‘Lockerbie: A Search for Truth’ reveals history in a new light

By Molly Adkins

It’s mid-December in 1988. You might be listening to Christmas music, decorating or visiting family. But then a news story interrupts your TV or radio. A plane has gone down over Lockerbie, Scotland, and they are calling it a terrorist attack.

So was the case for Jim Swire and his family. After an agonizingly long period of waiting, they received the news… their daughter was, in fact, on that flight. There were no survivors.

This incident launches into a chain of events chronicled in Peacock’s new TV series, “Lockerbie: A Search for Truth.” After the horrific death of his daughter, Flora (Rosanna Adams), Jim Swire (Colin Firth) becomes determined to find out who is behind the bombing of Lockerbie. Over the next two decades, he repeatedly risks his life and reputation in his hunt for justice.

This series is based on the real-life terrorist bombing on Pan Am Flight 103 and includes real events such as the trial of Libyan operatives Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi (Ardalan Esmaili) and Lamen Khalifa Fhimah (Mudar Abbara), and Jim Swire’s smuggling of a fake bomb through airport security. Of course, there are aspects of the show, including detective and reporter Murray Guthrie (Sam Troughton), that are not true to history. While Murray may not be a real figure, he helps drive the narrative and aids in the audience’s understanding of Swire’s research and discoveries.

The show itself, while focusing on the Lockerbie bombing, also did a great job of bringing other world events into the narrative. The show itself spans over twenty years, and we see Lockerbie and the terrorist scares related to the horrors of 9/11, the Libyan revolution and much more. These events are demonstrated incredibly, with montages of old news clips from around the world, driving a global perspective and proving that the Lockerbie bombing isn’t just one downed plane. It’s a part of a much bigger narrative.

Something the series did incredibly well was the timeline. It’s often hard to keep up with shows that span long periods of time, but “Lockerbie” helped the audience to visualize where they are in the narrative. It did this by displaying the new date, year and how many days since the bombing, whenever the characters moved up in time. 

Another thing the series excelled in was the soundtrack. “Lockerbie” has a soundtrack that not only successfully underlies the tone of each scene, but is also incredibly intentional. For example, when Pan Am Flight 103 is boarding, there is a distinct heartbeat flowing through the track.

The acting in “Lockerbie” was phenomenal. This is a show built on strong emotions and intensity, and the actors consistently delivered a performance that expressed anger, fear, grief and a million other emotions. Small details like voice cracks, facial expressions and body movement truly help to bring the audience into a real, heartbreaking story.

“Lockerbie: A Search for Truth” is not without critics, however. Many families have spoken out, saying that the show did not focus enough on other grieving families and spent too much time on the Swires. The other main critique is the show’s deliberate choice to show the plane blowing up and passengers dying. Families of Lockerbie victims are calling this show triggering and insensitive.

Another notable aspect of “Lockerbie” is the political leaning. This show clearly sets up themes and evidence of terrorism, lying governments and information that remains classified to this day. “Lockerbie” also reveals that there are, in truth, documents regarding the Lockerbie bombing that are still classified under the U.K. government, and the show strongly pushes the idea that this is unfair to many of the parties involved.

Behind the scenes, the real Jim Swire met with Colin Firth, visited the sets and his nonfiction book, “The Lockerbie Bombing: A Father’s Search for Justice,” was strongly taken into account while the script was being written. So while “Lockerbie: A Search for Truth” is fictionalized and sensationalized, the heart of the story remains true to form, which gives the series strong depth. This show makes the audience think deeply about its themes of justice, grief, terror and just how far we would go to find out the truth.

All in all, this is not a light show. It’s horrific, heartbreaking and fascinating. But if you’re looking for a series that will make you think and will give you a new perspective on history, “Lockerbie: A Search for Truth” may be exactly what you’re looking for.

“Lockerbie: A Search for Truth” is currently available to stream on Peacock.

Molly Adkins is a senior Professional Writing and Information Design major who watched “Lockerbie: A Search for Truth” because she wanted to see Mr. Darcy (Colin Firth) investigate history.

Images courtesy of Peacock.