Little Boy Blue (ITV 2017, Stephen Graham, Sinead Keenan)

Little Boy Blue is a bold and thought-provoking four-part crime drama from the team behind the acclaimed dramas Appropriate Adult and Cilla, which cleverly weaves together multiple narratives to tell a tragic and gripping true story.

On an unassuming afternoon, eleven-year old schoolboy Rhys Jones is shot dead by teenage thug Sean Mercer whose intended target was a rival gang member. The murder of a little boy in broad daylight on his way home from football training sends shock waves through the city of Liverpool.

Detective Superintendent Dave Kelly (Stephen Graham) is under increasing pressure to bring the killer to justice, but his efforts are frustrated by the suspect’s friends and family, who spin a web of lies designed to keep him free. As witnesses are forced to examine their conscience, Rhys’s parents, Mel (Sinèad Keenan, pictured left) and Steve (Brìan F O’Byrne, pictured right) navigate their way through the emotional fallout, whilst battling to keep their family together.

In the first episode of the series, when eleven-year-old schoolboy Rhys Jones (Sonny Beyga) is brutally shot dead walking home from football practice, DS Dave Kelly is charged with bringing his teenage killer to justice. The killer’s identity – Sean Mercer (Paddy Rowan) – is well known, but finding the evidence to charge him proves to be a far more difficult challenge.

Filmed on location in Liverpool and the North West

production details
UK / ITV – / 4×50 minute episodes / Broadcast from Monday 24 April 2017 at 9.00pm

Writer and Executive Producer: Jeff Pope / Costume Design: John Krausa / Production Design: Anna Higginson / Producer: Kwadjo Dajan / Director: Paul Whittington

cast
Stephen Graham as Detective Superintendent Dave Kelly
Sinead Keenan as Melanie Jones
Brian F. O’Byrne as Steve Jones
Sonny Beyga as Rhys Jones
Matthew Roberts as Owen Jones
Stephen Walters as DCI Mark McGuinness
Jodie McNee as DC Jackie Carter
Robbie O’Neill as DC Danny Jones
Derek Barr as DC Matt Parry
Sara Powell as Assistant Chief Constable Pat Gallan
Michael Moran as Kevin Moody
Michael Baker as Sam Moody
Paddy Rowan as Sean Mercer