Hatton Garden will be released on ITV in May 2019 as the true story of a 2015 jewellery heist finally comes to screens. With a cast boasting the likes of Timothy Spall and Kenneth Cranham, Hatton Garden has been highly-anticipated ever since its original scheduled air date in 2017. With the ITV series scheduled for release next month, here’s why it was delayed in the first place.
Why was ITV series Hatton Garden delayed?
Hatton Garden was originally scheduled for release on ITV back in 2017 before the first delay was put in place.
ITV announced at the time Hatton Garden would premiere in 2018, however, its release was delayed once again.
The reasons for each of the delays lies within the criminal trials of the real-life heist members on which the show is based.
The arrest and subsequent conviction of Michael ‘Basil’ Seed, who is played by Brian F O’Byrne in the ITV series, led to the second delay.
Speaking exclusively to Express.co.uk and other media, series creator Jeff Pope revealed what implications this had on the show.
When asked if he had to change any of the ITV series, with the arrest happening after the show was originally made, Pope responded: “We changed the caption at the end to reflect that Basil was eventually captured.
“Then we just did a bit of voicing work on Brian who we originally recorded him much closer to his original accent which is Irish.
“This was just because we wanted to set that character apart,
“Nobody knew who Basil was or where he came from or anything – he was this great mystery character.
“Then, once Michael Seed was arrested, we knew that he didn’t sound Irish.
“No dialogue or action shots were changed as a result.”
The delays haven’t stopped anticipation surrounding the series grow, in no small part because of the star-studded cast.
Veteran actor Kenneth Cranham plays one of the major ring leaders in the heist, Brian Reader.
BAFTA-nominee and Harry Potter star Timothy Spall also leads the cast as Terry Perkins.
Star of BBC series Taboo David Hayman takes on the role of gang member Danny Jones, as does Waterloo Road’s Alex Norton as Kenny Collins.
Other stars to keep an eye out for in Hatton Garden include Geoff Bell as Carl Wood, Nasser Memarzia as Hamid, and Thomas Coombes as Gary Stevenson.
Ahead of the series release, ITV has finally made the trailer for Hatton Garden available.
The Hatton Garden trailer teases what action-packed drama is in-store for the characters.
The series will also explore the implications the gang’s actions had on the victims they had robbed.
Hatton Garden isn’t a Robin Hood-style series but, instead, a hard-hitting, gritty British drama.
Hatton Garden premieres on ITV in May 2019.