Take one con man. Add a dash of revenge. Then season with a little dark comedy, and what you have is the BBC’s much anticipated new show, The Following Events Are Based on a Pack of Lies.
The fictional drama tells the story of Alice, whose husband vanished years ago with all her money – except, one day she spots him walking around Oxford under a new name. Now, he’s a successful scientist, and he has author Cheryl in his sights. What follows is a maelstrom of chaos, sneak missions and half-truths as Alice attempts to get her revenge.
But who’s starring in the show, and who do they play? Here’s our breakdown.
Cheryl, played by Marianne Jean-Baptiste
Who is Cheryl?
One of the three main characters in the show, Cheryl is a bestselling fantasy author who has spent the past few years caring for her terminally ill husband. Now that he’s died, she’s looking to try to connect with people again – but unfortunately for her, she falls within the orbit of a certain Dr Rob Chance.
Who is Marianne Jean-Baptiste?
Jean-Baptiste has been on our screens for years. Born in 1967 to a mother from Antigua and a father from St Lucia, she grew up in Peckham, trained at RADA and started her career at the National Theatre. In 1996, she had her big break: appearing in the comedy-drama Secrets & Lies, for which she was nominated for both a Golden Globe and an Oscar – and making history as the first black British actress to be nominated for an Academy Award.
Jean-Baptiste is also a composer: in 1997, she recorded an album of blues songs and composed the score for the 1997 film Career Girls. She also appeared as Doreen in 1999 film The Murder of Stephen Lawrence; in American TV show Without A Trace as FBI agent Vivian Johnson, and as Sharon Bishop in Broadchurch.
Alice, played by Rebekah Staton
Who is Alice?
Timid Alice is still struggling to get over being left high and dry by her husband Rob. The pair married in the early Noughties, but Rob mysteriously vanished a few years later – with Alice’s money, as well as her family and friends’. When she spots Rob again, 15 years later, she’s furious – even more so when she finds out he’s reinvented herself. So begins Alice’s quest to discover what happened. And, more excitingly, her quest for revenge…
Who is Rebekah Staton?
Hailing from Staffordshire, the 42-year-old Staton also attended RADA and from there went onto appear in a succession of TV shows. Those include Doctor Who (in the David Tennant two-parter Human Nature/ Family of Blood), in the 2006 miniseries Jane Eyre, and as Kristina in BBC One’s Wallander.
Dr Rob Chance, played by Alistair Petrie
Who is Rob?
Rob is the ultimate con man: suave, fearless and utterly without morals. When we first meet him, he’s assumed the persona of Dr Rob Chance, the fearless eco-scientist campaigning to raise awareness of climate change. However, Alice recognises him for an entirely different reason: as her ex-husband, who vanished with all her money decades ago. And when he starts moving in on widowed author Cheryl, Alice knows she must stop him.
Who is Alistair Petrie?
Petrie is perhaps best known for playing Headmaster Groff in the award-winning Netflix show Sex Education, Petrie was born in 1970, in Yorkshire. With an RAF pilot for a father, he grew up in the Middle East, Europe and East Africa, before training at LAMDA and spending his early career appearing in theatre shows around the UK (including appearing in Henry IV opposite Michael Gambon).
Since then, he’s appeared in a slew of big-name shows: as Lord Sandy Langbourne in The Night Manager; as General Draven in Star Wars film Rogue One; as Major James Sholto in the BBC reboot of Sherlock. And of course, as the upright headmaster in Sex Education – the final season of which is due to premiere in autumn.
Sir Ralph Unwin, played by Sir Derek Jacobi
Who is Sir Ralph Unwin?
Unwin appears to be a genial, elderly scientist: a man who owns multiple foundations around the world and is dedicated to raising awareness of climate change. He also happens to be friends with a certain Dr Rob Chance – in fact, Unwin is sponsoring Chance’s own climate foundation. But is everything as it seems?
Who is Sir Derek Jacobi?
A titan of stage and screen, Derek Jacobi needs no introduction. Jacobi was born in Leytonstone, Essex in 1938. At 18, Jacobi won a scholarship to the University of Cambridge, where he read history (a fellow student, Ian McKellen, had a crush on him “that was undeclared and unrequited”). While there, he quickly became enmeshed in the university’s drama scene – to the point that he was taken on tour to Switzerland, meeting Richard Burton in the process.
Over the course of his seven-decade career, Jacobi has starred in I, Claudius, Gladiator (opposite Russell Crowe) and too many Shakespeare productions to count; he has received a Tony Award, two Primetime Emmy Awards and two SAG Awards (as well as three Evening Standard Theatre Awards). An icon.
Juno Fish, played by Romola Garai
Who is Juno Fish?
Juno Fish is the scatterbrained owner of the design boutique Alice works at. A friend as well as a boss, Juno often asks Alice to pick her daughter up from nursery, get cash for her and run other errands. She’s self-absorbed, but there for Alice when push comes to shove.
Who is Romola Garai?
Garai’s name is synonymous with her performance as Emma Woodhouse in the 2009 Austen adaptation of Emma (for which she received an Golden Globe nomination). Born in 1982 in Hong Kong, she moved to Singapore when she was five, and then to the UK three years later. From there, she went to boarding school and acted with the National Youth Theatre, before being cast to play the younger Judi Dench in film The Last of the Blonde Bombshells.
Since then, she has played the lead role in I Capture the Castle, played the younger Briony in Atonement, and of course Emma in the TV show of the same name.
Bill, played by Karl Johnson
Who is Bill?
The rather adorable Bill is Alice’s father, who lost all of his money (and his marriage) when he was scammed by Rob, back when he disappeared. These days, he lives with Alice in a rather cramped bungalow with her partner and son – but when Alice approaches him with the news that Rob is back, he soon gets sucked into her scheming.
Who is Karl Johnson?
Welsh actor Johnson was born in 1948 and started his career all the way back in 1973. He’s appeared in everything from Sons and Lovers, David Copperfield, Lark Rise to Candleford, Hot Fuzz and in the costume drama Rome.
