No Return’s Sheridan Smith says she’s “never read anything” like ITV drama
The upcoming series tells the story of an "unassuming family" on the holiday from hell.
2022 is shaping up to be a great year for Sheridan Smith - she's already impressed in heartbreaking true-crime drama Four Lives and also has key roles in Channel 5 series The Teacher and upcoming sequel film The Railway Children Return.
But next up for the former Gavin and Stacey star is No Return, an ITV drama from Brassic writer Danny Brocklehurst that tells the story of an "unassuming family" on the holiday from hell after their trip to Turkey goes horribly awry.
And ahead of the launch of the new show, Smith has revealed that the scripts for No Return are unlike anything she's read before.
“I read it and was gripped," she told RadioTimes.com and other press. "I had to know what happened. And it instantly gave me that jelly belly feeling of, ‘What would you do in that situation?’
"And like [writer] Danny [Brocklehurst] said, it’s ordinary people in an extraordinary situation. And Kathy is an amazing lead role. I was just instantly like, ‘Wow’, and was very honoured to be asked. She’s a great character. Fiercely loyal; fiercely protective, and someone I could relate to."
She went on to describe it as “high angst”, adding: “I instantly thought this has never been done. I’ve never read anything like this before. And from the minute [Kathy’s 16 year old son] Noah was arrested, that’s it. Four hours of intense, high drama.”
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Smith stars alongside Sian Brooke and Michael Jibson in the drama, which will air on ITV in the near future, although an exact release date has not yet been set.
An official synopsis for the series reads: "Their holiday is a chance to unwind and for Kathy and Martin to spend some much-needed time together. Until unsuspecting Noah accepts a seemingly innocent invitation to a beach party from a fellow holidaymaker, Rosie (Jodie Campbell), who is staying at the same hotel.
"Suddenly Kathy and Martin’s world spectacularly falls apart when they are left desperately fighting for their son’s freedom against extremely challenging circumstances.
"An arrest, an expensive and alien legal system, looming media coverage and resistance from fellow holidaymakers to come to their aid leaves the distraught parents fighting for Noah’s freedom when ironically he should be at school sitting his latest exams."
Additional reporting by Abby Robinson
No Return is coming soon to ITV. Check out our Drama hub for more news, interviews and features or find something to watch with our TV Guide.
Authors
Patrick Cremona is the Senior Film Writer at Radio Times, and looks after all the latest film releases both in cinemas and on streaming. He has been with the website since October 2019, and in that time has interviewed a host of big name stars and reviewed a diverse range of movies.
