Netflix has taken a bold stance against air pollution by using disappearing billboards to promote its new real-life series, Toxic Town. The show is based on the actual Corby toxic waste scandal and follows three mothers who challenged their local council over its waste management, believed to be causing severe health defects in children.
The four-part series features a stellar cast including Doctor Who’s Jodie Whittaker, Sex Education’s Aimee Lou Wood and Bridgerton’s Claudia Jessie. Since its release on Thursday, February 27, the series has been a hit with viewers and currently tops the streaming charts over Running Point and With Love, Meghan.
Earlier this week, billboards for the show used real-time air quality data to visually represent pollution levels across the country. When air quality is good, the billboards display a full poster for the series.
If pollution levels rise, the poster becomes unclear, and a message reads: “You can’t see this ad because the air quality is currently poor, according to Accuweather.
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“The drama was penned by Jack Thorne, who recently led Joy, another true-story show focusing on the first ‘test tube baby. ‘ Since its debut, the release already boasts an impressive 100 percent Rotten Tomatoes score, from eight reviewers.
Viewers have taken to Twitter to share their intense reactions to the heart-rending drama “TOXIC TOWN.”
One viewer was moved to comment: “If you haven’t watched it yet TOXIC TOWN is a must watch. It’s a true story about mothers affected by toxins causing defects in children birthed around the time. Emotional, gripping and heartfelt.”
Another was astounded by the lack of public awareness, saying: “#ToxicTown watch it. Completely shocking that this wasn’t a national disgrace… I live 1/2 hour drive away from Corby and knew nothing of this. Also, the acting is off the scale, especially the tour de force that is #JodieWhittaker incredible performance!”
Toxic Town lead characters with their real-life counterparts. Claudia Jessie with Maggie Mahon (centre left), Aimee Lou Wood with Tracey Taylor (centre) and Jodie Whittaker with Susan McIntyre (centre right) (Image: © 2024 Netflix, Inc.)
Further acclaim came from someone who found the series captivating, stating: “TOXIC TOWN was exceptional. It’s not a run-of-the-mill biopic drama just to get you to cry over mothers’ misfortune, but it’s also an engaging investigative drama with its emotional ups and downs. Jodie Whittaker was a firecracker with a lean mean feisty attitude.”
Another fan shared: “Just finished #ToxicTown. In my opinion, it will certainly be one of the best series of 2025!”.
Toxic Town writer Jack Thorne was unaware of the case before he started writing the series but he wanted to do the story and its real-life figures justice.
Des (Rory Kinnear) represents the affected mothers in Toxic Town. (Image: Netflix)
“The more you look into it, the more complicated it all becomes,” Thorne says of the story. “I’ve done legal dramas before, but this one … being taken through the actual truth of it and seeing the journey that they had to go on in order to prove this, I found very surprising and shocking.”
Given what the women had to do in order to get accountability from those in power, Thorne also found their commitment to be tremendously inspiring. “There’s just so much internalized blame that these women obviously had [to deal with],” he says. But, he notes, they were able to “collectively join together and work to actually empower not just themselves and their children, living or dead, but a whole community.”
Toxic Town is streaming now on .