{"id":19078,"date":"2022-07-24T09:00:50","date_gmt":"2022-07-24T07:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1682421"},"modified":"2022-07-24T09:30:10","modified_gmt":"2022-07-24T07:30:10","slug":"is-the-newsreader-a-true-story","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/is-the-newsreader-a-true-story\/","title":{"rendered":"Is The Newsreader a true story?"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>

By Flora Carr\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Sunday, 24 July 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

\n\n

The acclaimed Australian drama series The Newsreader is finally arriving on British screens, with the show due to debut on\u00a0BBC Two on\u00a024th July 2022<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Starring Mindhunter\u2019s Anna Torv, the series is set in 1986 and follows an Australian nightly news show and the journalists that work there.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Newsreader takes us back to 1986 \u2013 when Halley\u2019s Comet was a must see, the AIDS crisis was taking hold and the Challenger explosion shocked the world,\u201d the series synopsis reads.<\/p>\n

\u201cAmongst it all, newsreader Helen Norville (Anna Torv) is determined to build her credibility, while her colleague Dale Jennings (Sam Reid) is desperate to become a newsreader. From messy beginnings, they will form an unlikely bond that will transform the very fabric of the nightly news bulletin.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, how much of the series is based on real-life, and are the characters in the series inspired by real journalists from the 1980s?<\/p>\n

Is The Newsreader inspired by a true story?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The cast of colourful characters in The Newsreader are all fictional; any similarities to real-life people from the same period are purely coincidental.<\/p>\n

However, many of the events depicted in The Newsreader really did happen, for example, the Challenger space shuttle disaster depicted in episode one in 1986.<\/p>

In terms of British news mentioned in episode one, the show also accurately depicts coverage of the Westland Helicopter affair of 1985-1986 and how it impacted then-British Prime Minister Margaret Tatcher and her government\u2019s reputation.<\/p>\n

\"""\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher<\/span><\/figcaption> Bettmann \/ Getty Images<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n

Likewise, the show pays close attention to period-correct details, such as what hairstyle or jewellery the newsreader Helen Norville (Anna Torv) wears, the clothes various characters wear, and the songs playing on the radio \u2013 for example, Mr Mister\u2019s 1980s hit Kyrie plays in episode one.<\/p>\n

What didn\u2019t The Newsreader get right?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Some statements made during the series appear to have the benefit of hindsight. For example, in April 1986\u00a0the newsreaders named Chernobyl as the worst-ever nuclear disaster, before all the facts about the event would have emerged and become public knowledge.<\/p>\n

Likewise, the timing of some announcements is tweaked to better fit within an episode timeline. For example, the engagement of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson is suggested to have taken place near the end of March 1986 instead of mid-February.<\/p>\n

The Newsreader will begin airing on\u00a0BBC Two on\u00a024th July 2022. Looking for something else to watch? Visit our Drama<\/a> hub or check out our TV Guide<\/a>.<\/b><\/strong><\/p>\n

The latest issue of Radio Times magazine is on sale now \u2013\u00a0subscribe now<\/a>\u00a0and get the next 12 issues for only \u00a31. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to the\u00a0Radio Times podcast<\/a>\u00a0with Jane Garvey.<\/strong><\/p><\/body><\/html>\n

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By Flora Carr Published: Sunday, 24 July 2022 at 12:00 am The acclaimed Australian drama series The Newsreader is finally arriving on British screens, with the show due to debut on\u00a0BBC Two on\u00a024th July 2022. Starring Mindhunter\u2019s Anna Torv, the series is set in 1986 and follows an Australian nightly news show and the journalists […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":19079,"template":"","categories":[1,5],"acf":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/07\/is-the-newsreader-a-true-story.jpg",620,379,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/07\/is-the-newsreader-a-true-story-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/07\/is-the-newsreader-a-true-story-300x183.jpg",300,183,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/07\/is-the-newsreader-a-true-story.jpg",620,379,false],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/07\/is-the-newsreader-a-true-story.jpg",620,379,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/07\/is-the-newsreader-a-true-story.jpg",620,379,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/07\/is-the-newsreader-a-true-story.jpg",620,379,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By Flora Carr Published: Sunday, 24 July 2022 at 12:00 am The acclaimed Australian drama series The Newsreader is finally arriving on British screens, with the show due to debut on\u00a0BBC Two on\u00a024th July 2022. Starring Mindhunter\u2019s Anna Torv, the series is set in 1986 and follows an Australian nightly news show and the journalists…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/19078"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19079"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19078"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19078"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}