John Simm to lead the cast of ‘Prey’ in his first ITV drama.

ITV has commissioned a three-part drama, ‘Prey’, starring John Simm, and written and created by television newcomer Chris Lunt.

John Simm (Exile, TheVillage) will play Detective Constable Marcus Farrow, a well-liked copper, with a wife and two kids.  Although he and his wife Abi are going through a rough patch, they’re trying not to let it disrupt life for their sons, Max and Finn.
 
But when Farrow is found at the scene of a brutal crime, with all the evidence pointing towards him, his world collapses.
 
Arrested and charged, it seems Farrow’s fate is sealed. So when he gets the opportunity to escape, he seizes it with both hands.
 
Now Farrow is on the run in Manchester.  A criminal on the streets he used to police.
 
Detective Sergeant Susan Reinhardt is tasked with catching him, and so begins a high-stakes game of cat and mouse across the city.
 
But Farrow is not just trying to evade capture. He is determined to find the truth – to get to the bottom of the crime of which he stands accused, and clear his name in the eyes of his family.
 
As a wanted killer, Farrow has few allies. The only people he can turn to are his best friend DC Sean Devlin, and colleague DI Andrea Macgregor, but with Reinhardt breathing down his neck, Farrow knows he must be careful.
 
With the clock ticking, will Farrow evade capture long enough to find the truth, or will Reinhardt get to him first?
 
One thing is certain – for the sake of his family, Farrow is prepared to do things he never thought possible. And he won’t rest until he knows the truth.
 
The drama is directed by Nick Murphy (Occupation, Blood) and produced by Tom Sherry (Scott & Bailey, New Tricks) with Red Production company founder Nicola Shindler (Unforgiven, Last Tango in Halifax) as Executive Producer.

“We’re attempting something different with Prey,” said Nicola. “It’s very fast-paced and to enhance the high octane qualities of Chris’s brilliant scripts we’ll be shooting essentially from the back of a transit van.  It’s almost a guerrilla style technique, which will make Prey feel accessible and edgy with the ‘real’ factor.  We’re confident re-defining how we shoot will heighten tension and create an added layer of intrigue to the drama.”

“Chris Lunt is a very talented writer and we are delighted to have his debut serial on ITV,” said ITV’s Director of Drama, Steve November. “He has created extremely vivid characters in Prey and we are very excited to have John Simm in the lead role.”   

Filming of ‘Prey’ will begin in October in Manchester.