Mr Bates vs. The Post Office
Streaming on 7plus
My Rating 9/10
As one article stated There is a moment in "Mr Bates vs. The Post Office" that makes you as a viewer go "it cannot be real" only for you then to remind yourself that what you are watching is a true story.
However as Australians we know that so called revolutionary computer programs linked to our recent Robodebt class action cause heartbreak and great financial loss to innocent users of these systems.
This 4 part series tells the true story of one of the greatest miscarriages of justice in British legal history. When money started to seemingly disappear from its local branches, the government owned Post Office wrongly blamed their own managers for its apparent loss.
These allegations took a heavy toll on the victims and their families, leading to stress, illness, family breakdown, and at least four suicides.
The events depicted in Mr Bates vs The Post Office took place over a 20 year period covering the first sackings of sub postmasters and closures of their shops in 1999 to 2009 to the eventual class action that took place in 2020 2021 that began to see justice , accountability and some compensation for the victims of a faulty accounting system called Horizon.
A splendid ensemble cast headed by Toby Jones perfectly cast as Alan Bates a Welsh sub- postmaster who after being accused of fraudulent accounting was locked out of his business . Alan Bates eventually became the champion of over 500 post office workers who experienced the same treatment when the British Post Office insisted their accounting system Horizon doesn't lie .
As each victim rang for help to rectify the mistake they were just told they were responsible for the short loss and that no one else had reported the same problem?
This series is a David and Goliath story everyone should see this cautionary tale . It's beautifully directed by James Strong and written by Gwyneth Hughes.
After the series be sure to watch the 48 minute documentary on the same channel The Real Story of Mr Bates vs The Post Office.
As one article stated There is a moment in "Mr Bates vs. The Post Office" that makes you as a viewer go "it cannot be real" only for you then to remind yourself that what you are watching is a true story.
However as Australians we know that so called revolutionary computer programs linked to our recent Robodebt class action cause heartbreak and great financial loss to innocent users of these systems.
This 4 part series tells the true story of one of the greatest miscarriages of justice in British legal history. When money started to seemingly disappear from its local branches, the government owned Post Office wrongly blamed their own managers for its apparent loss.
These allegations took a heavy toll on the victims and their families, leading to stress, illness, family breakdown, and at least four suicides.
The events depicted in Mr Bates vs The Post Office took place over a 20 year period covering the first sackings of sub postmasters and closures of their shops in 1999 to 2009 to the eventual class action that took place in 2020 2021 that began to see justice , accountability and some compensation for the victims of a faulty accounting system called Horizon.
A splendid ensemble cast headed by Toby Jones perfectly cast as Alan Bates a Welsh sub- postmaster who after being accused of fraudulent accounting was locked out of his business . Alan Bates eventually became the champion of over 500 post office workers who experienced the same treatment when the British Post Office insisted their accounting system Horizon doesn't lie .
As each victim rang for help to rectify the mistake they were just told they were responsible for the short loss and that no one else had reported the same problem?
This series is a David and Goliath story everyone should see this cautionary tale . It's beautifully directed by James Strong and written by Gwyneth Hughes.
After the series be sure to watch the 48 minute documentary on the same channel The Real Story of Mr Bates vs The Post Office.