A psychological thriller that explored ‘the dark side of medicine’ is now available to binge in full on Channel 4.
First airing on the BBC in 2017, the anthology drama Trust Me ran for two seasons and explored a ‘different, often unfamiliar world’ and how ‘when that trust breaks down, no-one is safe’.
The first season – which ran across four episodes – starred Jodie Whittaker as Cath Hardacre, a ward sister who after losing her job due to whistleblowing, assumes the identity of her best friend, an A&E doctor.
She then makes a new live in Edinburgh with her daughter and takes up a job in a struggling emergency department.
The series received rave reviews from both critics and viewers upon its release.
‘Trust Me is a medical drama with a noir thriller’s heartbeat,’ Capital Times wrote in its review.
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‘It’s a tense drama and very well written by screenwriter/doctor Dan Sefton, but it only works so well because Whittaker is so good,’ Radio Times shared.
‘A thriller that taps into deep rooted fears of inept surgeons and medical horror stories,’ The List added.
Meanwhile Metro’s review read: ‘Whittaker holds the operation together with a convincing portrait of a likeable, down-to-earth soul who finds her life spiralling out of control…’
Posting on IMDB, user dbro-00297 shared: ‘The suspense, twists and turns and sublime acting of the lead are what make this mini-series. Overall, intriguing, tense and kept me coming back for more. Very well done.’
At the time the show hit screens, Jodie spoke to the BBC about what drew her to the role: ‘I was sent the script for the first episode, and it fascinated me because it went in a completely different direction to how I thought it was going to. Particularly at the beginning, when she’s suspended for whistleblowing and loses her job.
‘It could have gone so many ways and the fact that she takes on this new identity isn’t the way that I thought it would go.
‘I love the fact that her choices are quite morally dubious – they certainly aren’t black and white. She makes decisions that are quite challenging to justify, even though we know her reasons. I’ve never acted in anything medical before, so it felt completely new.’
Two years after the first season, the show returned – this time starring Alfred Enoch as Syrian tour veteran Corporal James McCain.
It was teased of the storyline: ‘As he recovers from spinal injuries and psychological trauma in the neurological unit of South Lothian Hospital in Glasgow, he faces a potential new enemy as patients unexpectedly die around him.’
Trust Me was written by Dan Sefton, a real-life A&E doctor, who had also worked on other TV shows including Good Karma Hospital and Mr Selfridge.
He previously spoke about the basis for the storyline: ‘The series is supposed to be scary and tense and I think the idea of these things happening “close to home” is a common link for the best thrillers. It could happen to you and that’s what’s scary.
‘We’ve tried to draw on real-life accounts and motivations in coming up with the plot, although it’s obviously a fiction.
‘But the idea of health workers deliberately harming patients is very real, and of course terrifying when you are in such a vulnerable position.’
Sefton also revealed a bogus doctor was once uncovered in a hospital he was working at.
‘He only got found out through some administrative thing, because he was actually pretty competent,’ he said.
‘Often these doctors are very professional and get along very well with their colleagues. The only flaw is that they aren’t real doctors.’
In 2019 the BBC confirmed Trust Me had been cancelled.
Trust Me is streaming on Channel 4.
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