David Farnor | On 16, Nov 2019

Michael Sheen will play Chris Tarrant in ITV’s new drama Quiz, and we’ve now got our first look at his transformation into the presenter.

Quiz tells the extraordinary and sensational story of how Charles and Diana Ingram attempted an audacious heist on the quiz show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. Major Ingram, his wife Diana and an accomplice, Tecwen Whittock, who was sitting in the audience, were accused of cheating their way to a million pounds on what was the most popular game show on earth in 2001.

The couple stood trial for conspiring by coughing during the recording to signify the correct answers to the multiple choice questions posed to the Major by host Chris Tarrant. The first image of Sheen recreates the famous shot of Tarrant arriving to give evidence a the Ingram trial at Southwark Crown Court in March 2003, which will be seen in the drama.

The three-part drama is directed by Stephen Frears (A Very English Scandal, Florence Foster Jenkins, Philomena, The Queen) and written by playwright James Graham (Brexit: An Uncivil War, Ink, This House, Labour of Love). Matthew Macfadyen co-stars as Major Charles Ingram, Sian Clifford as Diana Ingram, Mark Bonnar as Celador Television Chairman Paul Smith, Helen McCrory as Sonia Woodley QC, Michael Jibson as Tecwen Whittock and Aisling Bea as ITV Entertainment Commissioner Claudia Rosencrantz.

Quiz is a Left Bank Pictures co-production for ITV and AMC and is distributed by Sony Pictures Television.

 

Quiz: Matthew Macfadyen to star in ITV drama based on Millionaire cheating scandal

17th August 2019

Matthew Macfadyen and Michael Sheen will star in a new ITV drama based on the play quiz.

The series will bring to life the extraordinary and sensational story of how Charles and Diana Ingram attempted an audacious heist on the quiz show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?.

Major Ingram, his wife Diana and an accomplice, Tecwen Whittock, who was sitting in the audience, were accused of cheating their way to a million pounds on what was, the most popular game show on earth in 2001. The couple stood trial for conspiring by coughing during the recording to signify the correct answers to the multiple choice questions posed to the Major by host, Chris Tarrant.  
 
Directed by Stephen Frears (A Very English Scandal, Florence Foster Jenkins, Philomena, The Queen) the three-part series stars Matthew Macfadyen as Major Charles Ingram, Michael Sheen as TV presenter Chris Tarrant, Sian Clifford as Diana Ingram.

Quiz gives an insight into what went on behind the scenes as Celador Television Chairman, Paul Smith and one of the show’s creators, David Briggs, originally pitched the idea of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? to ITV’s newly installed Director of Programmes, David Liddiment. 
 
First airing September 1998, Millionaire fever voraciously gripped the nation with viewers avidly dialling the hotline to win a place on the show which ITV stripped nightly across its schedule to ramp up the excitement.
 
Based in a sleepy Wiltshire village, Charles and Diana Ingram were amongst those who became fixated with appearing on the popular quiz show, which in its heyday attracted audiences of 19 million viewers to ITV.
 
Their obsession and fascination with the format led to multiple attempts to appear on the show for both Charles and Diana and led to the infamous ‘Coughing Major’ appearance on 9 September 2001, which has sensationally gone down in television folklore.
 
Also starring are Mark Bonnar as Celador Television Chairman Paul Smith, Helen McCrory as Sonia Woodley QC, Michael Jibson as Tecwen Whittock and Aisling Bea as ITV Entertainment Commissioner Claudia Rosencrantz.

The drama is adapted from his own stage play by James Graham, (Brexit: An Uncivil War, Ink, This House) and will be produced by leading international production company, Left Bank Pictures, whose chief executive officer and co-founder is former Head of ITV Comedy and Drama, Andy Harries (The Crown, Wallander, Strike Back). ITV’s Head of Drama, Polly Hill, has commissioned the series, which is a co-production between ITV and AMC.

Hill says: “I am delighted to be bringing James Graham’s wonderful play Quiz to screen on ITV.  It’s testament to James’ brilliant scripts that Stephen Frears is directing, which together with Left Bank Pictures producing, promises to deliver a very special drama.  It’s an extraordinary and thoroughly British story and is going to be a real treat for our audience.”
 
Graham comments: “I was gripped by this story over 15 years ago, and I’m still gripped now. It’s a very English heist. Putting it onto stage at Chichester and the West End was such a lot of fun, and with a new team we now get to re-imagine the whole story afresh for television. I have to pay credit to the late investigative journalist Bob Woffinden, who along with James Plaskett wrote the book Bad Show that kicked the whole creative process off by asking the question – what if the Major is innocent?”
 
Filming is currently underway in London.

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