The Salisbury Poisonings (2020) User Reviews

What was done, was done very well.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 8/10 · 7 August 2020]

I wasn't sure what to expect from this, such a shocking real life event could have been sensationalised or spun, but credit where it's due, this was very well told.

Very well acted, a top notch production all round, we learn Salisbury's story, what happened to the father and daughter on that fateful day in 2018, but also the effects on beautiful Salisbury and its residents.

It could perhaps have been made into two parts, I think the three installments was perhaps a little overlong, Duff and Spall however made up for that.

It's a shocking, sad story, hard to believe possible in this day and age. The negative reviews are unrealistic, this is a good insight into what happened. 8/10.

very good,god knows what people expected.

[ib011f9545i · 8/10 · 15 June 2020]

I just watched all of this and was much impressed. It could have been done differently,it could have been a Hollywood movie or it could be less fact based but I think the approach taken was the correct one. The far left Russian apologists and the anti BBC Daily Mail readers seem to have formed a sort of Nazi-Soviet pact to slag off this production. I will give no plot spoilers but having followed the real events in the news when it happened it seems like a fair account of what happened. This is not a glamorous production. The famous tourist attractions of Salisbury are not featured and Anne-Marie Duff should be praised for looking like a real women and not a model in this.

Overly dramatic.

[crispian2000 · 7/10 · 15 June 2020]

In the main I enjoyed this drama. My only problem with it is the problem I have with many TV dramas, and that is that it was overly dramatic and at times overacted. Too many scenes of Anne-Marie Duff and her obnoxious son which didn't drive the narrative beyond that she was working hard and wasn't home as much as usual. In fact there were too many scenes of character's home lives and not enough of the police investigation in general. The dialogue was at times unconvincing and unnatural too. I'm sure everyone who worked on the case at the time found it draining at times, but the writer turned up the misery on everyone's faces to 11 and for me that's just lazy and not at all like real life at all. They could have cut out about 1 hour of the over sentimental nonsense and made it a really good watch, but they didn't hence 7 stars from me.

Russian Roulette

[southdavid · 6/10 · 1 February 2021]

I let this three-part BBC series pass me by when it aired over the summer of 2020, but its appearance on the Guardian's top 50 shows of the year led me to download it. Like much of the country, I remember the initial incident very well, but the secondary victim's story - as well as the specific response to the incident were interesting to learn about.

A Russian double agent, Sergei Skripal (Wayne Swann) and his daughter Yulia (Jill Winternitz) fall suddenly and violently ill on a park bench in the small English Cathedral City of Salisbury. When the identity of the victims become known, the police begin an immediate enquiry and Detective Nick Bailey (Rafe Spall) leads an investigation of the Skripal home. It's later discovered that the pair have been exposed to Novichok, a manmade and very lethal nerve agent and stringent efforts are made immediately to limit the potential exposure of the general public, led by Tracy Daszkiewicz (Anne Marie-Duff) the Director of Public safety for Wiltshire.

The docudrama really presents the details of the incident on quite an intimate scale. The Skripal's themselves are rarely seen and the alleged perpetrators only briefly in news footage, the 'why' of the attack is not explored. Instead we follow Nick Bailey through his exposure and reaction to the nerve agent, his time in hospital, the effect on his family, and then the survivors guilt he suffers. It's all nicely played by Rafe Spall and Annabel Scholey. We follow Tracy Daszkiewicz as she is pulled into the situation, sacrificing her family time to try and keep the city safe, often offering a lone argument for expanding safety measures against opposing government priorities. Then we follow the sad case of Dawn Sturgess, a mother played by Myanna Burning, whose boyfriend accidentally exposes her to the delivery mechanism for Novichok and who can't survive the dosage. We see the impact this has on her family.

Much of the macro story is going to be classified for quite a while still, so complaints about that not being there, whilst I agree would have made for a better show, are missing the point somewhat. I'd agree with the reviews that suggested that just two episodes and less repetition, particularly of the family lives, would have made for a better series, but performances are good across the board in what is occasionally a tough watch, about everyday heroism.

Excellent stuff

[kris-gray · 10/10 · 17 June 2020]

So to the one star reviewers, are you being paid to do them?

