# Time (2021 TV series)

Time is a British anthology drama television series created and co-written by Jimmy McGovern, with Helen Black. Each series presents a new scenario following the lives of inmates and staff in His Majesty's Prison Service. Its first series, starring Sean Bean and Stephen Graham, was first broadcast on BBC One on 6 June 2021 and concluded on 20 June 2021. Its second series, starring Jodie Whittaker, Tamara Lawrance and Bella Ramsey, was broadcast, also on BBC One, on 29 October 2023 and concluded on 12 November 2023.
The first series received largely positive reviews, with many praising the performances of the two leads. At the 2022 BAFTA TV Awards, the first series won Best Mini-Series and Bean won Best Actor, whilst Graham was nominated for Best Supporting Actor. The second series received similarly positive reviews.

## Plot
### Series 1

Mark Cobden is newly imprisoned, consumed by guilt for his crime, and way out of his depth in the volatile world of prison life. He meets Eric McNally, an excellent prison officer doing his best to protect those in his charge. However, when one of the most dangerous inmates identifies his weakness, Eric faces an impossible choice between his principles and his family.

### Series 2

Orla, a single mother serving her first sentence, Abi, who is incarcerated for life, and Kelsey, a pregnant heroin addict and repeat offender, begin their sentences at a women's prison.

## Cast
### Series 1
#### Main

* Sean Bean as Mark Cobden
* Stephen Graham as Eric McNally

#### Supporting

* James Nelson-Joyce as Johnno
* Siobhan Finneran as Marie-Louise O'Dell
* Nabil Elouahabi as Patterson
* Natalie Gavin as Jardine
* Hannah Walters as Sonia McNally
* Nadine Marshall as Alicia Cobden
* Jack McMullen as Daniel
* Sue Johnston as June Cobden
* David Calder as John Cobden
* Jonathan Harden as Brendan Murphy
* Kadiff Kirwan as Pete
* Aneurin Barnard as Bernard
* Cal MacAninch as Galbraith
* Brian McCardie as Jackson Jones
* Michael Socha as Kenny Meadows
* Jason Done as PO Banks

### Series 2
#### Main

* Jodie Whittaker as Orla O'Riordan
* Tamara Lawrance as Abi Cochrane
* Bella Ramsey as Kelsey Morgan
* Siobhan Finneran as Marie-Louise O'Dell

#### Supporting

* Julie Graham as Lou Harkness
* Karen Henthorn as Elizabeth O'Riordan
* Faye McKeever as Tanya Helsby
* Sophie Willan as Maeve Riley
* Matilda Firth as Nancy O'Riordan
* Danielle Henry as Tess Palmer
* Maimuna Memon as Tahani
* Angela Wynter as May Sinclair

## Production

Most of the filming of the first series took place in the Liverpool City Region, with the prison wings and cells filmed at HM Prison Shrewsbury, a former prison which was decommissioned in 2013. The cameras moved to Liverpool to create the rest of the prison using courtrooms, police stations and educational buildings, as well as exterior locations such as the Silver Jubilee Bridge in Widnes and Southport Pier.

## Episodes

| Series | Episodes | Episodes | Originally released | Originally released | Originally released | Average viewership (in millions) |
| Series | Episodes | Episodes | First released | Last released | Network | Average viewership (in millions) |
| 1 | 3 | 3 | 6 June 2021 (2021-06-06) | 20 June 2021 (2021-06-20) | BBC One | 6.09 |
| 2 | 3 | 3 | 29 October 2023 (2023-10-29) | 12 November 2023 (2023-11-12) | BBC One | 3.89 |

### Series 1 (2021)

| No. | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | UK viewers (millions) |
| 1 | Lewis Arnold | Jimmy McGovern | 6 June 2021 (2021-06-06) | 8.04 |
| Mark Cobden is sent to prison and has to learn quickly how to survive. When an inmate identifies prison officer Eric McNally's weakness, he faces an impossible choice. |||||
| 2 | Lewis Arnold | Jimmy McGovern | 13 June 2021 (2021-06-13) | 5.18 |
| Mark is being bullied by fellow inmate Johnno and must decide whether to tell the prison officers or risk the attacks becoming more violent. After Eric's son is attacked, he must decide if he will comply with the demands of a prisoner and risk his job. |||||
| 3 | Lewis Arnold | Jimmy McGovern | 20 June 2021 (2021-06-20) | 5.06 |
| After Mark suffers a personal loss he is given the chance to leave prison for a day while Eric is forced to take greater risks to protect his son from further harm. |||||

### Series 2 (2023)

| No. | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | UK viewers (millions) |
| 1 | Andrea Harkin | Jimmy McGovern & Helen Black | 29 October 2023 (2023-10-29) | 4.14 |
| Single mother Orla, heroin addict Kelsey and lifer Abi are sent to prison. While Orla loses control of her old life, Kelsey makes a personal discovery and Abi attempts to hide a terrible secret. |||||
| 2 | Andrea Harkin | Jimmy McGovern & Helen Black | 5 November 2023 (2023-11-05) | 3.71 |
| Several months after she's released, Orla is sent back to prison and her children remain care. While Abi confides in Marie-Louise about her past, Kelsey thinks about the future of her unborn child. |||||
| 3 | Andrea Harkin | Jimmy McGovern & Helen Black | 12 November 2023 (2023-11-12) | 3.78 |
| Orla faces consequences while trying to reconnect with her children, Abi attempts to overcome her unresolved grief and Kelsey hopes to move on from her old life and plan a future with her child. |||||

## Reception

Writing in The Guardian, Lucy Mangan wrote: "The performances of Bean and Graham are, even though we have come to expect brilliance from them both, astonishing. So, too, are those from everyone in smaller roles, none of which is underwritten or sketchy, and who thicken the drama into something more profoundly moving and enraging at every turn". Billie Schwab Dunn, writing for Metro, praised the show, which was "elevated by the central performances – particularly Bean, who gently grounds us and provides a beam of light in all that darkness".

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Nominee | Result |
| 2022 | BAFTA TV Awards | Best Mini-Series | Time | Won |
| Best Actor | Sean Bean | Won |
| Best Supporting Actor | Stephen Graham | Nominated |
| Director:Fiction | Lewis Arnold | Nominated |
| Photography & Lighting:Fiction | Mark Wolf | Nominated |
| Scripted Casting | Beverley Keogh, David Marin | Nominated |
| 2024 | BAFTA TV Awards | Editing:Fiction | Alex Mackie | Nominated |
| 2024 | BAFTA TV Awards | Scripted Casting | Amy Hubbard | Nominated |
| 2024 | RTS Awards | Leading Actor:Female | Tamara Lawrance | Won |
| 2024 | RTS Awards | Leading Actor:Female | Jodie Whittaker | Nominated |
| 2024 | RTS Awards | Supporting Actor:Female | Bella Ramsey | Won |