The Sixth Commandment: Release date, cast, true story, trailer and latest news

Field duped Peter Farquhar (Timothy Spall) and fellow senior citizen Ann Moore-Martin (Anne Reid) into false relationships as part of a scheme to get them to change their wills to include him.

Field was also accused of plotting to murder Moore-Martin, but was found not guilty.

Here's all the information you need on The Sixth Commandment, which has been penned by Sarah Phelps (A Very British Scandal) and directed by Saul Dibb (The Salisbury Poisonings).

The Sixth Commandment release date: When does it air?

The first two episodes began airing on Monday 17th and Tuesday 18th July at 9pm on BBC One.

The final two episodes will air on the same days in the following week.

All episodes are also available to stream right now on BBC iPlayer.

The Sixth Commandment cast: Who stars in the drama?

Timothy Spall and Anne Reid lead the cast of The Sixth Commandment as Peter Farquhar and Ann Moore-Martin respectively, two individuals who became targets of a much younger man.

Spall is one of the UK's best-known acting talents, whose credits include Best Picture winner The King's Speech, acclaimed biopic Mr Turner and the Harry Potter franchise.

Co-star Anne Reid previously shared the screen with Spall in an episode of Channel 4 anthology Electric Dreams, while she's also known for her own celebrated turns in Last Tango in Halifax and Sanditon.

Éanna Hardwicke takes on the dark role of Ben Field – the man found guilty of murdering Farquhar, who also attempted to get Moore-Martin to include him in her will.

Viewers may recognise Hardwicke from his breakout role of Rob Hegarty in BBC Three's Normal People, while more recently he appeared in the second season of Netflix's Fate: The Winx Saga.

Hardiwcke previously admitted that the story "got under his skin".

In an exclusive interview with RadioTimes.com, Hardwicke said of his character: "There was never a day that went by that Peter and Ann weren't on my mind, and I'm glad that was the case. I think it's important that they were close to the making of this, that they're not just at the forefront of the story, but the 'why' in why we're making it.

"So I was thinking of them constantly and sometimes, because you're so close to it and you're filming it over three months, it becomes more and more moving and I felt closer to the story the further we went on."

The supporting cast of The Sixth Commandment includes:

• Conor MacNeill (Industry) as Field's friend Martyn Smith
• Annabel Scholey (The Split, Brittania, Medici) as Moore-Martin's niece Anne-Marie Blake
• Ben Bailey Smith (Andor, The Split, 4 O'Clock Club) as Anne-Marie's husband Simon
• Sheila Hancock (Unforgotten, Delicious, Bedtime) as Farquhar and Moore-Martin's friend and neighbour, Liz Zettl
• Adrian Rawlins (Baptiste, Chernobyl) as Farquhar's brother Ian
• Jonathan Aris (His Dark Materials) as DCI Mark Glover
• Anna Crilly (Lead Balloon) as DS Natalie Golding
• James Harkness (The Victim) as DS Richard Earl

The Sixth Commandment true story: What's it about?

Peter Farquhar and Ann Moore-Martin, who lived on the same road in the village of Maids Moreton, Buckinghamshire, were both seduced by student Ben Field.

Farquhar, who had previously taught at Manchester Grammar School and Stowe school, was a guest English lecturer at Buckingham University when he first met Field in 2011. Over time, Field manipulated Farquhar into believing that the student had fallen in love with him in a bid to persuade the academic to change his will.

Farquhar, who was a deeply religious man, struggled to reconcile his faith with his sexuality and as a result, he suffered from loneliness, which Field seized upon.

While living together, Field began slowly poisoning Farquhar with a potent mix of drugs and alcohol, which he would disguise in food and cups of tea. Without a medical diagnosis to explain what was happening to him, Farquhar believed he was losing his mind, and he also sustained physical injuries from falling over during states of confusion. Field also subjected Farquhar to sustained gaslighting, which included hiding his possessions and erasing his phone contacts.

On 26th October, 2015, Farquhar was found dead in his home by a cleaner. His death was initially ruled as accidental, a result of alcohol intoxication, but it later emerged that he had been suffocated by Field.

While Farquhar was still alive, Field had lined up his next potential victim: Moore-Martin, who lived just three doors down. He also managed to convince the former headmistress that he had fallen in love with her, writing romantic poetry to her as well as messages on her mirrors addressed from God encouraging Moore-Martin to give him money.

She was also subjected to gaslighting, the pressure of which led to Moore-Martin being admitted to hospital. It's not known if he drugged her, but she did allege that Field had given her some white powder.

Moore-Martin had changed her will to benefit Field but when she became wise to his manipulation, she removed his name and cut all contact. Moore-Martin died of natural causes in May 2017.

In August 2019, Field was found guilty of murdering Farquhar and sentenced to a minimum sentence of 36 years. He was found not guilty of the attempted murder of Moore-Martin.

Field had admitted to duping both Farquhar and Moore-Martin into fake relationships to defraud them, but denied any involvement in their deaths.

The Sixth Commandment trailer

You can watch the chilling trailer for The Sixth Commandment right now. Check it out below:

The Sixth Commandment airs on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on.

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