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Chiwetel Ejiofor (American Gangster, Endgame, Talk To Me), Christopher Eccleston (Lennon Naked, Doctor Who), Sir Antony Sher (The Wolfman, Primo) and Stephen Rea (The Crying Game, Breakfast on Pluto) are to star in The Shadow Line, ´óÏó´«Ã½ Two's landmark noir thriller written, produced and directed by Hugo Blick (Sensitive Skin, Marion And Geoff).

They are joined by Rafe Spall (Desperate Romantics, He Kills Coppers), Kierston Wareing (Fish Tank, Five Daughters), Lesley Sharp (Playing The Field, Clocking Off), Sean Gilder (Shameless), Freddie Fox (Worried About The Boy), Malcolm Storry (The Knock), Richard Lintern (The Bank Job) and David Schofield (The Bill).

The esteemed cast play Jonah Gabriel (Ejiofor), Joseph Bede (Eccleston), Peter Glickman (Sher), Gatehouse (Rea), Jay Wratten (Spall), Lia Honey (Wareing), Julie Bede (Sharp), Robert Beatty (Gilder), Rattalack (Fox), Maurice Crace (Storry), Chief Superintendent Patterson (Lintern) and Sergeant Foley (Schofield) – diverse individuals whose worlds become interwoven after the murder of drug baron Harvey Wratten.

From the cop with a bullet in his brain, whose amnesia leaves him doubtful of his own moral compass; to the drug-lord driven by a profound personal tragedy, risking it all on one last deal; to the brilliantly lethal puppet-master who gradually emerges from the shadows to bring the story to its shocking climax – The Shadow Line explores the morality of these characters as they negotiate the repercussions of Wratten's death and attempt to navigate the fine line between right and wrong.

As the thread around Wratten's operation begins to unravel, the web of intrigue becomes more complex – and the question of which side of the line they stand on becomes increasingly blurred.

An intelligent and gripping conspiracy thriller that delves to the heart of human morality, The Shadow Line will have audiences enthralled over seven taut and thrilling episodes. Faced with similar dilemmas, on which side of the line would you stand?

Ben Stephenson, Controller, Drama Commissioning, says: "As we continue our drive to build a bold and exciting drama story on ´óÏó´«Ã½ Two with commissions like Crimson Petal and The Hour, I am thrilled that we have attracted such world class talent to Hugo Blick's thrilling scripts. Chiwetel and Chris are two of our finest actors and we couldn't be more excited to have them, and the rest of the amazing cast, on board for this original and epic six-hour series."

The Shadow Line is a Company Pictures/Eight Rooks/Baby Cow production in association with CinemaNX. It begins filming in the Isle of Man at the beginning of July, with location shoots also taking place in London.

The series is written, produced and directed by Hugo Blick, with Johann Knobel (Shameless, Inspector George Gently) co-producing. Executive producers are George Faber and Charlie Pattinson for Company Pictures (Shameless, Skins, The Devil's Whore, Generation X), Henry Normal and Lindsay Hughes for Baby Cow (Sensitive Skin, Marion And Geoff, Gavin And Stacey), Marc Samuelson and Steve Christian for CinemaNX (The Disappearance Of Alice Creed, Me And Orson Welles) and Polly Hill for the ´óÏó´«Ã½.

The Shadow Line was commissioned by Ben Stephenson, Controller, Drama Commissioning, and Janice Hadlow, Controller, ´óÏó´«Ã½ Two. The series will be broadcast in 2011.

LH2

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