Suranne Jones will lead the cast of Frauds, an upcoming heist drama about a pair of confidence tricksters on one final job.
Jones (Vigil, Doctor Foster), who created the six-part ITV drama with Anne Marie O'Connor, will star opposite Jodie Whittaker, of Doctor Who and Broadchurch fame.
They will be joined by a stellar support cast, including Talisa García (Baptiste), Christian Cooke (Rematch) and Elizabeth Berrington (Good Omens).
The story begins with Sam (Whittaker) living quietly in the hills of Southern Spain, whilst her grifting partner, Bert (Jones), has spent the last decade in a Spanish prison cell eager to return to the game. But after her release, can Bert tempt her old friend out of retirement?
"Working on Frauds with Anne-Marie for the last two years has been a wild ride," said Jones. "We took the idea of toxic female friendship and turned it on its head to give the heist genre an emotional heartbeat. I've always wanted to work with Jodie, and now I am. I hope you love Bert and Sam and all they get up to as much as we do.”
Giulia Gandini (The Split, Shetland) will direct the series and Pat Tookey-Dickson (Toxic Town, Maryland, 1899, Ghosts) will produce.
Here's everything we know about Frauds...
Frauds release date
ITV has confirmed the six-part series will premiere on ITV and STV and their streaming sites "later in 2025".
ITV Studios will be responsible for the international distribution of the series.
Frauds plot
The "one final job" schtick is as old as the hills and we can't wait to see these two British stars put their own spin on it.
Yet the show is also about female relationships, as co-creator Anne-Marie O’Connor explains. “Suranne and I wanted to take a look at the importance and fierceness of female friendship and to do it using the propulsive heist genre," she commented. "I'm thrilled I am thrilled to be working with Suranne again and having Jodie join us is a dream.”
Here's a synopsis from ITV: "We pick up the story as Sam (Whittaker) anxiously waits for Bert (Jones) to be released from a maximum-security prison on grounds of compassionate discharge. Frail and facing her final days, following a cancer diagnosis, Bert’s mindset is as it’s always been, to take risks and live life on the edge.
"Set in the picturesque mountainous region of Southern Spain, it’s apparent from the outset that Sam and Bert have unresolved issues of the thieving kind.
"Locked into a pattern of fierce friendship coupled with deep mistrust, that goes back many years, Bert apparently has no one else to turn to in the final weeks of her life. And we sense this isn’t going to be an easy ride for Sam, who is clearly burying feelings of guilt, and a past she’d rather stay forgotten.
"Pricked by those feelings, she reluctantly agrees to give her ailing former friend a bed in the idyllic smallholding she calls a home. Despite trying to keep Bert at a distance, she is immediately pulled back into their complex and addictive relationship.
"On the pretext of one final, multi-million-pound art heist, Bert attempts to lure Sam out of retirement, but at what cost? Can Sam stay one step ahead of her former friend, who is clearly capable of treachery? Or will the push and pull of their toxic friendship see them both ruined before they are able to pull off the job and escape one another for good?"
Frauds cast
The two show's two leads need little introduction, but let's take a look at their stellar CVs anyway..
Suranne Jones rose to prominence in ITV soap Coronation Street, yet has had a string of primetime hits over the last decade, including Doctor Foster, Vigil, Scott & Bailey and Gentleman Jack.
Meanwhile Jodie Whittaker was part of the cast for runaway ITV hit Broadchurch and then became the first-ever female Doctor when she took the leading role in classic BBC One show, Doctor Who.
The pair will be joined by a superb support cast, including...
Talisa García (Baptiste, Blurred) who plays Miss Take, a smart, funny, and acerbic Spanish trans woman in her fifties who hosts drag bingo at the club on the Costa del Sol. However she believes the club is holding her back in life. She wants more. And Bert and Sam, despite their thorny history, might just be able to offer her that.
Elizabeth Berrington (Lost Boys and Fairies, Good Omens, Stella) plays Jackie Diamond, a sharp-witted and sharp-mouthed magician’s assistant to her husband The Great Diavolo. But it’s Jackie who is the real talent, the master illusionist who invents their tricks and puts together all their elaborate shows and who met Bert and Sam years ago when they were petty criminals.
Christian Cooke (Rematch, Love, Rosie) takes the role of Deegs, a Bradford money lender who tracks Bilal to Spain, creating conflict with Bert and Sam and Nansi Nsue (Past Lies, The Mallorca Files) plays Amaya, a determined Spanish cop and working mum investigating a bizarre series of thefts.
Lee Boardman (Enola Holmes, Andor, The Crow Girl) takes on the role of Jackie’s husband, Craig - a gaslighting, narcissistic mid-level magician.
Abdul Salis (F1, The Wheel of Time, Mufasa: The Lion King) plays Mateo - a kind man, considered he is Miss Take’s husband and greatest champion.
Karan Gill (The Decameron, Brian And Margaret, I May Destroy You) stars as Bilal, an idiosyncratic Bradford loner with an unusual secret – he’s the world’s greatest forger.
Thais Martin (Coolie) stars as Caitlin, Sam’s long-lost daughter, a petty criminal with her eye on the prize who is not going to let Sam’s wish to take care of her trump her need to get in on the heist of the decade.
Kate Fleetwood (The Wheel of Time, Harlots, Fate: The Winx Club Saga) takes on the role of Celine, a no-nonsense East London ex-pat art dealer with a children’s soft play centre as a front for her dealings.
Javier Taboada (The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, Las chicas del cable, Alta Mar) stars as Blas, a charismatic Spanish prison guard who had a relationship of sorts with Bert while she was inside.
Frauds trailer
There's no trailer for this one yet, but we'll be sure to post it here as soon as it lands..
