Our series begins where others typically end - in the early hours of November 5, 1605. Caught red-handed beneath the Palace of Westminster, Guy Fawkes guards 36 barrels of gunpowder, ready to unleash devastation and ‘blow the Scottish King and all his Scottish Lords back to Scotland’. But Fawkes was in reality a peripheral figure in a rebellion fighting for the freedom of all Catholics.
The compelling drama plunges into the aftermath of the Plot, spotlighting its three leaders - Robert Catesby, his cunning cousin Thomas Wintour, and their ruthless enforcer and ‘blunt instrument’, Thomas Percy. Instantly branded as the most wanted men in England, they race from London to the Midlands, desperately seeking to ignite a Catholic rebellion. Their daring plan? To overthrow King James and place his young daughter, Princess Elizabeth, on the throne. Had they succeeded, Britain might look very different today.
As Gunpowder Siege sweeps across the country, we follow Catesby, Wintour, and Percy in their desperate bid to raise a revolutionary army - all while Fawkes endures brutal torture in the Tower. Narrating their journey is a shadowy female presence, deeply entwined with the plotters long before their radicalization amid the turmoil of England's Reformation. While her male counterparts rage against the persecution of Catholic priests and worshippers, it is Anne Vaux’s quiet strength and unwavering conviction that will ultimately be hailed as instrumental in the survival of English Catholicism.
Gunpowder Siege is Lightbox’s first fully scripted drama, and draws on the company’s multi-award-winning premium documentary sensibility, giving the series a contemporary look and feel to reflect themes in the story that are as relevant now as they were 400 years ago.
Leading the cast is Chuku Modu (Game of Thrones, The Good Doctor) as Robert Catesby, Luke Hobson (Mary Queen of Scots) as Thomas Wintour, and Luke Roberts (Holby City, Ransom) as Thomas Percy. Charlotte Pyke (Slow Horses, Meet the Richardsons) plays Anne Vaux.
Gunpowder Siege (3x60’) is produced by Lightbox, founded by multiple Academy and Emmy Award winners Simon Chinn and Jonathan Chinn. The series is written by Noel McCann (Blue Lights), the Series Producer is Laura McNaught, and the Director is Mark Everest. Simon Chinn, Jonathan Chinn and Vanessa Tovell are Executive Producers. Sphere Abacus is the worldwide distribution partner.
Dan Korn, VP Programming, A+E Networks EMEA, said “It’s a pleasure to be working with the great team at Lightbox on such an innovative and dynamic reinterpretation of an iconic moment in British history. Everyone learns about the Gunpowder Plot at school but very few really know what it meant to those most intimately involved. Gunpowder Siege tells their story.”
Hayley Reynolds, Acting Director of Documentaries and Factual said “The annual celebration of 5th November is a landmark event in our calendar, yet there is so much more to the story that people aren’t aware of. We’re very excited to partner with the talented team at Lightbox, to bring the full picture of the Gunpowder Plot to life."
Vanessa Tovell, Executive Producer, Lightbox added “The real story of the days that follow the failed Gunpowder Plot has all the elements of a Hollywood blockbuster. We are thrilled to be partnering with Sky History on Lightbox’s first fully scripted series, breathing new life into a much-misunderstood historical event and showing why we should remember the 5th of November.”
Gunpowder Siege will air on Sky HISTORY on Monday 4th November.