New drama Toxic Town tells the gripping tale of a group of mothers who band together to challenge their local council over the mismanagement of toxic waste, which they believe led to their children’s disabilities.
The show, which was released on on February 27, has quickly become the most-watched TV programme in the UK on the streaming platform, surpassing American Murder Gabby Petito and Robert De Niro’s Zero Day.
The series, set in Corby, Northamptonshire, boasts a star-studded cast including Jodie Whittaker, Aimee Lou Wood, Claudia Jessie, Brendan Coyle and Robert Carlyle. It follows the mothers as they confront the council over alleged toxic waste mismanagement after discovering their children were born with limb differences and health issues.
But are the characters in Toxic Town based on real people?
Let’s delve deeper into the series to uncover the true story that inspired the drama.
Toxic Town stars Jodie Whittaker, Aimee Lou Wood, Claudia Jessie, Brendan Coyle and Robert Carlyle among its cast about a groundbreaking scandal in Corby, Northamptonshire. (Image: Netflix)
most of the characters in Toxic Town are based on real-life figures affected by the scandal.
Leading the cast is Jodie Whittaker, who portrays Susan McIntyre, a mother whose son, Connor, was born with a deformed hand. In reality, Connor endured bullying at school due to his hand and underwent several corrective surgeries during his childhood, including one where two of his toes were grafted onto his hand.
Despite these operations, Connor never achieved a pincer grip with his hand.
The real McIntyre shares her haunting recount of the moments she realised something was amiss: “I was in hospital with lots of other mothers having babies, and some of them had babies that had problems with their limbs,” she said. “And I’d say, ‘Oh, you’ll be all right,’ and I’d comfort them, and then four months later, the same thing happened to me. I had a baby with the exact same thing. And I did think that was strange.”
Sex Education actress Aimee Lou Wood takes on the heart-wrenching role of Tracey Taylor, a mother who tragically loses her newborn daughter Shelby just days after her birth, while Claudia Jessie portrays Maggie Mahon, another mother whose child is born with abnormalities.
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.)
Scottish actor Robert Carlyle delivers a powerful performance as councillor Sam Hagen, who campaigned for justice and worked tirelessly to uncover the council’s misdeeds, despite facing immense challenges himself. While he passed away in 2022, his legacy lives on, celebrated in the show’s touching tribute in the finale.
Meanwhile, James Bond alum Rory Kinnear steps into the shoes of Des Collins, the intrepid lawyer who fought tooth and nail for the families and masterminded the legal battle against Corby Borough Council that reached the High Court. Although Toxic Town includes many real-life figures, some fictional characters have been introduced for storytelling purposes.
Brendan Coyle and Robert Carlyle clash with each other in Toxic Town (Image: Netflix)
Corby Borough Council’s Roy Thomas, portrayed by Brendan Coyle in the gripping series, is not based on a real person, but rather an ‘amalgamation’ of various attitudes and perspectives that were present within the council during that period, specifically focusing on the prioritisation of jobs and growth at the expense of environmental protections.
Series writer Jack Thorne delved into the character’s mindset, saying: “With Roy, I really wanted to make sure that we were explaining why he believes what he believes,” and elaborating on the character’s background with, “That thing of being part of a queue outside the unemployment office with 11,000 people, and his fears about how a town like that is going to survive when he was seeing other towns all over the country being killed by industrial change, being killed by the death of industrial Britain.”
He added, “Roy prioritizes jobs and growth over safety, but that’s what he’s been taught, that’s the life he’s led.”
Furthermore, figures such as council leaders Pat Miller and Bill Martin are entirely fictional creations, and the character of council whistleblower Ted Jenkins, played by Stephen McMillan, is also invented, symbolising the actual whistleblowers who exposed the dangerous cost-cutting practices.