BBC Two has ordered a one-off 90 minute factual drama about the trial of Adolf Eichmann, which has Martin Freeman (Sherlock) and Anthony LaPaglia (Without A Trace) attached to star.
The Eichmann Show tells the true behind-the-scenes story of how the trial of Adolf Eichmann was televised in 37 countries over the course of four months. Hailed at the time as the ‘trial of the century, it was the world’s first global TV event and was the first time the horror of the death camps had been heard live from the mouths of its victims. The film will incorporate recreations and actual archive footage from the trial.
Martin Freeman stars as Milton Fruchtman, a ground breaking producer; while Anthony LaPaglia plays Leo Hurwitz, a TV director who had been black listed under McCarthy. Rounding out the cast is Rebecca Front as Mrs Landau, the proprietor of the small hotel Leo Hurwitz stayed at, Andy Nyman as David Landor, the Head of the Israeli Government Press Office; and Nicholas Woodeson as Yaakov, a survivor of the camps who served as one of the four cameramen on the trial.
The one-off drama was commissioned by BBC Head of Commissioning for History & Business Martin Davidson and will form part of the BBC’s output to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau. It was written by Simon Block and is being produced by Feelgood Fiction. Laurence Bowen and Ken Marshall are set as the producers, while Murdered By My Boyfriend helmer Paul Andrew Williams is attached to direct.
“The extraordinary story of how the Eichmann trial came to be televised and shown around the world has never been told”, said Laurence Bowen. “By allowing Holocaust survivors to share their stories with a huge viewing audience, it unblocked a whole strata of shame and denial. It literally changed history”.
