Evacuation; Champion

“James W Newton’s series took you right inside the chaos, providing a gripping blow-by-blow account of the efforts to evacuate British nationals and eligible Afghans.”
Joe Clay, The Times

“It is an excellent film, in which the contributors speak with honesty and clarity about an experience that clearly left an indelible mark. Afghan evacuees also share their nightmarish experiences.”
Anita Singh, The Telegraph

“This unmissable account is constructed from interviews with the troops, both Army and RAF, who were flung at short notice into bases at Kabul airport and ordered to oversee the mass extraction of British passport-holders and Afghan refugees. The stories that emerged were breathtaking, both for the matter-of-fact courage shown and for the sheer lack of planning by Western politicians.”
Christopher Stevens, Daily Mail

“Episode one is mostly scene-setting but by the end of it, we’re wearing thousand-yard stares at home, having seen one of the most shocking sequences any documentary will show this year. There are two episodes of Evacuation left and it’s going to get worse, but already the programme has painted an astonishingly vivid picture of the purest terror.”
Jack Seale, The Guardian

“There was no input from politicians with one eye on the history books, or journalists attempting to contextualise events, and the film felt all the more immediate for it. While there have been a number of documentaries about the sudden, traumatic end to this 20-year war, most are American-made. This exclusively British eyewitness account brought these terrible events home clearly and forcefully.”
Gerard Gilbert, The i

“Malcolm Kamulete shines as British rap star Bosco Champion in this confidently executed and consistently entertaining new musical drama by Candice Carty-Williams, author of the 2019 British publishing sensation Queenie. By the end of the five episodes made available for preview, I’m as deeply involved in these people’s lives as any eavesdropping auntie filling up a plate at the family barbecue, before settling in to shout encouragement from the settee.”
Ellen E Jones, The Guardian

“I did enjoy it – despite being so un-edgy that one of my greatest thrills is a scone and pot of tea in a John Lewis cafe, but was painfully aware that it’s aimed at people 20 years younger than me. The performances are excellent across the board, including Ray BLK and Corey Weekes as musical rivals to the Champions. It feels like an authentic slice of south London life, with Carty-Williams skillfully weaving portraits of the black community and of the cutthroat music industry.”
Anita Singh, The Telegraph

“Champion is aimed at teenagers, so what it’s doing on BBC1 on a Saturday evening, traditionally a time for family viewing, is a mystery. Surely its target audience will all be out enjoying themselves.”
Christopher Stevens, Daily Mail