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Simon Duke

Is No Return a true story? ITV viewers asking the same question as new drama ends

No Return viewers have been left asking the same question about the gripping new ITV drama, which will air its fourth and final part on Monday.

Ahead of its second episode last week, people were flocking to Twitter asking if the show, which sees Sheridan Smith lead the cast of another drama, after recent appearances in Four Lives and The Teacher, is based on a true story.

In No Return, former Cilla star Sheridan plays Kathy, a mum whose family have geared up for their one and only holiday of the year, only for it to go horribly wrong when teenage son Noah is arrested for sexually assaulting another teenage boy after accepting an invite to a beach party.

READ MORE: Our House start date confirmed by star Martin Compston

Completely oblivious to the damning allegations made about him, Noah heads to bed but he and his family are woken in the dead of night by Turkish police officers who arrest him and haul him in for questioning.

Flung behind bars and unable to see his family, Noah is left shocked and scared as his distraught family frantically try and get him free.

While many parents who've seen No Return have said that Sheridan's plight as a mum desperately worried for her son hit home with them, with some of the harrowing scenes feeling terrifyingly real, the drama is NOT actually based on a real life case.

Instead, it's from the pen of critically acclaimed writer Danny Brocklehurst, the man behind other hit shows like Clocking Off and Brassic.

However, Danny has explained that in an interview with Radio Times that he was inspired to write it after hearing of a friend's legal drama while on holiday.

He told the publication: "This originated from a friend of mine who had been tangentially involved in something of a similar nature where a relative of theirs had been caught up in a foreign legal system."

Danny added that he thinks No Return will resonate with viewers as the idea that a dream holiday could go badly wrong is: "very tangible in people’s minds."

Talking about the show to ITV, Danny said: "No Return is truly a passion project for me. It's the story of a family caught in a modern nightmare but it allows us to explore themes of parenthood, justice, addiction and consent."

In an interview ahead of No Return's debut, Sheridan Smith admitted she was left in tears before cameras even started rolling, with her becoming very moved during a read through of the script.

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