ITV set for Life of Crime

UK broadcaster ITV has greenlit a crime miniseries starring Hayley Atwell (The Sweeney, Captain America) from indies Ecosse Films and Octagon Films.

Life of Crime (3×60′) is described by the channel as “gritty and urban” and has Atwell playing a rookie cop obsessed with tracking down the killer of a 15-year-old girl.

The show is set against real-life events in London’s history spanning 30 years, such as the Brixton riots in 1985, and is written by Declan Croghan (Waking the Dead, Ripper Street, Taggart).

Shooting begins in Brixton and Dublin for six weeks from next month. London-based Ecosse and Dublin-based Octagon are coproducing the show.

“We previously worked with Hayley on our film Brideshead Revisited and I know she will embrace the extraordinary challenge of playing a woman over 30 years of her career,” said Ecosse MD and the show’s exec producer Douglas Rae.

Ecosse and Octagon have previously coproduced Irish Film and Television Award-winning crime drama Love/Hate for RTÉ, now in its third season.