Lockerbie: A Search for Truth

It is telling that part of the title of this miniseries is "a search for the truth." The implication being that it has not yet been found. I remember the incident well, the explosion and field of debris in the area of Lockerbie, Scotland, as the airliner was on its way from London to New York City.

Colin Firth is cast in the lead role, and is very effective, as Doctor Jim Swire. His young adult daughter was on that plane, he and the rest of his family were devastated by the news. Swire was not happy with what he and others were being told, it seemed that important information was being left out and/or not addressed. So he took it upon himself to dig deeper, and that search included traveling to Libya and meeting with Muammar Gaddafi. The program is based on his writings and thus has some bias to it.

A big part of what troubled Swire and others, a communication was found which warned of a bomb ahead of time, but apparently was only shared within USA and UK agencies. Then, right after the plane went down from the on-board explosion, agents showed up quickly as if they were already in Scotland and expected the event. That was very troubling if indeed that is what happened.

I found this five-part miniseries streaming on Peacock. I would have preferred a single movie of 90 to 120 minutes but I understand the business model, more running time generates more revenue. While it isn't a stellar watch it does provide interesting content for those who have an interest in the event.

I've only completed episode one at this point and I'm astounded by how I'm left feeling afterwards. This was always going to be a hard watch but in fact what is more powerful than its ability to break your heart is the giving us the audience a mere taste of how unbelievably shocking and life altering this event must have been for the residents of Lockerbie, the families of the passengers and the country as a whole. I was only eight at the time so had no real memory of this happening but from shielded to educated, I highly commend the series makers. It's beautifully made, acted and a just tribute to every victim.

I remember sitting with my parents when the news bulletin came in about Lockerbie, an event which shocked our nation. I had returned from my first trip to the USA that summer, working on a summer camp near Syracuse. A number of students from Syracuse had also worked there over the holiday. A group of them were on that flight, returning from a trip to London. I would not find out that friends of friends had lost several people on board that flight, several from one class alone, until many years later.

The narrative presented to the public about who & why was responsible was always confusing & convoluted and I was never entirely convinced by the official version.

Here we finally get the television drama this story deserves, told, perhaps wisely (though I am sure some will think it unfair) primarily from one family's perspective searching for the truth. I consider myself fairly educated on this subject, but this show brought several things to light that I was previously unaware of. What is very clear is that these families were lied to from the outset and facts were deliberately withheld from them.

Catherine McCormack gives the performance of her life as the grieving mother, with Colin Firth doing what he does best in the leading role. This series is not an easy watch, but as I have said before about similar productions, it is absolutely 100 percent essential viewing. Another stand out performance is that of Sam Troughton as the intrepid reporter chasing all the pieces of the jigsaw, while newcomer Jemma Carlton holds on her own against the heavyweights. Remember under Thatcher (don't get me started) there was no Public Inquiry into Hillsborough, Marchioness nor Lockerbie.

Naturally any drama taking on a topic as emotional tragic as this must be handled with care, sensitivity and respect for those directly impacted by the events. I won't presume to know their views, but I think they would be very satisfied with the powerful results we have here.

The crash itself is especially well handled. We see enough to know the utter horror of what they went through both in the air and on the ground but no more than is required.

This sequence is extremely well directed by Otto Bathhurst.

I urge you to watch it. The main theme here is everyone should always be held accountable for their mistakes. Otherwise those damaged by such events can't even begin to heal.

I highly commend the entire production team.

First class drama - watch it now.

Just watched 1st episode on stack tv. Who have.this listed as a comedy this needs to be changed immediately this is an insult to the victims families. My sister and brother law were living in Lockerbie when this happened. This was a tragedy so please change this listing immediately. Great acting by Colin Firth this is a disturbing t.v. Show but we didn't have cell phone back then and there was not much coverage of it on the Canadian news media so it will be informative to see the rest of the series. It will be difficult for the families of these victims to have this t.v series being aired now.

My first review for 2025 is here and it is a tv show that focuses on the real life events of the Lockerbie plane disaster, so it is a pretty serious watch. I have watched all of the 5 episodes and here is my review for the show. The premise of the show focuses on a doctor who is trying to get justice for his daughter and all the lives that were affected by the Lockerbie Plane Disaster that took place in 1988.

Main Character Colin Firth plays Dr Jim Swire and you won't see too many better performances then this all year, he is truly fantastic. You see the real emotion and harm that comes to him during the entire show and the longer the case takes the more it takes out of him and his family. Firth really delivers this strong performance of this real man and you are really on his journey and support him.

Supporting Characters Catherine McCormack plays his wife Jane and she is also brilliant. Though we see this show mostly through Jim's eyes we really see how it affects Jane and makes her feel like she is sleepwalking through life without her husband. McCormack really nails it and though she isn't the focus she is an integral part of the show.

Sam Troughton plays Murray Guthrie who is a journalist that works with Jim Swire and I really liked their dynamic. He clearly cares about the story and wants to get the evidence required to help Swire and the families affected. The chemistry between him and Firth is really great and I really enjoyed all the scenes they had together.

There is a big supporting cast and everybody just feels very genuine and appropriate for the story that is being told here and I give credit to every performer and this is a great ensemble cast.

Story The story is obviously very upsetting and emotional and it handles it really well. It was gripping and kept me interested as there was twists and turns about who might have been responsible for the plane crashing in Lockerbie. But the films ending didn't quite work for me, it is difficult when you do a show based on real life events as you can't change it too much, but the ending was pretty drab compared to everything else that was shown during the show.

Script Due to the subject matter, I was expecting an intense and emotional script and we get exactly that but it works really well. You really feel the emotion that is being conveyed on screen. It was a really well written show and though it gets complicated at times, I thought it explained everything pretty well.

Style The show is well filmed and does a really good job of conveying the intense subject matter and does enough to keep you hooked for the next episode. Though, I do think the show drags at times and maybe could have cut an episode and really tightened everything up to create an even better experience.

Overall Overall, Lockerbie: A Search for Truth is a Great Show. It is a hard watch and I will probably never watch it again but it is a really interesting watch and has some excellent performances. I would recommend watching this show once so you can truly understand more about this tragic story.

Rating - 8/10.