Set in the early 1990s and focussing on \u201cOperation Edzell,\u201d the series explores one of UK\u2019s biggest and most catastrophic police operations from the feminist perspective of \u201cLizzie James\u201d, an undercover officer tasked with forming a relationship with then-suspect Colin Stagg, who was wrongly accused of Nickell\u2019s murder.<\/p>\n
\u201cTrue Crime can be quite misogynistic in that it doesn\u2019t often embrace the female perspective, with the women usually victims,\u201d Channel 4\u2019s Head of Drama Caroline Hollick told RadioTimes.com<\/a>\u00a0and other press. \u201cBut that\u2019s where Deceit is so different from other true crime you see on other channels; Emilia [di Girolamo]\u2019s incredibly powerful sense of the importance of the female voice in this show really made it stand out.\u201d<\/p>\n Starring Niamh Algar, Nathaniel Martello-White, Line of Duty<\/a> star Rochenda Sandall and Eddie Marsan, the four-part drama \u201centers a dysfunctional world, where a female undercover officer, codename \u2018Lizzie James\u2019, is asked to become sexual bait for a suspected killer,\u201d according to the synopsis.<\/p>\n But what is the true story behind Deceit, and who was undercover officer \u201cLizzie James\u201d?<\/p>\n Yes, Channel 4 drama\u00a0Deceit is inspired by a real-life undercover honeytrap operation, known at the time as Operation Edzell. The drama is based on real events, extensive research, and interviews.<\/p>\n The operation was at the heart of the high-pressure police investigation into the devastating murder of 23-year-old Rachel Nickell on 15th July 1992. Nickell, a mother-of-one, was killed in broad daylight on Wimbledon Common, where she was walking with her two-year-old son, Alexander Louis.<\/p>\n In an exclusive column for RadioTimes.com<\/a>, series writer Emilia di Girolamo recently explained how Deceit challenges the narrative around a real-life honeytrap operation<\/a>, Operation Edzell, which went terribly wrong.<\/p>\n \u201cDepicted from a unique female viewpoint, that of the undercover officer codenamed \u201cLizzie James\u201d (played by Niamh Algar), Deceit examines the complicated and toxic sexual politics of the early \u201890s, the police\u2019s obsession with the wrong man and the devastating impact on all involved,\u201d she writes.<\/p>\n She continued: \u201cWith twists and turns as surprising as the fictional undercover stories in Line of Duty<\/a>, I had no doubt this real story would keep viewers gripped.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLizzie James\u201d (codename) was an undercover police officer who was tasked with forming a relationship with Colin Stagg, who at the time was the main suspect in the investigation into Rachel Nickell\u2019s murder.<\/p>\n As writer Emilia di Girolamo writes for RadioTimes.com,\u00a0\u201cLizzie James\u201d was asked to become sexual bait, and was \u201cstyled, coached and given a bizarre Satanic backstory specifically designed\u2026 to appeal to what the police believed Rachel Nickell\u2019s killer desired\u201d.<\/p>\n During the undercover operation, the real \u201cLizzie James\u201d attempted to elicit a confession from Stagg by describing violent sexual fantasies. In released police tape recordings, she said,\u00a0\u201cIf only you had done the Wimbledon Common murder, if only you had killed her, it would be all right\u201d, to which he replied: \u201cI\u2019m terribly sorry, but I haven\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n However, the police had got it wrong: Colin Stagg was innocent. As di Girolamo explains, \u201c\u201cLizzie\u201d was encouraged to verbally push further and further in her interactions with Stagg \u2013 whom she believed was a violent killer \u2013 the toll on her own mental health and wellbeing was devastating.<\/p>\n There\u2019s currently a lifetime anonymity order preventing the disclosure of the real identity of \u201cLizzie James\u201d; in Channel 4\u2019s Deceit, the character\u2019s backstory and personal life (including her name, Sadie Byrne) are entirely fictional.<\/p>\n While we can\u2019t know about the experiences of the real \u201cLizzie James\u201d, the Channel 4 drama Deceit is set against the backdrop of \u2018lad culture\u2019, and grounded in \u201cthe complicated and toxic sexual politics of the early \u201890s,\u201d according to the synopsis.<\/p>\n Speaking to RadioTimes.com\u00a0and other press, Niamh Algar describes the \u201cfamiliar\u201d everyday sexism that her character Sadie\/\u201dLizzie\u201d encounters in and outside of the office throughout the four-parter.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s interesting to watch it back,\u201d she says. \u201cAnd Emilia [di Girolamo] has created this\u2026 amazing scene at the start [of the series] where you see, it\u2019s almost like Sadie being introduced as the officer \u2013 as the detective \u2013 and the subtext between Sadie and Rochenda [Sandall]\u2019s character kind of speaks volumes. They don\u2019t need to say one piece of dialogue, but every woman I think watching it will understand what that feeling is. And it\u2019s the power of not having to say anything, but also having lived through that and still living through it. I think what this [show] does, is it showcases the sexism that women are under and the pressures that they\u2019re under.