Britz (TV serial)
Encyclopedia
Britz is a two-part drama serial written and directed by BAFTA-winning director Peter Kosminsky
and first screened by Channel 4
in the UK in October and November 2007.
Britz attempts to understand what would lead a second generation Muslim
to turn against the country of their birth. It blames Britain’s
anti-terrorism legislation
- in particular, the contentious subject of control order
s - and foreign policy for alienating the Muslim community. The film makes references to the perpetrators of the July 2005 London bombings
.
, West Yorkshire
, a city with a large British Pakistani population. Both are now students, Sohail studying law in London and Nasima studying medicine in Leeds
. With new government anti-terrorism legislation being used against Muslims in the UK in the wake of the September 11 attacks in New York
, Sohail and Nasima are drawn in radically different directions. Without telling any of his family or friends, Sohail becomes a member of MI5
, while continuing his studies, in the belief that he hopes to help to stop terrorists before the situation deteriorates further. In doing so, he learns that a number of his neighbours and childhood friends are politically militant. Nasima is trying to integrate into British society, attending medical school and even dates an African blooded man. When her family finds out they send her back to Pakistan for a forced arranged marriage. Her boyfriend follows her, he is beaten severely and imprisoned by the extended Pakistani family and is only saved by Sohail's intervention. She had already planned to meet the head of a terror camp organisation and these events led her to make her decision. She leaves behind her personal belongings and the terrorist group fake her death using a local female. This means she no longer exists and gives her the perfect opportunity not to change her mind and carry out her intentions of a mass suicide bombing
Part one of the story is told from Sohail's point of view, while part two is from Nasima's point of view. The serial was filmed in London, Bradford and Hyderabad, India, not Rawalpindi
though the story takes place in Pakistan in Part II.
The DVD was released in the UK on 5 November 2007.
Full Cast List
Peter Kosminsky
Peter Kosminsky is a British writer, director and producer. He has directed Hollywood movies such as White Oleander and television films like Warriors, The Government Inspector and The Promise.- Biography :...
and first screened by Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
in the UK in October and November 2007.
Britz attempts to understand what would lead a second generation Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
to turn against the country of their birth. It blames Britain’s
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
anti-terrorism legislation
Anti-terrorism legislation
Anti-terrorism legislation designs various types of laws passed in the aim of fighting terrorism. They usually, if not always, follow specific bombings or assassinations...
- in particular, the contentious subject of control order
Control order
A control order is an order made by the Home Secretary of the United Kingdom to restrict an individual's liberty for the purpose of "protecting members of the public from a risk of terrorism". Its definition and power were provided by Parliament in the Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005...
s - and foreign policy for alienating the Muslim community. The film makes references to the perpetrators of the July 2005 London bombings
7 July 2005 London bombings
The 7 July 2005 London bombings were a series of co-ordinated suicide attacks in the United Kingdom, targeting civilians using London's public transport system during the morning rush hour....
.
Plot
The story concerns two siblings, Sohail and Nasima Wahid, who have been brought up in BradfordBradford
Bradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
, West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
, a city with a large British Pakistani population. Both are now students, Sohail studying law in London and Nasima studying medicine in Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
. With new government anti-terrorism legislation being used against Muslims in the UK in the wake of the September 11 attacks in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, Sohail and Nasima are drawn in radically different directions. Without telling any of his family or friends, Sohail becomes a member of MI5
MI5
The Security Service, commonly known as MI5 , is the United Kingdom's internal counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its core intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service focused on foreign threats, Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence...
, while continuing his studies, in the belief that he hopes to help to stop terrorists before the situation deteriorates further. In doing so, he learns that a number of his neighbours and childhood friends are politically militant. Nasima is trying to integrate into British society, attending medical school and even dates an African blooded man. When her family finds out they send her back to Pakistan for a forced arranged marriage. Her boyfriend follows her, he is beaten severely and imprisoned by the extended Pakistani family and is only saved by Sohail's intervention. She had already planned to meet the head of a terror camp organisation and these events led her to make her decision. She leaves behind her personal belongings and the terrorist group fake her death using a local female. This means she no longer exists and gives her the perfect opportunity not to change her mind and carry out her intentions of a mass suicide bombing
Part one of the story is told from Sohail's point of view, while part two is from Nasima's point of view. The serial was filmed in London, Bradford and Hyderabad, India, not Rawalpindi
Rawalpindi
Rawalpindi , locally known as Pindi, is a city in the Pothohar region of Pakistan near Pakistan's capital city of Islamabad, in the province of Punjab. Rawalpindi is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad...
though the story takes place in Pakistan in Part II.
The DVD was released in the UK on 5 November 2007.
Full Cast List
- Sohail- Riz Ahmed
- Nasima - Manjinder Virk
- Tess - Mary StockleyMary StockleyMary Stockley is a British stage, television and film actress.A former member of the National Youth Music Theatre, Stockley studied drama at university. She made her first television appearance in 2001 in the TV movie Being Dom Jolly, in 2002 going on to play Kate Matherson in eight episodes of...
- Jude - Chinna Wodu
- Horne - Adrian Lukis
- Shahnaz - Shaheen Khan
- Riaz - Paul Bhattacharjee
- Rafiq - Sagar Radia
- Sabia - Zahra Ahmadi
- Shaz - Preeya Kalidas
- Sajid - Adil Mohammed Javed
- Faisal - Zaid Munir
- Matloob - Arsher Ali
- Chris - Jeff Peterson
- Lizzie - Amy Noble
- Laure - Shereen Martineau
- Aisha - Farzana Dua Elahe
- Joy - Raquel Cassidy
- Richard - Mark Bonnar
- Jan - Tracy Wiles
- Phipps - Paul Bown
- Clare - Elizabeth Hurran
- Kaneez - Harvey Virdi
- Rashid - Haider Javed
- Imran - Ash Tandon
- Plain-Clothed Policeman 1 - Julian Kay
- Plain-Clothed Policeman 2 - Nicholas Camm
- Speaker - Wasim Zakir
- Professor Towne - Roger May
- Imam 2 - Waleed Khalid
- Desk Sergeant - Martin Walsh
- Chapel - Nick Sampson
- Senior Diplomat - Simon Wilson
- Asian Man - Rudi Dharmalingam
- Inspector Hafeez - Ravin J Ganatra
- Instructor - Riz Meedin
- Mazur - Marc Anwar
- Nahid - Miriam Ali
- Imam - Munir Khairdin
- Niaz - Akbar Kurtha
- Rachel - Ruth Mitchell
- Senior Nurse - Hannah Storey
- Senior Officer - David Prosho
- Sergeant - Paul Hurstfield
- Police Motorcyclist - Peter Barich
- Newsagent - Quill Roberts
- Legal Advisor - Joanna Swain
- Muslim Male 1 - Kammy Darweish
- Muslim Male 2 - Shahid Ahmed
- Policeman - Chris David Storer
- Tajiq - Adeel Akhtar
- Trevor - Bob Mercer
- Detective 1 - Jack Pierce
- Detective 2 - Stephen Fletcher
- Asian Police Woman - Hannah Kumari
- Librarian - Gail Kemp
- Special Branch Officer - Gareth Farr
- Pilot - Rick Savery
- WPC - Dawn Finnerty
- Steve - Daniel Sung
- Shabir - Rohan Schroff
- Majid - Neil Bhoopalam
- Parvin - Tara Sharma
- Yasmin - Veena Kapoor