Official Secrets

Synopsis

2003. As politicians in Britain and the US angle to invade Iraq, GCHQ translator Katharine Gun leaks a classified e-mail that urges spying on members of the UN Security Council to force through the resolution to go to war. Charged with breaking the Official Secrets Act, and facing imprisonment, Katharine and her lawyers set out to defend her actions. With her life, liberty and marriage threatened, she must stand up for what she believes in…

International Title:Official Secrets
Distributed in:México, Brasil, Colombia, Chile, Bolivia, Perú
Gender:Thriller
Actors:Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode, Ray Panthaki, Ralph Fiennes , Matt Smith
Director:Gavin Hood
Release date: To be confirmed

Characters

Keira Knightley: Katherine Gun
Matthew Goode: Peter Beaumont
Ralph Fiennes: Ben Emmerson
Matt Smith: Martin Bright
Indira Varma: Shami Chakrabarti
MyAnna Buring: Jasmine
Rhys Ifans: Ed Vulliamy
Jack Farthing: Andy Dumfries
Katherine Kelly: Jacqueline Jones

Diamond recommendation

"The best Sunday plan!"

"If you saw Mark Felt: The man who brought down the White House you must watch Official Secrets"

Development and Production

Production for Official Secrets began in March 2018 and shot for 39 days. Despite the story being set in Cheltenham, London, Iraq and Washington D.C., filming was completed in Manchester, Liverpool and Yorkshire, with Doherty comparing the shoot to a “road movie”. Investment from Screen Yorkshire meant the county was used extensively. Bradford provided key locations, including the splendid interior of Bradford City Hall, which doubled for the hallways of the Old Bailey.

One special visitor to the set was Katharine Gun, who arrived to watch the tense scene where she prints off the e-mail at GCHQ. “It was kind of odd,” she admits, watching Knightley play out such a crucial moment in her life, but was impressed by the concentration levels required. “Especially the actors and actresses who have to keep saying the same thing again and again and remaining focused on that one scene…it was really fascinating to see how the whole process is put together.