New drama 'The Hunt for Raoul Moat' tells the human tragedies behind the true story of Britain’s biggest ever manhunt to apprehend a violent killer

On July 3, 2010, a disturbing story began to unfold which, for the next week, would grab the nation’s attention and refuse to let go.

Nobody who witnessed the media coverage of Raoul Moat’s crimes and the massive manhunt carried out after he went on the run can surely ever forget it. Certainly Kevin Sampson, whose previous work includes the screenplay for the acclaimed drama Anne, about campaigner Anne Williams’s fight for justice following her son Kevin’s death in the Hillsborough disaster, couldn’t get it out of his head.

“The hunt for Raoul Moat gripped me from the start, as it was the first such case to be covered ‘live’ by the new 24-hour news channels in the UK,” explains Sampson. “Even then, it interested me that Moat was being portrayed by some as a ‘legend’ in spite of the brutality of his crimes.

“Violence against women remains rife and is all too often accompanied by a victim-blaming agenda. I hope this drama will go some way to condemning this narrative.”

Just two days after being released from Durham prison following an 18-week sentence for assault, 37-year-old panel beater, bouncer and tree surgeon Moat headed to a house in Birtley, Tyne & Wear, to see his ex-girlfriend Samantha Stobbart, the mother of his youngest child. However, unhappy at seeing her with her new partner, Chris Brown, he began firing the shotgun he’d taken with him.

Brown was killed, while Stobbart was injured and subsequently needed surgery. Moat then went on the run, randomly targeting members of the police, having developed a hatred of the officers he held responsible for the collapse of his business. He even sent letters and made phone calls in which he claimed he had no intention of hurting the public, but would continue to fire on police officers until he himself was dead.

PC David Rathband became Moat’s next victim. He was shot and blinded while sitting in a police vehicle near East Denton; two years later, Rathband took his own life.

The drama, which is being broadcast on consecutive nights, follows the efforts of the police, led by senior officer Neil Anderson (Lee Ingleby) to find Moat, who, for inexplicable reasons, was viewed by some as an anti-hero, a victim fighting back against the authorities. That was just another twist in an extraordinary story that would end in further tragedy.

“The Hunt for Raoul Moat shines a light on the human tragedies behind the true story of Britain’s biggest ever manhunt to apprehend a violent killer,” adds Polly Hill, ITV’s head of drama.

“Following on from his success with Anne earlier this year, Kevin Sampson’s scripts are once again insightful and compelling. Equally, the production team is brilliant and they’ve set the bar extremely high for true crime drama.”

Matt Stokoe plays Moat, with Sally Messham as Stobbart. Sonya Cassidy, Vineeta Rishi and Josef Davis also appear in what promises to be an important and compelling series, one that sees the small screen at its best – as a tool for not just entertainment, but education too.