Let's start with ricpambon - well he has only submitted this one review, that should tell you something. He says that Dawn sprays the liquid on her wrist in the first episode, she doesn't, she may well spray something then but not from the Novichok bottle. The people involved were interviewed for the series and I would have though Charlie could have told them where he found the bottle so to say the BBC don't know is plainly ridiculous.

AnthonyVincentBruno - well is only contribution is a two line slag off of Marc Addy, did he steal your wife? No other constructive criticism, so why bother.

Smoochemail - well again the only review this person has submitted so I find that as suspect as the first one I mentioned. their erroneous comment that you don't recover from Novichok is laughable when four people quite obviously did!

pkeenor - again only this one review, how do you expect us to believe you?

dayeym - probably the only believable review, other reviews are mixed. Maybe it was too long for him but to say it's rubbish with no explanation other than it was too long isn't' right.

So to my opinion, well I used to live near Salisbury, moved abroad before this incident happened but still had family in the area when it did, still do. So i recognised a lot of the locations used, yes they did film in the city.

I thought all the cast were believable, yes even the fat bloke from the Tesco ads. When you saw the real people at the end you realised how well they were cast. As a previous reviewer stated Anne-Marie Duff was excellent and nice not to have a supermodel play the part, as the Yanks would have done. Rafe Spall well he is a chip off the old block isn't he! MyAnna Burning from Ripper Street, and more, proves what a versatile actor she is, born in Sweden, you wouldn't know it from the accent here. Then there is Annabel Scholey from The Split, I could go on, there wasn't a duff performance here,

The fact that the real protagonist are shown at the end proves they were all involved in the creation of this series. To say it was a misrepresentation of the facts is an insult those involved and particularly the family and memory of Dawn Sturgess, shame on you.

Nice to see the human side of the headlines

[S3pt3m63r · 20 June 2020]

It's obvious that the negative comments are coming from certain factions as they're not interested in hearing the human story behind the headlines and only want to debunk the truth. It's not perfect by any means but gives a very good interpretation of the multi agency approach and the difficulties that they had in dealing with this diabolical encroachment on British soil and continue to play their Cold War games not only in the UK but also in Europe. We need to keep telling these stories and expose the threats to our everyday lives by these criminal acts.

Could be better

[VKintheUK-83-552768 · 6/10 · 14 June 2020]

Not really captivating in any way one looks at it, be it a fact-based drama or a work of fiction. The cross-breed is week, the characters bleak, and the "Russian angle" bordering on nothing of note. The "Putin will get me" quote is nearly laughable. Honestly, I expected much more from BBC on such a well covered topic with far-reaching implications.

Amazing

[lesleybroom · 10/10 · 22 June 2020]

I was working in the NHS in a senior role in Wiltshire when this happened. I remember the fear and unease felt by everyone, and I thought this was an excellent reflection of how significant these event were. Anne Marie Duff is fantastic, and I hope she gets an award. I was particularly pleased that Dawn Sturgess is portrayed sympathetically: she was vilified by the press at the time, it was almost as if they implied that her death was unimportant because she was "a homeless drug addict". Which she wasn't. She was a perfectly innocent victim. What were the chances of anyone finding the bottle? Such a tragic chance. Anyway, I enjoyed this. I thought it was faithful, well acted and sympathetic.

Over dramatic and domestic poisoning

[pilot1009 · 6/10 · 4 September 2020]

Well done in some ways but as other reviewers say the over dramatic domestic scenes spoil the drama. Too much agonising and hair tearing that I really cannot believe or would want in a chief health officer. Other elements with Nick Baily and the other family scenes are also overdone and again spoil the drama and the whole becomes a soap opera.

Excellent quality

[ReviewsByAnya · 9/10 · 18 June 2020]

This is my 1st review on here. I didn't write one for Chernobyl although I have given it 10/10 and I think of it as the best documentary of all times.

As Salisbury Poisonings is not made to the same spectacular scale I am awarding it 9/10.

Chernobyl didn't need another hundredth review. But I feel Salisbury does, especially after having been aired only recently and not having accumulated a high number of reviews yet.

