FALLOUT
Thursday 3 July 2008 10pm
Set in London, Fallout stars Lennie James as Joe, a policeman returning to the estate he grew up on to investigate the murder of a black teenager.
> Watch Fallout cast interviews
Roy Williams’ script goes to the heart of the terrifying rise in high-profile gun and knife killings involving teenagers that has rocked Britain, and is unflinching in capturing the culture and circumstances that are wrecking these young lives.
When 16 year old, Kwame (Lanre Malaolu) is stabbed to death by a local gang, the lives, feelings and fears of the young perpetrators and the police officers investigating the crime are exposed in full.
Fallout was written as a passionate and powerful reflection on race, law and order in the aftermath of the Stephen Lawrence and Damilola Taylor cases and has been adapted at a time when it has never been more important to understand why some of our youth would arm themselves and commit devastating acts of violence.
Roy Williams says: “I remember following the Damilola Taylor Case, and the feelings that I had. Anger with the killers, anger with whoever had let those kids down. I felt it was important as well as necessary to write a piece that allowed all my feelings, and the feelings of those kids and police to be expressed.”
Roy Williams previous work includes theatre productions such as Clubland (won Evening Standard Award), Sing yer heart out for the lads (NT), Days of Significance (RSC) and Joe Guy (Soho Theatre). Roy’s television credits include Babyfather (BBC) and Offside, which won him a BAFTA in 2002 for best schools drama.
Actor and writer Lennie James, who will star in Fallout, has written an open letter to knife carriers.
