Salisbury BBC air date, cast, trailer, plot: When will Salisbury start?

Salisbury is an upcoming two-part BBC drama series about the 2018 Novichok poisonings in Salisbury, England. The BBC announced the drama earlier this month (May, 17), which will be written by McMafia writers Adam Patterson and Declan Lawn. Read on to find out more about the new series about the Salisbury Novichok poisonings.

When will Salisbury start on BBC Two?

The BBC has not yet confirmed a release date for Salisbury on BBC Two.

Salisbury was only recently announced by the BBC, so it is still early days for any huge information to be released surrounding the drama.

The drama is expected to air in the latter half of 2019 or early 2020.

However, it is also likely the factual drama may air on the two year anniversary of the Novichok poisonings which occurred on March 4, 2018.

Announcing the news, Piers Wenger, Controller of BBC Drama, said: “BBC Two plugs into contemporary issues and dilemmas of the modern world, and has a rich history of exploring true stories from different perspectives in a sensitive and considered way.

“The poisonings in Salisbury shocked the nation and had a huge impact on an unsuspecting community.

“This drama will capture the bravery, resilience and personal experience of the local people who faced a situation of unimaginable horror, so close to home.”

Laurence Bowen, Dancing Ledge Productions CEO, added: “This is the story of the poisonings in Salisbury that hasn’t been told - the story of a community living through the real-life horror of an invisible threat that could and did kill without warning, a story of tragedy but also of resilience and pride. It’s a real privilege to be involved in its telling.”

The two-part drama series will air on BBC Two and will also be available to watch on the BBC iPlayer.

Each episode of Salisbury will be an hour long in length.

This article will be updated when more information is available.

Who will star in Salisbury on BBC Two?

There have no cast announcements for Salisbury on BBC Two but casting information will be released in the coming months.

Salisbury will tell the true story of the Novichok poisoning of Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia Skripal.

Other real-life characters will include the two men suspected of Skripals poisoning.

They are GRU Colonel Anatoliy Chepiga under the name of Ruslan Boshirov and Dr Alexander Mishkin who was using the alias, Alexander Petrov.

Another person to feature in Salisbury will be Det Sg Nick Bailey from the Wiltshire police who was admitted to hospital after being exposed to the nerve agent.

Other characters are likely to include members from the Wiltshire police force, the public and members of the media.

What is Salisbury on BBC Two about?

At the moment the drama about the Salisbury Novichok poisonings does not have an official title and is currently being called Salisbury.

The series will focus on Poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal on March 4, 2018.

Writers Adam Patterson and Declan Lawn, said: “We feel extremely privileged to be telling this story.

“Extensive, meticulous research is at the heart of how we like to work and we’ve been overwhelmed by the generosity of the people of Salisbury who have opened up to us over the past few months and continue to do so.

“This is an extraordinary story full of ordinary heroes, the tale of how a community responded to an inconceivable event.”

Former Russian military officer Sergei, a double agent for UK intelligence services, and his daughter Yulia were poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent.

They spent three weeks in critical condition in hospital.

Yulia was discharged on April 9, 2018 and her father Sergei was not released until May, 18.

In September 2018, the British authorities identified two Russian nationals - Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov - as the main suspects behind the poisoning, which they have always denied.

The men told Russian media they were ordinary tourists who had wanted to see Stonehenge, Old Sarum and the spire of Salisbury Cathedral.

The synopsis teases the drama will tell the story of “how ordinary people reacted to a crisis on their doorstep, displaying extraordinary heroism”.

So far, it is unclear if what happened to the late Dawn Sturgess and her partner Charlie Rowley - who survived - will be addressed in the new series.

On June 30, 2018, Rowley and his partner, Dawn fell ill after they were exposed to a disposed of a bottle of Novichok.

Dawn passed away on July 8, 2018, as a result of the nerve agent poisoning.

Is there a trailer for Salisbury?

No, unfortunately, there is no trailer for Salisbury yet.

A trailer is unlikely to drop until closer to the series release date.

Salisbury is currently in production