Mr Bates vs The Post Office viewers left 'sick to their stomach' minutes into ITV drama

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https://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/mr- ... e-31785531

Viewers were left fuming just minutes into the start of new ITV drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office as the series documents the true story of one of Britain's greatest miscarriages of justice

Mr Bates vs The Post Office viewers complained they were "sick to their stomach" following its first episode.

The ITV drama follows the true story of mysterious financial losses appearing in village post office tills. The four-part series documents a new computer system called Horizon being installed across the country. It saw numerous postmasters wrongly prosecuted between 1999 and 2015 for theft, false accounting, and/or fraud.

Mr Bates vs The Post Office, which aired on New Year's Day, follows the story of Alan Bates, who along with his partner Suzanne Sercombe in 1998, used life savings to buy a Post Office branch in Llandudno, North Wales. Alan, played by Toby Jones, refused to accept liability like many other postmasters and postmistresses, and the Post Office terminated their contract with three months’ notice.

The series follows innocent postmasters who were wrongly accused of theft, fraud, and false accounting ( Image: ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
It meant the couple lost the £65,000 they had invested. Alan went on to set up a campaign for Post Office whistleblowers and eventually, he and five others took the Post Office to the High Court in a Group Litigation Order covering 555 claimants. Judge Mr Justice Fraser ruled computer errors were to blame.

Just minutes into the first episode, viewers took to social media to share their reaction with many left angry. One said: "I’ve only watched 5 mins of #PostOfficeScandal drama and I’m shouting at TV. Not sure I can watch it!!!" Another added: "Less than 20 mins in and not sure I can watch this. Sick to my stomach #PostOfficeScandal."

Someone else wrote: "Sat with a glass of red wine watching the #PostOfficeScandal. 15 mins in, and my blood is already boiling from anger." A fourth commented: "10 minutes in and I’m fuming already! A crime against good and honest people! #PostOfficeScandal." Another agreed: "Only 10 mins in and I’m fuming already #PostOfficeScandal," as a viewer added: "Already seething #PostOfficeScandal."

While someone else tweeted: "Just started watching Mr Bates vs The Post office and already infuriated by how these innocent people were treated by the Post Office. #MrBates."

In December 2019, the Post Office agreed to pay £58million in compensation for false prosecutions based on faulty evidence from the Horizon system. Judge Fraser described the Post Office's denials about Horizon issues as "institutional obstinacy". However, the group were only left with £12m – about £20,000 each – after legal costs.

Alan previously opened up on the injustice to the Mirror. He said: "There were a whole host of very, very sad stories. The Post Office made people think they were going crazy. They didn’t just inflict financial ruin, destroying livelihoods, it also destroyed families. But there was one positive. We were all together and we knew the truth. There was also a determination that we were going to expose the lies."

Alan added: "My understanding is that only a handful in the scheme has received their full and final financial redress. This has been a total cover-up; there has been no end to the lies. I just hope that the real guilty are actually pursued and prosecuted. I hope that is what Sir Wyn recommends."