Intriguing-looking new thriller The Deceived is billed as a "sinister narrative of lust, manipulation and betrayal" – and it looks pretty promising.

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Penned by Derry Girls writer Lisa McGee and her co-writer/husband Tobias Beer, it stars Emmett J Scanlan, Emily Reid, Catherine Walker and Paul Mescal.

When is The Deceived on TV?

The Deceived airs from Monday August 3rd at 9pm on Channel 5. The four-part drama is stripped across the week, Monday - Thursday.

The drama will also air on Virgin Media Television in Ireland.

What is The Deceived about?

As the synopsis puts it, "A compelling, sinister narrative of lust, manipulation and betrayal, the central character in The Deceived is English student Ophelia (Emily Reid), who falls in love with her married lecturer, seeing in him all the answers to her needs. When their affair results in a shocking and tragic death, Ophelia finds herself trapped in a world where she can no longer trust her own mind."

The drama is produced by New Pictures, the production company behind The Missing and Catherine The Great. It was written by Lisa McGee and writing partner (and husband) Tobias Beer, and directed by Chloe Thomas. The Deceived was filmed across Ireland, and the Channel 5 drama had some pretty stunning filming locations.

The Deceived: Emily Reid as Ophelia and Emmett Scanlan as Michael
Channel 5

Who is in the cast of The Deceived?

The Deceived cast includes Emmett J Scanlan (of Hollyoaks, Peaky Blinders, The Fall), who plays the "timelessly attractive and charismatic" English lecturer Dr Michael Callaghan.

His wife Roisin (a successful, award-winning fiction writer) is played by Catherine Walker, who's previously been in Versailles (as Maintenon) and Shetland (as Alice Brooks) and appears in Netflix's Cursed.

Normal People star Paul Mescal plays a character called Sean, while Emily Reid (as seen in The Trouble with Maggie Cole, and Belgravia) will play Ophelia.

Eleanor Methven (Little Women) plays Roisin's devoted but sometimes overbearing mother Mary Mulvery; Ian McElhinney (Game of Thrones, Derry Girls) plays Michael's father Hugh, who is starting to experience dementia; Shelley Conn (Liar) plays Roisin's "intelligent and loyal" best friend Ruth, while Dempsey Bovell (Patrick Melrose) plays Matthew – Michael's confidante and his biggest admirer.

Writers Lisa McGee and Tobias Beer say: "We always had a 'dream cast' in mind when we began working on the show, but never imagined we would end up with them actually on board. With the brilliant Chloe Thomas directing, we are thrilled to have the story in such gifted hands."

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Authors

Eleanor Bley GriffithsDrama Editor, RadioTimes.com
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