Jodie Whittaker, Bella Ramsey and Tamara Lawrance lead an immensely talented cast as the BBC’s three-part series returns, this time set in a women’s prison.
Viewers expecting to see Sean Bean and Stephen Graham return to the BBC One drama are in for a shock, as the new series is set in a women’s prison, with the only returning character being Marie-Louise the prison chaplain, played by the consistently brilliant Siobhan Finneran.
Writer Jimmy McGovern along with co-writer Helen Black tell the often-marginalised tale of what life is like behind bars when you’re a woman as fictional Carlingford women’s prison provides the bleak backdrop for the even bleaker intertwining lives of its inhabitants.
The three central inmates, Orla, Kelsey and Abi, who arrive at Carlingford on the same day in the opening of episode one, later find themselves sharing a cell and forming an unexpected bond and allyship as a barricade to the violent nature of prison life.
Struggling mum-of-three Orla, played by Jodie Whittaker, is possibly the most relatable of the trio. Before being sentenced she has a house, job and a family but finds herself serving a six-month sentence for “fiddling the leccy” in a desperate attempt to keep her kids warm.
Whittaker’s moving performance is a poignant reminder that incarceration is a situation that any of us could find ourselves in and serving a shorter sentence is no less damaging, as six months locked up is just enough time to ruin a woman’s life when so much is relied upon them.
Inmate Abi, played by Tamara Lawrance, is unlikely to ever see life outside prison gates again as she serves a life sentence for committing murder – quite the reverse of Orla’s shorter stretch.
Lawrance perfectly humanises a female killer and her measured performance is chilling yet evokes a subliminal sense of pity.
Kelsey, played by the immensely talented Bella Ramsey, is a heroin addict who has been convicted of possessing a class A drug.
Her time at Carlingford takes an unexpected turn as a routine medical reveals she is pregnant.
Ramsey’s capacity to embody a character, as she admits, very far removed from herself, is testament to her seemingly innate acting ability. Her compelling performance draws your gaze in each scene she is present.
The palpable world of life inside is made even more intense with an impressive ensemble of skilled actors including Lisa Millet, Julie Graham and Alicia Forde.
From the show’s opening moments, including a foreboding scene in a prison van, the striking choices from series director Andrea Harkin heighten the tragic circumstances these women find themselves in – from the school run to a caged box in a prisoner transport vehicle.
The manic soundscape created in that scene gives a disturbing insight into a world many of us are fortunate enough to only fear.
With the storytelling mastery to be expected of McGovern and Black in tandem with a powerhouse performance, the series will take you on a brutal emotional journey and in the midst of a prison crisis, will leave you questioning the effectiveness of our current system.
An essential and timely watch.
Time series 2 will be shown on BBC1 weekly from Sunday 29October at 9pm and is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
Feature image: Kelsey (Bella Ramsey), Abi (Tamara Lawrance) and Orla (Jodie Whittaker) in Time (BBC One, BBC iPlayer). Credit: BBC/Sally Mais. Copyright: BBC Studios
