Trevor Eve produced and starred as Dominic King, a hostage negotiator shuttling between London boardrooms and global flashpoints, in ITV's two-series thriller that aired from January 2011 to March 2012. Each three-part arc, written by Patrick Harbinson and directed by Andy Wilson and David Drury, unfolds over 47-minute episodes where the ransom clock ticks louder than diplomatic protocol. Helen Baxendale plays Angela Beddoes, King's Home Office liaison, while Amara Karan's junior analyst Carrie Heath feeds him satellite intel and Natasha Little's Sophie King waits at home to count the emotional cost.
The first case drops King into the Caucasus after oil-company geologist Naomi Shaffer is snatched; the second, filmed eighteen months later, sends him to Syria to retrieve a British diplomat's daughter and tests his marriage further. Critics praised the show's refusal to glamourise the job: Sam Wollaston in The Guardian noted Eve's knack for “the flawed and difficult professional… everything grabs you by the goolies,” while Stuart Jeffries judged series two “especially impressive” for tightening the moral screws. ITV cancelled the property on 28 May 2012, leaving six episodes and one unresolved marriage on the table.
Production Details
ITV1 / 2 Seasons / 6 Episodes / 2011 - Present
Writer(s): Patrick Harbinson
Producer(s): Trevor Hopkins
Main Cast
Trevor Eve as Dominic King
Helen Baxendale as Angela Beddoes
Amara Karan as Carrie Heath
Natasha Little as Sophie King
John Hannah as Alexander Willard
Emma Fielding as Naomi Shaffer
Laura Greenwood as Tess King
