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Maxine is based on Maxine Carr, girlfriend of Ian Huntley, the murderer of schoolgirls Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells.
First off, this drama states it’s based on real events, and that some names have been changed, and some characters and scenes have been created for dramatic purposes. I know the trailer showed conversations between the gruesome pair, so how would anyone know what they discussed behind closed doors?
Also, it does seem rather off that a TV channel is effectively profiting from a case where two girls have been murdered, but perhaps the same can also be said of any drama based on real life events.
However, now to watch it, setting the scene with Ian Huntley (Scott Reid – White House Farm) going to start a new job as a school caretaker on November 9th 2001, changing his name to Ian Dixon, having claimed it’s his mother’s maiden name. And I’m posting this after the episode has aired, so it’s safe to confirm the words on the toilet cubicle wall which Maxine Carr (Jemma Carlton) spots soon after, stating “Ian Huntley is a rapist”.
Fast-forward to Sunday August 4th 2002, which it states is Day One, as the two girls have gone missing, and in the first episode, we see the initial part of the investigation over the first two days. So far, this does feel more about him – because he was the killer, although she becomes unwittingly complicit in the cover-up.
That said, in watching the opener – and if you didn’t know the outcome of the case (which I won’t reveal ahead of time, obviously), I’m wondering whether or not Maxine did have involvement in the murders, since from the way the drama is carried out, it’s not clear.
However, between press colleagues Jane (Natalie Britton) and Brian Farmer (Steve Edge), she blurts out the story made national news very quickly because it’s a case where there’s no other big news going on, and because two young girls have been murdered, her bosses are saying (prayer hands stance), “Thankyou!” – and quite frankly, I remember that’s how it felt at the time. The gutter press are often ghouls at the best of times when there’s a murder to report, but when it’s not one child but two, and with angelic faces, they really went to town on the coverage because it had newspapers flying off the shelves.
After one episode, this is certainly intriguing and I’ll watch until the end, but while Jemma Carlton does look a lot like the titular lead, Scott Reid doesn’t look much like Ian Huntley. Couldn’t they find anyone else?
UPDATE Episode 2:
UPDATE Episode 3:
Thanks to our friends at Channel 5 for the screener of the first episode in advance of it airing.
Maxine begins tonight on Channel 5 at 9pm, and is on nightly until Thursday. It can be pre-ordered on Blu-ray and DVD, ahead of its release TBA.
If you miss it, you can watch the each episode on My5 after transmission.
Check out the trailer below:
Director: Laura Way
Producers: Emma Foley, Tamryn Reinecke
Writer: Simon Tyrell
Music: Eimear Noone
Cast:
Maxine Carr: Jemma Carlton
Ian Huntley: Scott Reid
Brian Farmer: Steve Edge
Andy Hebb: Barry John Kinsella
Milly Farmer: Molly McCann
Howard Gilbert: Shane Nestor
Shirley: Kate O’Toole
Chris Stevenson: David Ryan
Jane: Natalie Britton
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.