At a recent Q&A for the show, executive producer Simon Heath was asked whether he was ever nervous about taking on such contentious discussion topics, to which he said: “We pride ourselves on being a bit provocative and upsetting people.
“I don’t think we’re doing our job if we’re not really. Actually, the thing about climate change, I suppose, the worry there is always that people think you’re going to do something a bit worthy, a bit wholemeal bread and a bit woke.
“And I think what was clever and what Ben [Richards, creator] has done, I think, as the best drama should, it’s not taking a position. It’s putting all the voices and giving them equal weight, and then letting the audience decide.”
Richards revealed that in many ways he sees Akhtar’s character, the defence solicitor, as a cipher for his own views on the matters being discussed, before adding: “I think, actually there’s a lot to be angry and upset about.
“Not particularly any side of the culture war, but actually from, I’m going to sound ridiculous now, from the point of view of basic morality.”
He continued: “But also to try not to wag fingers at people, to try not to lecture people, to try not to tell people there’s a right and wrong answer to everything, and try and see the humour and humanity in situations.
“The internet’s such a horrible place, full of people screaming at each other and abusing each other and I always think that out in the real world, people tend to have much more relaxed and humorous conversations about these things. Actually, we don’t get as angry and hateful as often the internet is.
“So it was kind of trying to capture that and say, ‘Yeah, you can have attitudes and things, you can have opinions on things, but you can also laugh with your loved ones about it, it doesn’t all have to be an all or nothing thing’.”
At the Q&A, Richards also opened up on why he chose not to bring any season 1 characters back for season 2, saying it was primarily for the sake of “basic realism”.
Showtrial will return to BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Sunday 6th October.
