Prisoner 951
British television series
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Prisoner 951 is a British factual drama television series, starring Narges Rashidi as British-Iranian citizen Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe imprisoned on spying charges for six years in Iran, and Joseph Fiennes as her husband Richard Ratcliffe. The four-part series premiered on BBC One on 23 November 2025.
| Prisoner 951 | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Drama |
| Based on | A Yard of Sky by Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Richard Ratcliffe |
| Screenplay by | Stephen Butchard |
| Directed by | Philippa Lowthorpe |
| Starring | |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 4 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 57 minutes |
| Production company | Dancing Ledge Productions |
| Original release | |
| Network | BBC One |
| Release | 23 November – 1 December 2025 |
Synopsis
British-Iranian citizen Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was arrested at Imam Khomeini International Airport in Tehran as she was returning to the UK from a family visit in 2016. Forced to leave her 22-month-old daughter with her mother, Zaghari-Ratcliffe was held for six years on spying charges prior to her release and return to the United Kingdom.[1][2] The series is critical of the British Government's response.[3]
Cast and characters
- Narges Rashidi as Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe[4]
- Joseph Fiennes as Richard Ratcliffe[4]
- Bijan Daneshmand as Baba[4]
- Nicholas Farrell as John Ratcliffe[4]
- Marion Bailey as Barbara Ratcliffe[4]
Production
The series is directed by Philippa Lowthorpe and written by Stephen Butchard, based on the upcoming book A Yard of Sky about their experiences of the arrest and the campaign for her release, by Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Richard Ratcliffe.[5]
The cast is led by Narges Rashidi as Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Joseph Fiennes as her husband Richard Ratcliffe.[6]
The four-part series is produced by Fremantle's Dancing Ledge Productions, with Fremantle handling international sales. Filming took place in Greece and the United Kingdom.[7]
Release
The four-part series aired on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on 23 November 2025.[8][9]
It aired on SBS Television and SBS on Demand in Australia from 4 March 2026.[2]
Reception
Phil Harrison of The Guardian gave the series 4 out of 5 stars, praising the "excellent" performances as well as the script.[10]
RadioTimes described Prisoner 951 as a “powerful, unflinching piece of drama”. The Observer and The Independent praised both Fienne’s and Rashidi’s performances.[2]
In her detailed review of the series, Australian academic Kylie Moore-Gilbert, who was herself imprisoned in Iran under similar circumstances from September 2018 to November 2020 and had met Zaghari-Ratcliffe briefly in prison, wrote: "Objectively, as a piece of television, Prisoner 951 is well-acted and thoughtfully shot—intimate when it needs to be, and appropriately expansive when exploring the broader themes of Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s story".[3]
Accolades
For her role, Rashidi won Best Actress at the Royal Television Society Programme Awards in March 2026.[11] She also received a nomination for Leading Actress at the British Academy Television Awards.[12]