\u201d<\/p>\n Rachel Nickell\u2019s true killer was Robert Napper, who \u201chad long-standing mental health issues rooted in the trauma of his own childhood, which are believed to have culminated in more than a hundred violent sexual attacks on women and three horrific murders,\u201d says Deceit screenwriter Emilia di Girolamo.<\/p>\n She adds: \u201cCatastrophic and systematic police failings meant Napper escaped detection numerous times and when he killed Rachel, another innocent man, Colin Stagg, became the sole focus of the police investigation.\u201d<\/p>\n Colin Stagg (played in the TV drama by Sion Daniel Young) was falsely charged with murdering Rachel Nickell, and spent over a year in custody. The case against him was thrown out in 1994, after Mr Justice Ognall excluded evidence from Operation Edzell from the trial. Stagg would go on to claim compensation from the Metropolitan Police.<\/p>\n Speaking to RadioTimes.com\u00a0and other press, executive producer David Nath revealed the the real-life Colin Stagg collaborated on Channel 4 drama Deceit \u201cbecause he wanted the definitive story\u2026 that tells the rest of the world he is and was an innocent man\u201d.<\/p> \u201cWe deliberately start the start the story, six or seven months after the murder of Rachel Nickell\u2026 we were focusing on the investigation and not dwelling on the crime.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know, you talk to people now, and, and you mentioned the name of Colin Stagg, and a lot of people will still say, \u2018Oh Colin Stagg, he was the person who was convicted to the murder of Rachel [Nickell], and you go, \u2018No, he wasn\u2019t\u2019. And so we have to be very mindful when we\u2019re making this series that we\u2019re not reinforcing some of the misinformation that exists about Colin already. And I think, you know, it\u2019s one of the reasons Colin collaborated with us, because he wanted the definitive story out there that tells the rest of the world he is and was an innocent man.\u201d<\/p>\n The four-part drama series Deceit begins on Friday 13th August at 9pm on Channel 4.\u00a0All four episodes will be immediately\u00a0available on All4 after the first episode airs. <\/strong><\/p>\n While you\u2019re waiting, take a look at our TV guide<\/a>\u00a0for viewing inspiration or check out the rest of our Drama<\/a> coverage.<\/strong><\/p>\n Channel 4 true crime drama Deceit explores one of UK\u2019s biggest and most catastrophic police operations. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":2817,"template":"","categories":[1],"acf":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/08\/deceit-true-story-real-history-behind-lizzie-james-honeytrap-operation.jpg",2000,1291,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/08\/deceit-true-story-real-history-behind-lizzie-james-honeytrap-operation-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/08\/deceit-true-story-real-history-behind-lizzie-james-honeytrap-operation-300x194.jpg",300,194,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/08\/deceit-true-story-real-history-behind-lizzie-james-honeytrap-operation-768x496.jpg",768,496,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/08\/deceit-true-story-real-history-behind-lizzie-james-honeytrap-operation-1024x661.jpg",800,516,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/08\/deceit-true-story-real-history-behind-lizzie-james-honeytrap-operation-1536x991.jpg",1536,991,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2021\/08\/deceit-true-story-real-history-behind-lizzie-james-honeytrap-operation.jpg",2000,1291,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":"Channel 4 true crime drama Deceit explores one of UK\u2019s biggest and most catastrophic police operations.","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/2816"}],"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\/2817"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2816"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2816"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Is Deceit based on a true story?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
![\""Deceit\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2021\/07\/Lizzie-James-in-Deceit-63c9aeb.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413"\" "\\"\"Deceit\\"")
<\/div>\nWho was undercover officer \u201cLizzie James\u201d and where is she now?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
![\""Deceit\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2021\/07\/Deceit-Ep1-37-41dc507.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413"\" "\\"\"Deceit\\"")
<\/div>\nIs the office sexism in Deceit based on real life?\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n
![\""Deceit"\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2021\/08\/Deceit-Sandall-d6660de.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C400"\" "\\"\"Deceit-Sandall\"\\"")
<\/div> Who murdered Rachel Nickell?<\/b><\/h2>\n
","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"