Network Of Shame

How Russell Crowe transformed his look to play a disgraced TV executive…

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NEW DRAMA

The Loudest Voice Thursday, Sky Atlantic HD, 9pm & 10.05pm

Oscar-winning actor Russell Crowe makes a rare appearance on our TV screens this week – but you might have trouble recognising him.

The 55-year-old star underwent hours in the make-up chair – including having a bald cap and bodysuit fitted – to transform himself into a disgraced American TV executive in Sky Atlantic’s new seven-part series The Loudest Voice.

The real-life drama – starting this week with a double bill – chronicles the rise and fall of Roger Ailes, who was the founder and CEO of ultra-conservative TV channel FOX News until he was forced to resign in 2016 following numerous allegations of sexual harassment.

Ailes, who died of a brain injury in 2017, aged 77, spent two decades building FOX News into the most-watched cable news network in America, giving airtime to controversial hosts like Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity (played by Josh McDermitt and Patch Darragh).

Each episode of The Loudest Voice focuses on a pivotal year in Ailes’ career, beginning in 1995 when media mogul Rupert Murdoch (