ITV viewers tuned in across the country on Sunday evening to watch the first instalment of The Thief, His Wife and The Canoe - which tells the real life story of a North East couple who committed major fraud in the early 2000s.
The gripping new drama which premiered at 9pm depicts the tale of John and Anne Darwin which shocked the nation, following a five year 'disappearance' of John.
John faked his own death in 2002 after heading off into the North Sea in a canoe so his wife could claim £250,000 in life insurance, after the couple found themselves heavily in debt - The Manchester Evening News reports. For years, John lived in a secret bedsit which adjoined the couple's home in Seaton Carew, visiting his wife through a door that connected the two properties.
After five years had passed, the two decided to start afresh in Panama, but in 2006, John went to the local police station feigning amnesia. And although the true story had viewers gripped from start to finish, the actors' accents were debated by confused viewers around the North East especially - with many complaining about how Geordie Eddie Marsan (John) and Monica Dolan (Anne) sounded.
Read more: Viewers left fuming by cast's 'dreadful accents' on The Thief, His Wife and The Canoe
John was born in Hartlepool but attended school in Salford. He and his wife Anne then later married in Blackhall between Horden and Hartlepool.
One viewer, @mhudson40, fumed on Twitter: "The thief, his wife and a canoe, so, why is it that ITV think people from Teesside speak with a Geordie accent. This happened in Hartlepool and we DO NOT have that accent!!!! Insulting!!!!"
"Watching The Thief, His Wife & The Canoe and I’m yet to hear a single Hartlepool accent….." @EdwardHayesUK said.
@mat_hil quipped: "#Canoe recall a worse attempt at a northern accent? #TheThiefHisWifeAndTheCanoe."
"Unless I am missing part of the story where they are originally from Newcastle, why are they talking in Geordie?! Seaton Carew is more Teesside than Tyneside! #thethiefhiswifeandthecanoe," @Ali_Ali_Ali01 commented.
@jonnymrad added: "As a Hartlepudlian and Headlander, I can’t cope with the geography and accent inaccuracies. #thethiefhiswifeandthecanoe."
But the writer behind ITV's latest drama has responded. In a tweet posted on Sunday, Chris Lang said: "It's lovely people are so passionate about their own accents! John & Anne of course weren't from Seaton Carew, they only moved there in 2002.
"They were both born near Blackhall & over the next five decades lived and worked in (to name a few) Newcastle, Chester Le Street & Durham."
Replying to one comment on Twitter, Chris Lang said: "Sorry you feel patronised, Lynne, just pointing out they weren't from Seaton or indeed Hartlepool. Hope you can still enjoy the show."
Chris Lang also pre-emptively tweeted about an issue he saw arising before the show began. He said: "I'll say this now, and Ill say it just once, don't @ me that it's a bleedin' kayak not a canoe."
He later clarified: "A canoe is open, a kayak closed and despite it clearly being a kayak he went to sea in, all the papers at the time reported it as a canoe. So we decided to stick with that, rather than go with the title 'The Thief, His Wife and it's a Kayak actually'."
@sarahfesco replied, saying: "I couldn't give a stuff if it's a paddleboard. I'm just looking forward to the drama." @sarahSi80196532 agreed, saying: "Don't care what it was! It was great drama, looking forward to next part tomorrow!"
What did you make of the accents in last night's show? Let us know in the comments below.
