BBC and Netflix commissioned "Lockerbie" factual drama

The BBC and Netflix have commissioned World Productions to make Lockerbie, a factual drama based on the real events surrounding the 1988 Lockerbie bombing and the joint Scots-US investigation which sought to bring the perpetrators to justice. “We feel honored to be given the responsibility of bringing such an extraordinary and epoch defining story to the screen, via Jonathan and Gillian’s brilliant scripts," Simon Heath, CEO, World Productions, said.

"Lockerbie" will air on BBC One and iPlayer followed by Netflix in the UK and globally. "Lockerbie" is produced by World Productions, in association with MGM Television and Night Train Media. Filming will take place later this year in Scotland, Malta and Toronto. The project was initially developed by MGM Television and Night Train Media. 

The title is written by Jonathan Lee and Gillian Roger Park, with Julia Stannard serving as Producer and Michael Keillor as Directors. The lead writer is acclaimed novelist and screenwriter Jonathan Lee, with two episodes written by Scottish screenwriter Gillian Roger Park. The Executive Producers on behalf of World Productions are Simon Heath and Roderick Seligman, Steve Stark and Stacey Levin for Toluca Pictures, Adam Morane-Griffiths, and Sara Curran, Herbert L. Kloiber, Michael Keillor; and Gaynor Holmes for the BBC. Joe Hill will serve as Co-Executive Producer, and Mona Qureshi will oversee for Netflix. 

"Lockerbie" details the events of 21 December 1988, when flight Pan Am 103 was en route from Heathrow to JFK when a bomb exploded in its hold over the small Scottish town of Lockerbie, killing 270 people, including 43 British citizens and 190 Americans. It was the worst ever terror attack on British soil and the first major one on US citizens. The project will focus on the investigation into the crash on both sides of the Atlantic and the devastating effect it had on the small town and the families who lost loved ones. From the initial exhaustive search for evidence on the ground in Scotland, via the US and Malta to the trial at Camp Zeist in 2000, the drama takes us right up to the most recent indictment at the end of 2022.

“The investigation into the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, which has been expertly researched by Adam Morane-Griffiths who provided the basis for the scripts, is an important story to tell," Head of Scripted at MGM Television, Lindsay Sloane, said. "He painstakingly researched the incident through extensive interviews with Scottish police officers and representatives from United States investigative agencies, many of whom have never previously shared their stories. We are proud to have shepherded this project and are thrilled that Netflix and the BBC have greenlit the series.”

The project was initiated by filmmaker Adam Morane-Griffiths whose research includes extensive interviews with Scottish police officers and representatives from United States investigative agencies, many of whom have never previously shared their stories. “The tragic events which took place in Scotland that night continue to have an impact on our country and in particular the Lockerbie community. It was an atrocity which shocked the world and changed lives forever," Gaynor Holmes, Commissioning Editor, BBC, said. "We have the right team in place to tell this extraordinary story with the greatest of care, making sure the series reflects the devastating events of that night, the complex and far-reaching investigation that followed and the effect it had on all those who lost loved ones.”