Smaller budget. Shorter too, with only 3 episodes. And yet what really grabbed my attention is how good the casting was, with actors emulating the characters really well.

I give it 10/10 for the excellent delivery by the actors. And not just one person. They all had a role to play. And delivered they did. The gestures, the looks. Conveying strong emotions, showing ordinary people caught in the whirlwind and going through hard time.

I give it 10/ 10 for showing the story not only on the local level but also at the national one, with the coverage of the government communications and international implications. (however small they were)

I give it 10/10 for showing how these events affected the people directly involved, their families, the local community and businesses. I remember quite vividly the timeline and was feeling very sorry for all the people living in and around Salisbury.

I give it 5/10 for very minimal coverage of the Russian agents role in the attempted killings of Sergei Scripal and his daughter and minimal notion of who Scripal was. I suppose the reason for this was so that the documentary is not accused of being politicised.

I give it 10/10 for showing the inner workings of the various departments and agencies and showing realistic aspects of containment and costs involved.

If I was to nominate for an award one person involved in making this film, this would be Anne Marie Duff. For a non Hollywood, no glamour, but a normal, life like portrayal of Tracy Daszkiewicz. She carries the documentary with lightness and strength.

I hope the series will win recognition for a job well done.

Dour, grey, slow and depressing!

[khunkrumark · 6/10 · 21 May 2021]

A lot of films and TV shows generate polarizing opinions, but the reviews on here seem to be on a personal level.

So, what's it all about really?

If you are interested in (or involved with) the story, then you'll have more patience with the long, drawn out scenes when nothing of value is happening. If you've just climbed aboard this drama to pass the time of day, then your resolution to see it through will probably be tested.

It's bleak, it's depressing and relentlessly dour. In the numerous outdoor scenes, there's no sunlight.

On the upside, there has been meticulous attention to detail and the drama doesn't get too annoying or sappy.

So, now you know what to expect!

An insight into what want on behind the headlines.

[neilleacy · 8/10 · 16 June 2020]

I know from local newspaper articles that many people in Salisbury felt that the showing of this docu-drama was too soon after the event. That it would rake over old coals and put our city once again in a bad light. We'll for me it didn't.

For those looking for a hard-hitting insight into how and why the Russians attempted what they did or why the suspects have never been charged then go watch the news specials that came out at the time. But for a view of how the real people at the heart of this whole affair were really affected then the writers, directors and actors have done a good job.

Yes, it is low key in its look and feel. Yes, there are a lot of people who know Salisbury thinking 'that's not somewhere I recognise'; the use of locations from other cathedral cities threw me off the narrative a couple of times wondering where the characters were meant to be. But most importantly it drew me in to understanding more of how just frightening the possible outcome of not having an early intervention could have been and the emotional strain on those key families.

For you 1 star reviewers I say your expectations were skewed from the start. It was good to see what felt like a truthful docu-drama.

And as my son said at the end of part 3, 'well, that was emotional.'

Imperfect but still well made TV drama

[wellthatswhatithinkanyway · 7/10 · 6 January 2022]

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning

In March of 2018, in the small town of Salisbury in Wiltshire, two Russian spies unleashed a deadly Novichok nerve agent, plunging the town in to a lockdown. Tracey Daszkiewicz (Anne-Marie Duff), the recently appointed local director of Public Health, is thrust in to the spotlight, taking tough decisions in the best interest of her local neighbours and friends, including local DS Nick Bailey (Rafe Spall) who is badly struck down with poisoning, while the situation takes its toll on her home life with her family.

For just under two years now, the whole of the country (and indeed the world) has been forced to adapt to a new way of life, in order to combat the outbreak of a deadly virus, but a couple of years before, in a small town in Wiltshire, a local community was forced to adapt their behaviour to control a situation contained only for them. Even if most of us didn't have to live through it, with the events of the last couple of years, there is at least now a sad air of relatability with this dramatisation of the time by director Saul Dibb.

