大象传媒

From the makers of the Sony award-winning Anatomy of a Car Crash, this new series dissects often-neglected everyday dramas that change ordinary lives forever.

1/3: Redundancy. The failure of the Birmingham-based manufacturer Savekers in March last year from the perspective of boardroom, back office and shopfloor. The programme hears from those at every level of the 106-year old family firm about the trauma of being in business when sales have stalled, the phones have stopped ringing and desperate suppliers are at the door chasing payment.

Managing Director Dani Saveker recalls the lonely experience of being the boss when the only remaining option is to call in the administrators and relinquish control of the family business. The official administrator traces the tough process of preparing the business for sale and choosing the employees who are to be made redundant. And long term employees recount their shock at the announcement that they would very soon be clocking off for the last time. The programme traces their unsuccessful search for new work, the financial strain of losing an income and the emotional fallout which follows when a business goes under.

Producer: Laurence Grissell.