something much worse and you can learn more about the organization’s misdeeds in Mr Bates vs The Post Office. This new 4-part drama series is now available to watch on PBS in the US, while viewers in the UK can watch the programme on ITVX.
The Post Office scandal has been referred to as the widest miscarriage of justice in British legal history. After watching the series, you will understand why. While some names have been changed and some scenes fictionalized, it is still a powerful depiction of real-life events that will anger and enthral you.
For those not in the know, here’s a brief account of the British Post Office scandal.
Between 1999 and 2015, over 900 sub-postmasters were prosecuted for theft and fraud. Some of these people were jailed while others were told to repay the money they had allegedly taken.
But here’s the thing. These sub-postmasters hadn’t stolen money at all. The fault lay with the Fujitsu accounting software known as Horizon that was given to them by the Post Office. This software incorrectly calculated the daily takings the sub-postmasters had made and mistakenly displayed shortfalls.
When the sub-postmasters called the Horizon helpline, they were told the fault wasn’t with the software but with themselves. This was a lie as Fujitsu knew Horizon was faulty.
Senior members of the Post Office were allegedly aware of these faults too. One of these was former Post Office boss Paula Vennells who, according to a secret recording, was told about the faulty software and that individual Horizon computing systems could be remotely accessed by staff working at Fujitsu’s UK headquarters. This last point is important because the sub-postmasters were told the Horizon machines located at their Post Office branches could only be accessed by themselves. As such, it’s possible some of the Fujitsu staff had a hand in altering account information.
Many sub-postmasters experienced bankruptcy as a result of the fault with Horizon. Some lost their lives and many lost their livelihoods.
But one man stood up to the might of the Post Office. His name is Alan Bates, a sub-postmaster who was forced to resign from his job when Post Office management accused him of being responsible for financial losses at his branch. Instead, of retreating quietly into the night, he rallied sub-postmasters together and campaigned for the truth.
Toby Jones plays Alan in Mr Bates vs The Post Office and his story is just one of those told in the retelling of key events. Another sub-postmaster in the programme is Jo Hamilton, played by Monica Dolan. She was accused of stealing from her branch and was later encouraged to plead guilty to false accounting to avoid a prison sentence.
These are just two of the people featured in the programme but there are many others, each of whom have the same thing in common – they were all accused of stealing from the Post Office and subsequently humiliated.
Not every victim of the scandal has their story retold – there are far too many to count (something we wouldn’t let Horizon do) – but the programme does hone in on a few. It also takes us to Post Office headquarters where the management team are shown trying to cover up their involvement in the injustice.
The programme is heartbreaking to watch, more so because of the capable cast of actors who bring to life those people whose lives were torn apart by their bosses. The actors expertly portray the mental strain of these victims as well as their resilience when standing up to their employer.
At heart, Mr Bates vs The Post Office is a David vs Goliath story. Alan Bates is the David in this true-life tale, a man not afraid to stand up to his giant foe on his quest for truth and justice.
We won’t go into detail about every aspect of the story here. Viewers in the UK will already be familiar with the scandal but those in the US and elsewhere, who likely know less about the events that have taken place, will learn much of what they need to know by watching the programme.
The story isn’t over yet – a public inquiry is still ongoing, which you can learn about here. But while Mr Bates vs The Post Office doesn’t conclude events, it does manage to encapsulate most of what has happened over the last few years within its runtime. Watch it, be enraged, and then stand up to the people who have unfairly treated you.
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Verdict - 8/10
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