Today, Binge releases a new True Crime drama in the form of White House Farm, but is it worth giving up your public holiday for?
When we begin White House, we are transported to Chelmsford in 1985 where police have just received a phone call from a distress local farmer, Jeremy Bamber (Freddie Fox), who informs them that he had a call from his father, Nevill (Nicholas Farrell), saying his sister Sheila (Cressida Bonas) was going berserk with a gun. He subsequently made his way to the farm.
It is here where we a flashback to four days earlier and we see Sheila make her way to her ex-husband Colin’s (Mark Stanley) housewarming party. We also meet June (Amanda Burton) and Nevill before tragedy strikes.
When police enter the farmhouse the morning after Jeremy called them, its revealed that his whole family, including Sheila’s twin six-year-old sons, Daniel and Nicholas, ((Nate and Jude Barrowcliffe) are dead. DCI Thomas ‘Taff’ Jones (Stephen Graham) is leading the case, and given Sheila’s mental health struggles, it looks to be an open and shut case, but DS Stan Jones (Mark Addy) has other theories.
Penned by Kris Mrksa (The Slap), the opening episode lays the groundwork for a true crime series that relishes in the scenery of an idyllic town that is home to a truly disturbing murder, which only gets darker as the series progresses. Mrksa’s script is a slow burn but paced perfectly to the point where you won’t even notice time has passed.
Throughout the series, watched in its entirety for this review, everyone gives compelling performances, but it’s Fox who gives a career-defining perfomance alongside Graham and Addy.
As with any real-life case drama, things have been dramatised, but White House Farm is a deeply compelling drama and worthy binge.
4 Stars
White House Farm begins today on Binge.
