34/32

He attacked her before evading capture

Tale

Delia Balmer, a nurse, met Sweeney, who confessed to killing his ex-girlfriend.

Based on a true story of the crime

Balmer rebuilt his life to confront Sweeney seven years later after he was arrested for another murder.

The bodies were dumped in the canals of Rotterdam (not Amsterdam) and London

Not only is this a compelling, uncomfortable drama, one that is almost unique in that it doesn’t try to exploit misogynistic violence for kicks, but it’s also an indictment of a justice system in which everyone involved is clearly compromised by seeing the victim as a means to an end to their careers.

The viewer is also forced to confront their expectations of a true crime victim

The police want a conviction, and the killer is the target, and the victim is merely the ammunition to enable that to happen; a passive cipher best forgotten later, unless they become useful again.

Delia Balmer/Anna Maxwell Martin does not bow to this convention and the unsophisticated drama is all the better to present a victim in the round

Typically, these are vulnerable and rather passive individuals, lacking in confidence and not infrequently conventionally attractive, as film and television producers attempt to manipulate empathy from their audiences by any means at their disposal.