Midnight Man (TV serial)

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Midnight Man

Genre	Thriller
Running time	180 min.
Written by	David Kane
Directed by	David Drury
Produced by	Alan J. Wands
Starring	James Nesbitt Catherine McCormack Rupert Graves Reece Dinsdale Ian Puleston-Davies
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Language	English
Original channel	ITV
Original run	May 8, 2008 – May 22, 2008
No. of episodes	3

Midnight Man is a 2008 British television serial produced by Carnival Films for the ITV network. It is written by David Kane, directed by David Drury, and stars James Nesbitt as Max Raban, a journalist who has fallen from grace and is left going through people's bins in order to get a celebrity news story but ends up discovering an international conspiracy, involving death squads targeting possible terror suspects. It co-stars Catherine McCormack, Rupert Graves and Ian Puleston-Davies.

1 Story
2 Cast and characters
3 Episode guide
4 Production
5 Reception
6 References
7 External links

[edit] Story

Max Raban sells stories to the tabloids. It's a job he hates but does it to make ends meet. His career as a journalist takes a nose-dive when he failed to a source on a vital story. He lost his job, and the guilt over his friend's death wrecked his marriage, and left him separated from his beloved daughter. His stress manifested itself in a condition called phengophobia, a fear of daylight. But his life changes when his nocturnal muck-raking uncovers a frightening world of deciet and distrust. A death squad called "God's Fist" has been at work eliminating 'undesirable' elements within British society, such as indviduals suspected of aiding religious extremists. It is a series of summary executions without trial, stagged as accidents or gangland deaths. But the squad has made a big mistake and killed the wrong target in a botched street kidnapping. Max chances on the crime and follows the trial to an influential lobbying group. Who is behind the death squad? What is their mission and will they try to kill Max for uncovering it? Or have they found an ideal patsy for them to exploit?

[edit] Cast and characters

James Nesbitt as Max Raban, a journalist who uncovers an international conspiracy, making him a target for "God's Fist".
Catherine McCormack as Alice Ross, Daniel Cosgrave's policy advisor and "an unlikely ally" to Raban.
Rupert Graves as Daniel Cosgrave, a political lobbyist, who may or may not be involved in "God's Fist".
Reece Dinsdale as Blake, a high-ranking member of the government's anti-terror unit and part of "God's Fist".
Ian Puleston-Davies as Jimmy Kerrigan, Raban's editor who may or may not be a part of "God's Fist".
Zara Turner as Carolyn Raban, Max's estranged wife, who is put directly in the firing line due to her husband.
Alan Dale as US Defense Secretary Donald Hagan, who might have ties to "God's Fist".

[edit] Episode guide

Part One: Max (James Nesbitt) is a former journalist with a chronic fear of daylight, reduced to raking through bins for cheap celebrity stories which he sells to the tabloids to earn a living. But things are about to change. Two Iranian cousins are murdered - one active in human rights, the other completely apolitical. Max uncovers some evidence which suggests a cover up and suspects he’s on to a proper story at last. But with his track record as an occasionally unreliable conspiracy theorist, will any one believe him? He needs hard evidence. Max links the killings to a small policy group, Defence Concern, whose aim is to place defence and national security at the top of the political agenda.

He also comes to the horrifying realisation that there’s a death squad at work in the UK, which appears to be targeting pro-Islamists. And worse, these murders appear to have been committed with the blessing of the Government’s Defence Secretary.

Max believes that the gang of vigilantes mistakenly killed the wrong cousin and are trying to hide their crime. He finds an unlikely ally in right wing Alice Ross (Catherine McCormack) – a policy adviser with Defence Concern. Despite her personal politics, Alice fears the group crossed a serious ethical line. Although Max finds her control-freakery exasperating and she is far from enamoured by his own eccentricities, the two strike up an uneasy friendship as they struggle to expose the truth.

Part Two: Max Raban has uncovered the activities of a death squad and is determined to stop them before they kill anyone else on their list. But his investigations are putting his own family at risk. Fearing the worst, he races back to his family's home to find that his wife Carolyn has been shot dead and his old home is surrounded by police. Max is the number one suspect for her murder, and his daughter has been taken away to live with her aunty Diane.

Max knows he must have been framed for his wife's murder by whoever is behind the death squad but now he's got to prove it. In a panic he goes on the run from the police, hoping he can find the evidence he needs in time to clear his name and uncover the conspiracy. Alice opens the confidential file she stole from Daniel and uncovers a list of names – one of which is Reza Dunush, Majid’s cousin. Realising there is truth in Max's claim that Defence Concern is involved in a conspiracy, Alice asks to meet him. However Blake (Reece Dinsdale), the head of the Death Squad reaches there first and drowns Alice in the bath...

Part Three: Max finds Alice and successfully revives her before she dies. Max suspects the death squad is being protected and funded by the front man of The Validus Group, Donald Hagan (Alan Dale). The Validus Group is a hugely successful US private equity corporation and one of the world’s biggest investors in the arms industry. Therefore, it is in the Group's interests to see that profitable global warfare continues. The death squad and those behind it have so far tried to silence Max by killing his wife and framing him for her murder. However, Max is determined to expose the truth and prevent any more murders. Alice Ross, pictured, a former employee of Defence Concern fears her boss Daniel Cosgrave (Rupert Graves) is being knowingly manipulated by Hagan. They may be planning a dreadful event, possibly even a new 9/11, to create a greater appetite for defence spending and lining their pockets at the same time. However, Alice's collaboration with Max has put her in danger.

Worried that Alice has been killed or seriously injured by the death squad's leader, Blake, Max rushes to her aide. Is she safe or has she become another victim? Max is in the basement with Hagan and he has flash backs and puts together that the Death Squad wants him to kill Hagan. He drops the gun and runs. Blake then picks up the gun and kills Hagan and his bodyguard. The aim of Hagan's death was to start another War on Terror and Hagan being a high ranking official would create the effect needed. It is also revealed that Alice and Max's editor Jimmy Kerrigan are also in on the plot. Max sms's his daughter and tell her to open her birthday present. She does and its a cd which she already has. But dad tells her to upload it to the internet, She does. Her dad gets arrested in the all night supermarket while he sms's his daughter. Max walks out of the police station and his daughter runs to him. The episode ends with Cosgrave walking out to face the press after the whole plot has been revealed to the public.

[edit] Production

Michael Grade, who had recently become executive chairman of ITV plc, announced in 2007 a strategy to broadcast "more contemporary drama" across the network, leading ITV's director of drama Laura Mackie to commission Midnight Man.^[1] Filming began the week beginning 22 October 2007 for broadcast in 2008.^[2]

Nesbitt has expressed surprise over ITV's decision to commission the drama, which he calls "politically right on the knuckle".^[3]

[edit] Reception

The first part won the 9 p.m. timeslot, with 3.8 million viewers and an 18% audience share, beating The Invisibles, Heroes, Grand Designs Live and House, airing on other main channels.^[4]