Channel 4 have announced Gabriel Byrne is to head up the cast of a 4 part drama Coup.

Byrne best known for his roles in The Usual Suspects and more recently his In Treatment (for which he won a Golden Globe), will play the pivotal role of reluctant hero, politician Tom Dawkins who risks everything to take on the establishment in this contemporary conspiracy thriller.

Written by Robert Jones (Lennon Naked) and based on the novel “A Very British Coup” by Chris Mullin, the drama centres on: “A massive industrial accident on Teesside leaves several people dead and raises awkward questions about the safety procedures of the US petrochemical company involved. As a man who has a profound belief in transparency and open government, Dawkins (Byrne) will have to tackle vested interests, financial, media, and military, both domestic and international, in his pursuit to uncover the truth and get justice for the families affected by the disaster. Along the way, he will struggle to keep his party onside and the electorate behind him, as he also weathers damaging revelations about his personal life. And as the investigation into the Teesside disaster proceeds, Dawkins becomes aware of establishment’s secret ties to the petrochemical company and comes to realise that there are bigger powers at play behind the scenes.”

Filming begins in February for transmission later this year.