On the set of Toxic Town

A surreal day on the set of a Netflix drama

By Sarah Ward

Me with Rory Kinnear and Brendan Coyle.

If you’ve tuned into Netflix’s new drama Toxic Town about the birth defect scandal in Corby, you may have spotted some dodgy ‘acting’ by a reporter, in one of the court scenes. That, I’m more than slightly embarrassed to say, was me.

In my first acting role since getting booted out of the school play in my first year of infants school due to not being able to shout loudly enough as the witch in Rapunzel, I was required to shout again - this time at acclaimed actor Rory Kinnear as he strode across a wood panelled room in Liverpool’s Town Hall. After an acting note from Corby’s own Brendan Coyle (he of Downton Abbey fame) I got through it, but it was not lost on me as I hollered ‘Mr Collins’ - perhaps for the thirtieth time - that I was the only person ‘acting’ on the set, who had not won an Olivier Award for their talents.

So how did I get here?

I did not audition for the role - god no - but had been approached by researcher Meroe Candy, after helping with background information about the case. As a journalist on the Corby Telegraph in the 2000s, I had been involved in reporting the story for a number of years and therefore knew some of the mums. I had also met with the show’s writer Jack Thorne to give my take on the town and its politics. (I was delighted to see Freemasonry feature in the show).

So when I got a message from Meroe in September 2022, asking would I like to play one of the reporters in the drama, a role with just one line, I hesitantly said yes.

A car park selfie with Robert Carlyle and Brendan Coyle was the day’s highlight.

Two weeks later, after a hotel stay on Netflix; a chauffeur; my own little Winnebago; an encounter with Trainspotting legend Robert Carlyle in a car park on Liverpool Docks and a discussion with Brendan Coyle about Corby’s most salubrious night spots, I was on and then quickly off set.

For me it was an enjoyable, never to be repeated experience, but there is of course more to Toxic Town than that.

What the drama has done this week is to bring the story of what happened in Corby to the national consciousness. The mothers who featured have been brave to share their lives and are doing so in the hope that others in the town who may have been affected, perhaps in other ways, through other illnesses or diseases, will come forward.
In response to their concerns NN Journal will now investigate and look at what is or is not being done by our local authority and health board to safeguard the town and those who live and work in it.

If you were involved in the legal action but did not become part of the final claimant group; worked in the reclamation or for the former Corby Borough Council; were employed in in the local health sector; have any information, reports or concerns, please get in touch at sarahward@nnjournal.co.uk or by calling 07887 500545.