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Time on BBC One: Other must-see dramas from Jimmy McGovern from Brookside to Cracker

He's known for his hard-hitting gritty series

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New BBC One drama Time is as gritty as they come – but what other must-see Jimmy McGovern dramas are there?

The Liverpool-born writer, 71, is best known for his hard-hitting dramas that pack an emotional punch…

And Time is certainly no exception.

Here’s a rundown of the top Jimmy McGovern dramas.

Time second series
Sean Bean stars as an inmate in Jimmy McGovern drama Time (Credit: BBC One)

Read more: Sean Bean is back on TV in Time – here are 10 facts you will not know about him

Jimmy McGovern dramas: Brookside 1982 – 1988

Screenwriter Jimmy cut his teeth on soaps.

He wrote more than 60 episodes of Brookside between 1982 until 1988.

He tackled many social issues in the course of the series, especially unemployment – which was at a post-war high at the time.

Jimmy went on to write one episode of Coronation Street on ITV1 in 1990.

Hillsborough 1996

Jimmy McGovern also wrote the script for the television docudrama Hillsborough.

The feature-length drama was based on the real-life events of the stadium disaster in 1989.

The catastrophe claimed the lives of 96 Liverpool fans at an FA Cup semi-final.

Former Brookside actor Ricky Tomlinson and Christopher Eccleston both starred.

In 2013, Christopher said it was the most important work he’d ever done.

The TV movie was said to be a factor in a new inquiry set up in 1997.

The Lakes
John Simm starred in The Lakes (Credit: BBC)

Jimmy McGovern dramas: The Lakes 1997 – 1999

Jimmy created the classic series The Lakes in 1997.

The Lakes was a hugely successful series starring John Simm, Kaye Wragg and Elizabeth Bennett.

Charles Dale and Kevin Doyle also appeared in the series, which followed the residents of a small town in the Lake District.

John Simm starred as Liverpudlian Danny Kavanagh – a gambler and womaniser – who arrived in the Lake District to find work.

He starts work at a hotel and falls in love with a local girl named Emma.

Yet Danny remains an outsider in the close-knit community, and ultimately finds himself involved in a tragedy – the drowning of three schoolgirls.

The series went on to get a second series, but many viewers wanted more.

Jimmy McGovern dramas: Cracker 1993 – 2006

Who could forget Robbie Coltrane as criminal psychologist Dr Edward ‘Fitz’ Fitzgerald?

Despite being anti-social and borderline obnoxious, he provided invaluable insight as a consultant for the Manchester Police.

The chain-smoking character appeared in three series, and remains one of TV’s most beloved crime solvers.

Jimmy McGovern
Jimmy McGovern dramas: The writer is famous for Moving On, Accused and now Time (Credit: YouTube)

Read more: Time on BBC One: Stephen Graham and Sean Bean worked together on Jimmy McGovern’s Accused

Jimmy McGovern dramas: The Street 2006 to 2009

A one-off series of dramas, each focusing on a different house within the same street.

Again created and written by Jimmy McGovern, the plot dealt with subject matters close to the bone.

The three series starred Timothy Spall, Lee Ingleby, Jim Broadbent, Jane Horrocks and Sue Johnston.

And actors don’t come much better than that.

Anna Friel, Neil Dudgeon, Mark Benton, Vincent Regan, Jonas Armstrong, Melanie Hill and Shaun Dooley also appeared.

Jimmy McGovern dramas: Accused 2010 – 2012

Jimmy created this series of individual episodes, all linked to a crime.

The series starred Mackenzie Crook, Christopher Eccleston, Juliet Stevenson and Marc Warren.

Olivia Colman, Anna Maxwell Martin, Peter Capaldi and Anne-Marie Duff also starred.

Frankly, if we listed all of the fantastic cast, we’d be here all day.

Sean Bean and Stephen Graham, who are currently starring opposite each other in Time, appeared together in Tracie’s Story in 2012.

Sean once again played an English teacher.

But this time, his transvestite alter-ego is involved in a love triangle that leads to a terrible crime of passion.

Jimmy McGovern dramas
Stephen Graham and Sean Bean in Accused (Credit: BBC One)

Jimmy McGovern dramas: Broken 2017

Sean Bean starred in this six-part drama written and created by Jimmy McGovern.

He portrayed Father Michael, a Catholic priest presiding over a Northern urban parish.

Far from the archetypal image of a priest, Michael is modern, maverick, and reassuringly flawed.

Moving On 2010 – 2021

This series of daytime plays share the theme of someone going through some kind of change in their life.

The series is ongoing and last aired in 2021.

Anyone who is anyone has appeared in one of these moving dramas.

Cast has included Robert James-Collier, Mark Womack, Nico Mirallegro, Dervla Kirwen, Lesley Sharp and Julie Hesmondhalgh.

Jimmy McGovern dramas: Time 2021

Three-parter Time is currently airing on BBC One, and available to watch on iPlayer.

It reunites two acting heavyweights Sean Bean and Stephen Graham from Jimmy McGovern’s 2012 Accused.

Sean stars as a teacher called Mark, who accidentally kills a man while dangerous driving.

Overwhelmed by guilt, he is sentenced to four years in jail, where he is violently introduced to prison life.

Mark’s weakness is soon spotted by a dangerous inmate who begins to make his life hell.

Stephen Graham stars as prison warden Eric McNally, who has problems of his own.

His son is also in jail and apparently in grave danger.

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Time continues on Sunday June 13 2021 at 9pm on BBC One.

What is your favourite Jimmy McGovern drama? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix.


Helen Fear
TV Editor