David Tennant has recreated the famous photo of Russian defector Alexander Litvinenko lying in a hospital bed before his death from poisoning. Litvinenko, a former Russian federal security services and KGB officer and outspoken critic of President Vladimir Putin, died in agony in November 2006 after ingesting a rare radioactive substance.
A new ITV drama will explore the story of the Metropolitan Police officers who investigated the case of Litvinenko, who was found in declining health at University College Hospital in London. Litvinenko will be played by Doctor Who star Tennant. His wife, Marina Litvinenko, will be portrayed by Russian-American actress Margarita Levieva who starred in The Deuce and The Blacklist.
ITV said former New Scotland Yard officers Clive Timmons and Brent Hyatt, along with Marina Litvinenko’s lawyer Ben Emmerson QC and the former spy’s family, have helped the production. Mark Bonnar, of Catastrophe and Quiz fame, will portray Timmons, while Utopia’s Neil Maskell takes on the role of Hyatt.
