{"id":44912,"date":"2024-01-31T17:28:20","date_gmt":"2024-01-31T16:28:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1983431"},"modified":"2024-01-31T19:00:27","modified_gmt":"2024-01-31T18:00:27","slug":"mr-bates-star-will-mellor-on-justice-for-post-office-victims-talks-cheap","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/mr-bates-star-will-mellor-on-justice-for-post-office-victims-talks-cheap\/","title":{"rendered":"Mr Bates star Will Mellor on justice for Post Office victims: \u201cTalk\u2019s cheap\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mellor said the response from the public following the series was “unprecedented”. <\/p>

By Katelyn Mensah\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Wednesday, 31 January 2024 at 16:28 PM<\/p>

\n\n

ITV\u2019s Mr Bates vs The Post Office<\/a> has made waves since its debut earlier this year, and it has become ITV\u2019s biggest new drama in over a decade<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The four-part series explored how hundreds of subpostmasters and mistresses were falsely accused of theft, fraud and false accounting<\/a> due to an IT malfunction.<\/p>\n

Following this success of the series, there has been intense scrutiny placed on the public inquiry<\/a>, and as of January 2024, said inquiry moved into its final phase, with many hoping justice will be served.<\/p>\n

Will Mellor, who portrayed Lee Castleton in the series, told RadioTimes.com<\/a> at the Radio Times<\/strong> Covers Party that it\u2019s important more is done for the victims of the scandal, noting that \u201ctalk is cheap\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll these people wanted to be was heard for so long, and no one wanted to listen, because they were skint little people, as Alan Bates said in the drama,\u201d he explained.<\/p>

He continued: \u201cAnd now we\u2019ve [seen] what we can do in this country, when we come together and go, \u2018No, this is wrong, get something done, make people accountable for what they did.\u2019 And remember the money they took off these people \u2013 that\u2019s not compensation, that was their money.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat price do you find people losing their life, going to prison or not be able to remember their childhood because of the treatment they had to have for depression?\u201d<\/p>\n

Following the series shining a further light on the scandal, the prime minister, Rishi Sunak, announced that primary legislation will be brought forward<\/a> to overturn the convictions of all Post Office staff who were wrongly convicted.<\/p>\n

Mellor said that the response to the series was \u201cunprecedented\u201d, and that neither he nor the rest of the crew imagined the response it would have from the public.<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cWe all said on set, \u2018Can you believe they did this to these people?\u2019 And we were saying after we were filming [that] it was powerful, and we knew people would talk about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Monica\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Monica Dolan as Jo in Mr Bates vs the Post Office. ITV<\/em><\/span><\/figcaption> ITV Studios<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n

Directed by James Strong, Mr Bates vs The Post Office quickly became the most-watched TV show of 2024<\/a> so far.<\/p>\n

Further speaking to RadioTimes.com<\/strong>, Mellor recalled a conversation he had with Strong, in which the director told him, \u201cIf we get this right, this could this could be quite good and quite big,\u201d but nothing had prepared them for this.<\/p>\n

Mellor added: \u201cWe, the cast\u2026 you have to bring your A-game here. You\u2019re with some big players. So it was a privilege for me to be on set with these people. I was just glad to be involved and be a part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Earlier this month, Post Office chief executive Nick Read released a statement to the victims, saying<\/a>: \u201cWe sincerely apologise to victims for the devastating impact of the Post Office Horizon IT scandal on the lives of so many.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are doing all we can to provide redress and urge anyone affected who has not yet come forward to do so.\u201d<\/p>\n

See more photos from the Radio Times Covers Party 2024 in the new issue of Radio Times magazine, on sale Tuesday 6th February.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Mr Bates vs The Post Office is available to watch on ITVX. <\/strong>Check out more of our Drama<\/a> coverage or visit our TV Guide<\/a> and Streaming Guide<\/a> to find out what\u2019s on.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only \u00a310 \u2013 subscribe now<\/a>. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n

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