Canoe’s this? ITV drama about Canoe Man John Darwin’s fake death recreate photo that proved he was still alive in Panama
- The Darwins’ deception tricked insurers, police and even their two sons into believing the ex-prison officer had died in a North Sea accident
- The couple started a new life in Panama but the tale unravelled when John came back from the dead in 2007 claiming to have suffered amnesia
- The show explores the extent of his wife Anne’s culpability and how much she was forced to go along with her husband’s plan
- Anne’s inner monologue narrates the story, while Eddie Marsan plays narcissistic John with a glint in his eye
- The Thief, His Wife And The Canoe airs on ITV on Sunday April 17 at 9pm
ITV’s new drama The Thief, His Wife And The Canoe has recreated the famous photo of John Darwin and his wife Anne that proved he was still alive after he faked his own death as part of an insurance scam.
Actors Eddie Marsan, who plays John, and Monica Dolan, who plays Anne, were seen recreating the infamous snap in new stills from the drama ahead of its release later this month.
The pair were dressed in nearly identical clothing to the real John and Anne with Eddie sporting a red shirt and khaki trousers and Monica in a white vest and red trousers.
Art imitating life: ITV’s new drama The Thief, His Wife And The Canoe has recreated the famous photo of John Darwin and his wife Anne that proved he was still alive after he faked his own death as part of an insurance scam
Real life: The pair were dressed in nearly identical clothing to the real John and Anne (pictured in 2006)
The real photo emerged in 2006, four years after Darwin was supposed to have died in a canoeing accident.
Actor Jorge Albuquerque can also be seen in the snap playing Mario Vilar, head of the firm Move To Panama, in an apartment that the couple had just rented.
In other snaps, the couple are seen shaking hands with Mario and Karina Vilar (played by Mariana Norton).
In another still, Eddie is seen looking sombre, likely after his character’s scam has been found out.
Show: The real photo emerged in 2006, four years after Darwin was supposed to have died in a canoeing accident
The creators of the ITV drama have called on their audience to forgive John Darwin’s wife Anne as they unveiled the first official photos of the anticipated series.
The Darwins’ jaw-dropping deception tricked insurers, police and even their two sons into believing the ex-prison officer had died in a North Sea accident.
The couple started a new life in Panama but the tale unravelled when John came back from the dead in 2007 claiming to have suffered amnesia.
They were jailed for the fraud and the extent of the parents’ deception shocked the world.
Scene: In other snaps, the couple are seen shaking hands with Mario Vilar, head of the firm Move To Panama (Jorge Albuquerque) and his wife Karina (Mariana Norton)
The show explores the extent of Anne’s culpability and how much she was forced to go along with her husband’s plan.
Anne’s inner monologue narrates the story, while Eddie Marsan plays narcissistic John with a glint in his eye.
The script, at times funny, gives Anne a sympathetic hearing without shying away from the incredible hurt she inflicted on her loved ones.
The sons, Anthony and Mark, are shown supporting their supposedly widowed mother for years, throwing wreaths into the North Sea in front of Anne’s home where their father was hiding next door.
Drama: The creators of the ITV drama have called on their audience to forgive John Darwin’s wife Anne
When the sons visit her in Seaton Carew, near Hartlepool, John listens to their conversations through the dividing walls.
Writer Chris Lang wanted the audience to debate among themselves just how much to blame Anne.
The final of four episodes shows her efforts to rebuild her family life in a way John – remarried and living in the Philippines – has not.
Her attempts at reconciliation and her obvious feelings of guilt – in counterpoint to John – give the story a fresh twist.
Lang said: ‘Good people do bad things. Let’s try and understand, let’s try and forgive because if her sons could forgive her, I would hope that we can as well.’
Marsan said even the crew were divided by what they made of Anne.
Sad: The sons, Anthony and Mark, are shown supporting their supposedly widowed mother for years, throwing wreaths into the North Sea in front of Anne’s home where their father was hiding next door
During her trial at Teesside Crown Court, she used the unusual defence of marital coercion, claiming her domineering husband had forced her to go through with the massive deception.
It failed, but some observers have said that in a post-Me Too world, her explanation would get a more sympathetic hearing.
Marsan said: ‘There’s a generational interpretation of the story. The older female members of the crew felt that she should have taken more responsibility and the younger ones felt that she was a victim.’
Dolan hoped the audience will ‘yo-yo’ in their feelings towards Anne, saying: ‘We can feel guilty but still do things.’
Series: None of the Darwin family were involved in making the drama, though the script was based on court documents, police interviews, TV appearances and newspaper stories (Mark Sanley as Mark Darwin)
She believed the theme of forgiveness could divide people watching the show, leaving it as a talking point for debate.
None of the Darwin family were involved in making the drama, though the script was based on court documents, police interviews, TV appearances and newspaper stories.
But one of the Darwin sons was thought to have turned up to watch the first day of filming on location in Hartlepool, Lang said, and kept a low profile in a baseball cap and wearing a Covid mask.
Lang felt the couple’s direct input into the script would not have helped.
He said: ‘How much (do) any of us understand why we behave the way we behave? It’s complicated.’
Shocking: The Darwins’ jaw-dropping deception tricked insurers, police and even their two sons into believing the ex-prison officer had died in a North Sea accident
Eddie and Monica also revealed that they maintained their North East accents throughout the filming of the show.
Eddie told the Mirror: ‘We kept our accents and we just stayed like that so we sounded like a family.’
He continued: ‘You don’t want to think about it whilst you are doing a scene because there are so many other things to think about.’
Monica added: ‘You came out of your cabin and said “I’m gonna speak like that” and I said “I’m talking like that already”.’
The Thief, His Wife And The Canoe airs on ITV on Sunday April 17 at 9pm.
Release: The Thief, His Wife And The Canoe airs on ITV on Sunday April 17 at 9pm
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