ROGUE reporting

DAVID TENNANT and ROBERT CARLYLE on their series exploring the infamous phone-hacking scandal

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In the summer of 2011, 168-year-old newspaper the News of the World closed following allegations of illegal phone tapping.

Celebs, MPs, royals and murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler had all been targeted by the publication, and the revelations caused shockwaves across the country.

Now, ITV1 revisits the scandal in seven-parter The Hack, penned by Jack Thorne (Adolescence) and produced by the team behind 2024 drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office.

Set between 2002 and 2012, the series intertwines two real-life storylines, beginning with that of investigative journalist Nick Davies (Rivals’ David Tennant), who receives an anonymous tip-off about the News of the World intercepting private voicemails.

As Nick tenaciously gathers evidence of how the paper was using illicit methods to secure splashy headlines, the drama also examines an investigation by Metropolitan Police detective Dave Cook (The Full Monty’s Robert Carlyle, who appears from Episode 2) into the still-unsolved 1987 murder of private investigator Daniel Morgan.

‘Dave’s story was new to me, and we thought it’d be interesting to tell it separately to Nick’s and then twist them together,’ says BAFTA-winner Jack. ‘It’s about great journalism and remarkable people who are brave.’

The cast also features Toby Jones (Mr Bates vs The Post Office) as Alan Rusbridger, the then editor of The Guardian, who becomes Nick’s ally in his crusade, while Steve Pemberton (Inside No. 9) plays Rupert Murdoch, whose company, News International, owned the News of the World. Jordan Renzo (The Spanish Princess) plays his son James Murdoch.