Oscar nominated actress Julie Walters stars as Angela, alongside David Morrissey, Om Puri and Robert Glenister.

Starting with the mother and moving outwards, Murder shows how people can be changed forever when they come into contact with violent crime.

Each episode focuses on one character connected to the murder and their relationship with Angela. There's the journalist who sees the potential for a headline grabbing story, the newsagent who delivers the paper which includes the story, the detective in charge of investigating this and many other murders, and the witness who finds Chris, but is unable to save his life.

It turns the traditional crime thriller on its head. The consequences of the murder and the investigation unfold through the eyes of Angela, a mother wracked with grief at the loss of her son.

Producer Rebecca de Souza explains: "Unless we've had a personal experience of murder we think we understand it because we've all seen investigations on TV or read about them in the newspapers. They are generally presented in a particular way. The focus tends to be on the the victim and the police investigation. We wanted to explore the idea that, alongside the immediate family, many people are affected by murder - some in surprising ways."

Both Rebecca and writer Abi Morgan, who worked together on My Fragile Heart, talked to people who had lived through their children's murder. "Their stories were so incredible, there was a strong sense that they had been touched by madness," reveals Abi. "I wanted to capture the intensity of what they were living through as well as the odd normality of it. Their experiences had a surreal sense about them, but at the same time they had to carry on with their lives."

"What keeps Angela going is her drive to find out who did it, but, once the investigation is over, there really is nowhere else to go. You just have to live with it."

Rebecca was determined to feature the investigation in a realistic way. "A DCI will inevitably be working on several cases at any one time and that one case may not be particularly important to them, even though it's all-consuming to the mother of the victim. And for the other characters, the consequences of their interaction with Angela, while uncomfortable, have a positive outcome."

"Some of it's shocking and raw," Rebecca concludes, "But also very beautiful and very moving."