Why Save Me is the best TV drama of the year

Lennie James as Nelson "Nelly" Rowe in Save Me
Lennie James as Nelson "Nelly" Rowe in Save Me Credit:  Justin Downing

At 9pm last night, this year’s most eye-opening TV drama reached a climax with its most extraordinary scene.  A group of paedophiles met at a secretive auction in a backstreet snooker hall to bid for abducted children. In case of a police raid, the “lots” weren’t actually present and described in euphemistic terms: “This highly desirable, one-off item is 13 years old, 100 per cent unused and ready for immediate delivery.” 

It was chilling, upsetting and utterly unforgettable. Unless something just as boldly original and viscerally compelling comes along in the next eight months - and there are dispiritingly few signs of that so far - Sky Atlantic’s Save Me looked like a surprise contender for...

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