Scots helm London Fire drama

A TELEVISION drama depicting one of the nation’s greatest disasters will be filmed later this year, ITV said yesterday.

The network confirmed commission of the period drama, The Great Fire of London, which will follow the lives and loves of historical and fictional characters when fire engulfed the city in 1666.

Scottish producer Douglas Rae, along with Ludy Bedford of Ecosse Films, will executive produce the drama, which will go into production in London later this year. It is written by Tom Bradby, political editor for ITV News, who is also a successful novelist.

The drama will tell the stories of a number of people, including baker Thomas Farriner and his family, diarist Samuel Pepys and King Charles II, as their lives interweave across the city during the blaze that transformed London.

Events will unfold over four days as the fire consumes homes and lives, destroying the greatest city of the 17th century. Around 70,000 houses were destroyed in the fire but the death toll is unknown. Just six deaths were verified but many more are believed to have perished.

The fire destroyed much of medieval London, paving the way for the dawn of a new era, in which the modern city rose from the ashes.