‘The Trial of Christine Keeler’: First look at BBC’s 1960s Profumo affair drama

The first promotional image has been released for The Trial of Christine Keeler.

Based on one of the most infamous British true life stories, the BBC’s upcoming period drama explores the chain of events in the 1960s which became known as the Profumo affair.

The six-part series is written by award-winning novelist and screenwriter Amanda Coe (Apple Tree Yard).

The official synopsis reads: “At the centre of the storm was 19-year-old Christine Keeler – a young woman whom the powerful, male-dominated establishment sought to silence and exploit, but who refused to play by their rules.”

Room at the Top writer Amanda Coe has hinted: “The astonishing story of Christine Keeler and the so-called Profumo affair is the Salem Witch Trial meets OJ Simpson – a perfect storm of gender, class, race and power that resonates into the world we’re living in today.”

Starring alongside Kingsman star Sophie Cookson as Christine Keeler will be James Norton (Grantchester) as Stephen Ward.

Cookson previously commented: “Amanda Coe has written an illuminating script about a vivid, complex woman who has previously, it seems, been reduced and misunderstood. Now feels like the perfect time to reconsider her life, and redress the balance.”

The Trial of Christine Keeler is expected to air on BBC One in the UK before the end of the year.

The cast also includes Ellie Bamber (Les Miserables) as Mandy Rice-Davies, Ben Miles (The Crown) as John Profumo, Emilia Fox (Silent Witness) as Valerie Profumo, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett (Angels in America) as Johnny Edgecombe, and Anthony Welsh (Black Mirror) as Aloysius “Lucky” Gordon.