Four Lives is an incredibily accurate drama documentary that tells the story of what would become known in the media as The Barkingside Murders or Grinder Serial Killer. The killer in question preying on young men via gay dating apps and giving them too much GHB (also known as the date rape drug) to enable him to assault them.
The real story here though is the absolute bungling of the police investigation. Lessons from Lawrence had clearly not been learned and such familiar mistakes were further compounded by a poor approach towards LGBT sensitivities, a failure of due care towards the victims families and any effort to do the most basic of policework.
This story could not have been told in a single film, nor even as a two parter and somehow three still feels a little indequate but this essential story was well structured and gives great insight into the terrible blunders made by the police that will literally leave you screaming at the television.
Here it is the quality of the writing that stands out from the outset, as adequate screen time is given to each of the four young men who ultimately became Port's victims, so we feel invested in their lives and their futures. Equally we feel the loss by their friends, relatives and lovers. The show has a number of stand out performances including several from the lesser well known cast, among those which deserve special mention are: Rufus Jones (who you will reconogize as he never stops working) Samuel Barnett, Jimmy Bradshaw, Paddy Rowan, Michael Jibson and Ella Kenion bring some of the smaller roles to life with great skill, while Sheridan Smith, Holly Aird and Jamie Winston fill the shoes of the more meaty roles with their usual gutsy portrayals. The real stand out performance here though is Stephen Merchant as Port, whom I expect we will see a great deal more of in serious roles after this. The one moment in the show where he chooses to smile is truly chilling. Roberts Emms also gives a very emotive and raw performance as the partner of one of the deceased. The visit by the Police to his home is a scene which is hard to digest but one for which he brings a really visceral poignancy with his performance.
Four Lives is not an easy watch, and having watched both this and Anne practically back to back two days in a row, I felt something of an emotional wreck by the end of that journey. This show leaves you feeling angry towards the police by the end of it and really demonstrates, sadly, the days when you could just trust them to do their job are a distant memory. Hopefully this programme will reinforce to them the lessons that should have been learned from this story. An outstanding piece of drama and a credit to all involved.
