Mr Bates star Toby Jones says Post Office ‘hero’ Alan Bates was asked to open Glastonbury
Actor Toby Jones has hailed former sub-postmaster Alan Bates a “hero” after playing him in a drama which has been credited with raising awareness of the Post Office scandal.
Bates tenaciously led the campaign for justice for the hundreds of sub-postmasters who were wrongly convicted of theft and false accounting because of a faulty IT system called Horizon.
Many more lost their homes, livelihoods and good reputations to repay non-existent shortfalls.
The four-part ITV drama Mr Bates Vs The Post Office brought the story – which has been called the largest miscarriage of justice in British legal history – to the screen in January.
Reflecting on the series, Jones, 57, told the Hay Festival the real-life Alan Bates turned down the opportunity to make a speech at Glastonbury.
British actor Toby Jones in Mr Bates vs the Post Office. Pic: ITV/Shutterstock
He said: “I get to play a hero. Really, someone who I think of as a hero. Someone in the culture who just doesn’t seem to be subject to the same forces that we all are.
“He can’t be bought. He’s asked to open Glastonbury. ‘No, thank you’. He’s asked to do these things, he doesn’t want to do any of that. He says, ‘I’ve got work to do’, which is to get that stuff done.
“He’s a hero and he doesn’t want any honours until he’s finished the job. And these are values that, I’m not going to say I grew up with, but I sort of remember being lectured about. About duty and about following things through.
“These are very, very unfashionable things that maybe stand in stark contrast with what we’ve been living with in government for some time.”
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
He said he believed part of the show’s success was down to a national “feeling of disempowerment”.
Jones said: “I think that there’s something in the country at the moment. There’s a feeling of disempowerment.
“There’s a feeling of outrage, justly, and the story is told very clearly, and it’s by no means obvious. Computer software malfunction is not an obvious thing to make a drama about.”
Praising the sub-postmasters caught up in the real-life scandal, he paid tribute to their “incredible humble modest humility” – adding they had lived through “20 years of living in a Hitchcockian nightmare”.
Read more from Sky News:
Bat bites singer on stage
Adele confronts heckler
Former Post Office boss Paula Vennells. Pic: PA
Last month, former Post Office boss Paula Vennells came face-to-face with some of the sub-postmasters affected by the scandal when she gave three days of evidence at the Post Office Inquiry.
Following the TV series, Ms Vennells returned her CBE (commander of the British empire) before it was eventually removed from her by the King in February for “bringing the honours system into disrepute”.
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has called on Sir Keir Starmer to sack Treasury minister Tulip Siddiq over allegations she lived in properties linked to allies of her aunt, Sheikh Hasina, the deposed prime minister of Bangladesh.
It comes after the current Bangladeshi leader, Muhammad Yunus, said London properties used by Ms Siddiq should be investigated.
He told the Sunday Times the properties should be handed back to his government if they were acquired through “plain robbery”.
Tory leader Ms Badenoch said: “It’s time for Keir Starmer to sack Tulip Siddiq.
“He appointed his personal friend as anti-corruption minister and she is accused herself of corruption.
“Now the government of Bangladesh is raising serious concerns about her links to the regime of Sheikh Hasina.”
Ms Siddiq insists she has “done nothing wrong”.
Her aunt was ousted from office in August following an uprising against her 20-year leadership and fled to India.
Ms Siddiq is also named with her aunt in Bangladesh court documents about meetings with the Russian government.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has called on Sir Keir to sack the minister
Read more from Sky News:
Ten Reform councillors quit in protest
Liz Truss sends cease and desist letter to Starmer
As economic secretary to the Treasury, Ms Siddiq is responsible for policy on both the City and tackling corruption.
She referred herself to the prime minister’s ethics watchdog on Monday following the reports about the properties.
On the same day, the prime minister said: “Tulip Siddiq has acted entirely properly by referring herself to the independent adviser, as she’s now done, and that’s why we brought into being the new code.
“It’s to allow ministers to ask the adviser to establish the facts, and yes, I’ve got confidence in her, and that’s the process that will now be happening.”
Police in Aberdeen have widened the search area for two sisters who disappeared four days ago in the city.
Eliza and Henrietta Huszti, both 32, were last seen on CCTV on Market Street after leaving their home on Tuesday at around 2.12am.
The sisters – who are part of a set of triplets and originally from Hungary – crossed the Victoria Bridge to the Torry area and turned right on to a footpath next to the River Dee.
Eliza and Henrietta Huszti were last seen on CCTV in Market Street. Pic: Police Scotland/PA
They headed in the direction of Aberdeen Boat Club but officers said there is no evidence to suggest the missing women left the immediate area.
Specialist search teams, police dogs and a marine unit have been trying to trace the pair.
The sisters crossed Victoria Bridge before walking along a footpath next to the River Dee
The pair were heading in the direction of Aberdeen Boat Club on the south side of the River Dee
Further searches are being carried out towards the Port of Aberdeen’s South Harbour and Duthie Park.
Police Scotland said it is liaising with authorities in Hungary to support the relatives of the two sisters.
Chief Inspector Darren Bruce said: “Eliza and Henrietta’s family are understandably extremely worried about them and we are working tirelessly to find them.
“We are seriously concerned about them and have significant resources dedicated to the inquiry.”
The sisters, from Aberdeen city centre, are described as slim with long brown hair.
Henrietta Huszti. Pic: Police Scotland
Eliza Huszti. Pic: Police Scotland
Officers have requested businesses in and around the South Esplanade and Menzies Road area to review their CCTV footage for the early morning of Tuesday 7 January.
Police added they are keen to hear from anyone with dashcam footage from that time.
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports9 months agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports3 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business2 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway