K.T Simpson
Despite the name sounding like it’s a biopic on his own life, Hugh Grant will star as controversial Liberal politician Jeremy Thorpe. The three-part BBC drama, directed by Stephen Frears, will be based on the true story of Thorpe, who was the first British politician to stand trial for conspiracy and incitement to murder.
The shocking true story saw the ending of Thorpe’s political career, after conspiring to have his ex-lover Norman Scott murdered. Although being acquitted of the charge in 1979, it ultimately saw the death of his career. The story is depicted in the book the same name as the upcoming drama, “A Very English Scandal” by John Preston. The drama for BBC was written by Russel T Davies.
According the Deadline exclusive, the logline for the drama is that Thorpe “has a secret he’s desperate to hide. As long as his ex-lover Scott is around, Thorpe’s brilliant career is at risk. Thorpe schemes and deceives — until he can see only one way to silence Scott for good. The trial of Thorpe changed society forever, illuminating the darkest secrets of the establishment. The Thorpe affair revealed such breathtaking deceit and corruption that, at the time, hardly anyone dared believe it could be true.”
Grant knows a thing or two about being caught in the spotlight for controversial reasons, so seems to be a good fit for the role. He’s also played the role of a political leader before, as the Prime Minister of the UK in “Love Actually”.
