NTAs 2024: Real-life Mr Bates vs The Post Office subpostmasters emotionally react to show's success

Virgin Radio

12 Sep 2024, 11:19

The real-life subpostmasters who inspired Mr Bates vs The Post Office have hailed its NTAs success as “fantastic” news.

The ITV drama centred on the miscarriage of justice which saw hundreds of innocent Post Office subpostmasters wrongly accused of fraud, theft and false accounting – accusations for which some were wrongly charged and imprisoned – took home several awards at the publicly voted show last night (11th September).

In addition to winning the night’s pre-planned Impact Award, the series won Best New Drama, and Toby Jones took home the NTA for Best Drama Performance for his role as the real-life Justice for Subpostmasters campaigner, Alan Bates.

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Many of the real-life figures who were featured in the drama were present at The O2 Arena to celebrate the show’s success at bringing their nearly 20-year plight to the attention of the general public.

Former subpostmasters Pam Stubbs and Noel Thomas opened up to virginradio.co.uk and other press about what it meant to them to see the drama recognised by the general public.

“It’s been fantastic,” said Thomas. “I was prosecuted in 2005, so you can see, it’s 19 years for me and my family. Without getting together and sticking together, we wouldn’t have gotten anywhere. And this drama has really brought it home… this drama has really shown that I was speaking the truth.”

Former subpostmaster Pam Stubbs was never charged with the accusations of theft which were brought against her, but lived for 15 years in fear that the Post Office would come for her in court at any time.

“I worried all the time, I would wake up three, four, five times at night and all I was aware of was the fact my heart was going 19 to the dozen,” she explained. “I got threats… they let me hang fire for 15 years without knowing whether the next knock on the door was going to be a post office investigator.”

Stubbs shared that the drama’s effect on all the subpostmasters and subpostmistresses’ continued fight for justice has been “absolutely brilliant”. 

“We’d missed out on every bit of good news that we could have with elections and whatever, and Covid, which took everything away from us. We had to work hard to get any press at all, and this just did everything for us,” she said.

“[The show’s impact] means it will be ongoing. If we could only convince the Post Office that they really ought to be on our side now, rather than still fighting us,” she wished.

For all the hundreds of subpostmasters affected by the Post Office scandal, the fight for justice continues. “The inquiry chairman has said he wants us all to be back where we would have been had it never happened. The Post Office would like us to just go away and be quiet. [But] there are too many of us now who will not go away and be quiet,” Stubbs stressed.

Thomas shared the famous Welsh phrase: “Mewn undod y mae nerth,” which translated means “In togetherness there is strength,” referencing how Mr Bates vs The Post Office has helped the Justice for Subpostmasters Alliance find further unity and support for their cause from the general public.

Mr Bates vs The Post Office star Julie Hesmondhalgh spoke exclusively with virginradio.co.uk on the NTAs red carpet, and expressed how she hopes the show’s success at the awards show will help continue the subpostmasters' fight for justice.

“For it to be recognised tonight in a public vote feels really, really special, and we just feel like it's the icing on the cake. [But] obviously justice still hasn't been done,” the actress said. “There's a long way to go. So again, we hope this pushes it a little bit further, you know, in terms of the campaign. And we're very, very proud to be part of it.”

Catch up with all the NTAs 2024 winners here.