The drama starring Toby Jones has brought the Horizon Post Office scandal firmly into public awareness.

By Patrick Cremona

Published: Thursday, 11 January 2024 at 15:28 PM


ITV drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office has had an almost unprecedented impact since it debuted in the first week of 2024 – becoming the most-watched show of the year so far and driving real-world change, including a new law to “swiftly exonerate and compensate victims” of the Post Office Horizon scandal.

The broadcaster has now revealed that it will be giving the episodes another airing on ITV1, with all four episodes set to be shown on consecutive days next week between Monday 15th and Thursday 18th January.

The episodes will air at 11:15pm on Monday, 10:45pm on Tuesday, 11:40pm on Wednesday and 11:15pm on Thursday, just two weeks after the original broadcasts – albeit in a slightly later time slot.

The programmes that have been removed from the schedule to make way include All Elite Wrestling: Dynamite and Heathrow: Britain’s Busiest Airport.

The news comes one day after the BBC repeated its hour-long 2022 Panorama documentary about the scandal, which included testimony from some of the subpostmasters and mistresses involved, revealing the impact on their lives after being falsely accused.

Earlier this week, former Post Office boss Paula Vennells agreed to hand her CBE back with immediate effect after the fallout from the scandal, while Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced an “upfront payment” of £75,000 is to be made available to hundreds of postmasters.

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Speaking before yesterday’s announcement in the House of Commons, Alan Bates – the real-life figure played by Toby Jones in the drama – had said: “There’s no reason these things can’t be sorted quickly if enough pressure is brought to bear and it’s the compensation of the original people that fought the court case that needs resolving now.

“It’s been going on for almost 20 years for a number of these people and they’ve got to be able to get on with their lives.”