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Episode details

Radio 4,12 May 2021,44 mins

SeriesSeries 6

Episode 3

GF Newman's The Corrupted

Available for 118 days

It's now 2001 and Brian Oldman is still in prison for a crime he didn't commit. He found a man in jail able to prove his innocence - but that man was soon discovered dead in his cell. He suspects that Joseph Oldman, now Sir Joseph Olinska MP, organised the killing. In this final series, taking us to 2008, Joseph Olinska gets ever more involved in New Labour, while Brian Oldman becomes a vegan and studies law in jail in a bid to win justice for himself. Tony Wednesday continues to work behind the scenes for Sir Joseph at the same time as moving ever further up the ranks of the police force. GF Newman's The Corrupted weaves fiction with real characters from history, following the fortunes of the Oldman/Olinska family - from small-time business and opportunistic petty crime, through gang rivalries, to their entanglement in the highest echelons of society. It's the tale of a nexus of crime, business and politics that’s woven through the fabric of 20th and 21st century greed, as even those with hitherto good intentions are sucked into a web of corruption. Whose fortunes will prosper? Who will get their just deserts? Joey Oldman, an uneducated Jewish child immigrant from Russia, has a natural instinct for business and a love of money - coupled with a knack for acquiring it. His first wife Cath is as ruthless in both the pursuit of money and the protection of her son, Brian. Joey built his empire with the help of a corrupt bank manager in the 1950s, starting with small greengrocer shops before moving into tertiary banking and property development, dealing with many corrupt policemen on the way - and befriending Lord Goodman, Margaret Thatcher and Tony Blair. Joseph now helps New Labour with their finances, while continuing to invest heavily in Russia, the US and a pharmaceutical company specialising in cancer drugs. The characters are based on GF Newman's novels. CAST Sir Joseph - Toby Jones Brian - Joe Armstrong Tony Wednesday - Alec Newman Sonia Hope/ Emma - Sarah Lambie Catherine - Isabella Urbanowicz Anatoly Popov/ Clive Bunter - Matthew Marsh Leah - Jasmine Hyde Margaret - Flora - Montgomery PO Rogers - Paul Kemp Pongo - David Ajao Jeremy Corbyn - Christopher Harper Julian Tyrwhitt - Jonathan Tafler Tony Blair - Nigel Cooke DAC Henderson - Nicholas Murchie DCS Redvers - Arty Froushan Mrs Jinks - Suzan Sylvester Hamid Afzal - Akbar Kurtha Magistrate - Nick Sampson Produced and directed by Clive Brill A Brill production for BBC Radio 4

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