The Promise 1/4, series 1
Channel 4, Sunday 06 February, 9:00pm - 10:45pm
This four-part drama, written and directed by Bafta winner Peter Kosminsky, weaves together two stories. Erin (Claire Foy from Little Dorrit and Upstairs Downstairs) is on her gap year and staying with a British Israeli friend for the summer. Sitting by the pool in her hosts' plush beachside villa, she reads her dying grandfather's diary, which begins with his account of liberating Bergen-Belsen. Later, he describes the perils of being stationed in Palestine as the Jews returned to what they see as their holy land, as promised by God. We flick between Erin's modern-day acclimatisation and education, and flashbacks to the late 1940s. The Israel/Palestine conflict is a thorny topic for a film-maker and this will inevitably prompt complaints from both extremes. But it's brilliantly observed and meticulously balanced. Focusing on two eras simultaneously helps the viewer unpick this tiny Middle Eastern region's complex history and troubled present.
Radio Times reviewer - Ruth Margolis
VIDEO Plus+: 24511308
Subtitled, Audio-described
Cast
* Erin Matthews - Claire Foy
* Sergeant Leonard Matthews - Christian Cooke
* Paul Meyer - Itay Tiran
* Clara Rosenbaum - Katharina Schuttler
* Omar Habash - Haaz Sleiman
* Abu-Hassan Mohammed - Ali Suliman
* Eliza Meyer - Perdita Weeks
* Max Meyer - Ben Miles
* Leah Meyer - Smadar Wolfman
* Chris Matthews - Holly Aird
* Old Jawda - Hiam Abbass
* Captain Richard Rowntree - Lucas Gregorowicz
* Corporal Jackie Clough - Luke Allen-Gale
* Sergeant Hugh Robbins - Iain McKee
* Sergeant Frank Nash - Paul Anderson
* Private Alec Hyman - Max Deacon
* Major John Arbuthnot - Pip Torrens
* Private Derek Toogood - Ben Batt
* Private Raymond Atkinson - Colin Harris
Directed by: Peter Kosminsky
Radiotimes