Initially, in the first episode, Dibb goes for a minimalist, less is more approach, capturing the unfolding events in a docu-drama style fashion, presenting normal, everyday people going about their everyday lives, dealing with their individual problems and dramas, before being thrust in to a major crisis completely out of their control. While this does give it a realistic, outside world feel, it comes at the expense of any real effective character development, leaving us less able to relate and empathise with the characters as we should. He matches the mood and tone of the drama throughout with some appropriate dull, grey lighting, but is less consistent with the character portrayals, which by the second episode have become more screechy and melodramatic.

It's flaws sadly keep it from being the sum of its parts, but it's still elevated by what it gets right, along with some strong, raw lead and supporting performances. ***

Interesting story, turned into a melodramatic soap.

[mjweston · 5/10 · 22 June 2020]

Could have been so much better and so much more enlightening. But the makers obviously have a preference for melodrama rather than recognising the events for what they were. Far too long, unless you like soaps.

One episode too many

[s-stevenson-62720 · 6/10 · 23 June 2020]

Really interesting but if not going to feature anything about investigating the suspects or the background of the attack it's a bit of a drag for 3x1 hour episodes

Filling the gaps

[pietclausen · 8/10 · 4 July 2020]

This event drew my attention when it happened and I eagerly followed this story, as I had once lived in Salisbury, but not this one. It is pleasing to see that the BBC made a mini-series of this dastardly deed and it certainly filled all the gaps, which were never disclosed in news bulletins.

The production is well done making a thrilling exposé of the happenings and aftermath. A dramatic event well worth seeing to realize that the world is still not a safe place to live in. This event took place just 2 years ago, but the investigation only concluded in 2019.

Base your opinion on the end, not the drama

[jonmccann · 7/10 · 19 June 2020]

I recall being in my early years of secondary school, in a history class, and learning about the troubles in Ireland/NI, specifically how they started and the history of media and politics surrounding the 'troubles' (because we don't like to call it a war!). I write that because it is something I remembered whilst watching this TV series. Not because of any direct correlation to the war itself, more so because of the narrative dictated by both the media and political involvement in the events.

If you are considering watching the series, expecting some big end reveal, then you won't be happy, but then I knew that before I started to watch and would expect you to also. Indeed it was something that made me think, do I really want to bother to watch something I know a lot about? And my answer was simply, in 20, 30 or more years time, I would like to know what others may see about the events from a historical viewpoint, and that swayed my decision to give it a watch.

The most telling point is the initial episode, when it is suspected as chemical attack, and a review of chemical attacks is 'Googled'. I think we seem to live in a bubble, even now in a covid world, whereby we believe that no one would be stupid to launch a chemical attack, as the damage could never be contained and would cause risk to all, rather be contained to some. How wrong we are!

We live in a world, whereby we only know what we are permitted to know, where we are told what is decided is good enough for us to know, and whereby we put up with constraints on our lives because we are told that is what is deemed appropriate, with rarely any explanation. That for me was a reason to watch, to explore just what was the internal workings and the aftermath of these terrible events, and whilst I feel it was produced honestly and fairly accurately, simply because of the ending credits, I feel the BBC have sat on the fence a little and left it to viewer imagination, rather than push for answers that are still not apparent to this day, something our media outlets seem to have become accustomed....Since 1968 at the very least!

Good representation of 2018 events in Salisbury

[mcjames-63312 · 8/10 · 16 June 2020]

I notice a number of one time reviewers giving this only 1 star and trashing this series, I wonder which country they are from ? If you remember the events from 2018 this series really gives you the story behind the headlines. I found these 3 programs detailed and involving, giving a good overview of the whole events affecting the people and city of Salisbury. The actors & actresses looked to give realistic representations of the real people reacting to the biggest event in their lives. The details of the 2 russians involvement could have been amplified, but the criminal investigation in how they were identified would make a good program in itself. I don't think Putin will be watching this one.

Enjoyable but.....

[lynn-simpson · 7/10 · 20 June 2020]

I did enjoy the drama but what spoilt it for me was the drama happening with Anne-Marie Duff and her family. She was insistent that she couldn't say what she was working causing ridiculous drama at home but it was all over the news so they must have been really stupid if they didn't know what she wants as working on.

Could have been better

One of the best dramas of 2020

[neilbowers · 8/10 · 16 June 2020]

I know 2020 has been a strange year, but some of the reviews on here I have to question whether they actually watched it? Or just decided to give it low scores because it wasn't full of razzmatazz etc.

