Ivan Radford | On 15, Sep 2024

From Bodyguard and Hijack to Red Eye, the modern TV thriller landscape is a wonderfully daft journey through thrillingly implausible ideas. They all hinge on two things: first, a cascade of nail-biting twists deployed with clockwork precision; second, the slightest whiff of something that might actually happen. Nightsleeper, BBC One’s brilliantly compelling six-parter, balances the two with aplomb.

Written by Nick Leather (Murdered for Being Different), the series introduces us to the Heart of Britain, a sleeper train that goes from Glasgow to London. Just before the train departs the Scottish station, an altercation with a couple of robbers sends off-duty police officer Joe (Joe Cole) running after some suspicious men trying to steal a bag. After the incident has been resolved, he discovers that, during the disruption, someone managed to plant a device in the train office: one that allows them to control the train remotely. Whoever they are, the Heart of Britain is in their hands.

It doesn’t take long for a journalist on board – because of course there’s a journalist on board – to coin a word to describe the situation: not a hijacking, but a “hackjacking”. Within a couple of hours, cryptic messages emerge and the threat emerges as a national crisis covering the entire rail infrastructure.

One of the best things about the series is that we know exactly how much time has unfolded with every episode that passes: Leather’s script is written in real-time, which means that we really feel the urgency of action required to combat the hackjacking, whether it’s searching through bags or trying to get hold of someone on their phone. All that would be gripping enough if the cast were full of straightforward characters, but we soon learn that the passengers have got their own secrets and problems: among them are Liz, a politician attempting to avoid embarrassment (an enjoyably self-serving Sharon Small), the withdrawn, downbeat Fraser (James Cosmo), erascible drinker Arran (Alex Ferns), focused report Rachel (Katie Leung) and Danny (Daniel Cahill), an oil rig worker with an intimdating streak. And attempting to keep them calm are put-upon employee Yas (Sharon Rooney) and eager-to-help Billy (Scott Reid).

Off the train, Alexandra Roach is superb as Abby, the acting technical director of the National Cyber Security Centre, whose holiday with her friend, Meg (Remy Beasley), is abruptly cancelled when the hack is discovered. Working with her untrusting sidekick, Saj (Parth Thakerar), and sceptical boss Nicola (Pamela Nomvete), she bears immense pressure while attempting to get help from Paul (the excellent David Threlfall) , a former employee with a rebellious streak, and monitor young tech whizz Tobi (Gabriel Howell), who rents out Abby’s spare room.

The result is an enjoyably awkward melting pot of workplace tensions, personal drama and cyber-fuelled uncertainty. It all feels lived in and realistic: none of the passengers trust the humans in charge to do the right thing, while also not quite understanding the technical threat at hand, and the NCSC team grasp what needs to be done but can’t make things happen because of the bureaucracy and privatisation that has fragmented the railway network.

The cast sell every escalating situation with just the right dose of suspicion and sincerity. Alexandra Roach earns our sympathies trying to hold multiple phone calls at once across several devices, while the ever-charismatic Joe Cole is compassionate and honest enough without giving all of Joe’s backstory away immediately.

But it’s the pacing that gives Nightsleeper its edge, as the series captures the very tangible terror of a speeding vehicle that can’t, or won’t, slow down. That kernel of relatable fear keeps us glued to our seats through every twist and turn that’s waiting down the track – as the relentless, riveting six episodes gain momentum over the coming weeks, expect the hearts of Britain to be in this show’s hands.

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