It was for me personally one of the best dramas on the BBC this year. It was well written, well acted and you got to see how it all unfolded from those that lived there and who it affected. It wasn't skewed in any way like the stories were in the media. The actors met all of the people before hand to get an understanding of what they went through.

The final episode was probably the hardest one to watch, it was full of emotion. Especially when the father brought the boyfriend of his dead daughter up to the front during the funeral service.

But, full credit must go to Anne-Marie Duff who played Tracey Daszkiewicz. If you search for her character she is hardly mentioned. Yet, she worked darn hard and saved many people's lives by locking down the affected areas quickly. You could feel the pressure this lady was under from the press, the government her bosses.

Ignore the negativity on here. It'll be available on BBC iPlayer, I'd give it a watch.

Not bad

[D-C-S-Turner · 6/10 · 3 February 2021]

Pretty good effort here, the guy playing the poisoned police officer excellent, but Ann-Marie Duff hopelessly miscast as the chief medical officer. Nobody who gets to that position these days would have impostor syndrome.

A moving drama sympathetically told

[stuart.galbraith · 10/10 · 17 June 2020]

I had great hopes for this one, having previously looked at the cast list and saw that it was fully of people who have previously achieved great crediton British television. I was not disappointed. The approach to outsiders might have been a bit surprising, focusing on the individuals rather than the geopolitical implications. Personally I found that more effective. We know the motivation of the people involved, it pales compared to the lives that were damaged as a result of the attack. Its a drama about the people of Salisbury, who for the most part seem to have been ignored in media coverage of the attack.

Credit ought to be given to several actors in particular (no discredit to any, they all stood out. Rafe Spall as Policeman Nick Bailey, a completely convincing portrayal of a man whose life is shredded through no fault of his own. Annabel Scholey, who was very convincing as his wife, struggling to deal with the near certainty of his death. Anne Marie Duff as Tracy Daszkiewicz, struggling between maintaining a relationship with her son and spouse and saving 40 thousand people in salisbury. And MyAnna Buring who gave a deeply sensative portrayal of Dawn Sturgess, a women struggling to rebuild her life, tragically destroyed by circumstances beyond her control. There wasnt a single bad performance here.

Was it too soon? No, I think it was probably time to make it, whilst it might still do some good. if nothing else this drama of the connections in a community has added relevance now that we are as I write, still struggling with the consequences of the coronavirus. We can all relate to this one now.

good docudrama

[SnoopyStyle · 7/10 · 16 February 2021]

It's a 4 part docudrama of the 2018 Novichok nerve poison assassination in Salisbury, England. It's compelling enough as a fact based recreation. It has a little bit of drama but it doesn't have a dramatic narrative. Quite frankly, the main points are well known even with passing news reports across the pond. It does what it can to dramatize what it has. The acting is solid. I don't know if this has taken liberties with the facts. For example, it doesn't do anything with the Russian's side of the story and that may be just as well. Trying to add some sort of high intensity espionage angle would change this into something else.

Poor script and acting; devolves quickly past historical fact into soap territory.

[connorundrumme · 3/10 · 23 June 2020]

This was less about the poisonings, and more an overwrought soapy drama replastering the same tired walls over and over. It became more annoying in episode 2 & was downright intolerable by episode 3. It led to actually wondering if the actors in it were proud of their work, since it was so embarrassingly badly done, and not very interesting.

Mixed feelings

[nezbitkn2 · 6/10 · 16 June 2020]

Not really so sure a tv series was necessary for such an event. I expected to learn more about the guys that did it and the politics behind all of that. The acting was excellent so no drawbacks there but I just felt, considering one of our own was, well, murdered essentially, that we'd make more of a bigger deal out of it and release something more pressing politically. It was nice to see the survivors at the end and I wish them all the best in their lives moving forwards and the casting was exceptional with regards to lookalikes. If this happened in the US, this would be a blockbuster Hollywood film.... just saying. Mainly because anything happens there and they are the biggest victims in the world. Then the rest of the time they are the most "powerful". To exaggerate such crimes that were committed in Salisbury, maybe we should take a leaf out of their book.