🔗 Share this article

What would you do if that wildest companion from your youth reappeared? What if you were dying of cancer and had nothing to lose? Consider if you felt guilty for getting your friend imprisoned a decade back? Suppose you were the one she got sent to prison and your release was granted to die of cancer in her care? What if you had been a almost unstoppable pair of scam artists who still had a collection of costumes from your prime and a deep desire for one last thrill?

These questions and beyond are the questions that Frauds, a new drama starring Suranne Jones and Jodie Whittaker, flings at us on a exhilarating, intense six-part ride that follows two female fraudsters determined to executing a final scheme. Similar to an earlier work, Jones developed this series with a writing partner, and it has all the same strengths. Much like the mystery-thriller formula was used as background to the psychodramas gradually unveiled, here the elaborate theft Jones’ character Roberta (Bert) has meticulously arranged in prison since her diagnosis is a means to explore a deep dive into companionship, deceit, and affection in every variation.

Bert is released into the care of Sam (Whittaker), who resides close by in the Spanish countryside. Remorse prevented her from ever visiting Bert, but she has stayed close and worked no cons without her – “Bit crass with you in prison for a job I botched.” And to prepare for Bert’s, albeit short, life on the outside, she has bought her plenty of new underwear, because various methods exist for women companions to show repentance and a classic example is the purchase of “a big lady-bra” following ten years of uncomfortable institutional clothing.

Sam aims to continue leading her quiet life and look after Bert till the end. Bert possesses different plans. And if your most impulsive companion has other ideas – well, you often find yourself going along. Their old dynamic slowly resurfaces and Bert’s plans are already in motion by the time she lays out the full blueprint for the heist. This show plays around with the timeline – producing engagement rather than confusion – to present key scenes initially and then the explanations. So we observe the duo slipping jewellery and watches from affluent attendees at a funeral – and acquiring a gilded religious artifact because what’s to stop you if you could? – before ripping off their wigs and reversing their funeral attire to transform into vibrant outfits as they walk confidently down the church steps, filled with excitement and loot.

They need the assets to finance the operation. This involves hiring a document expert (with, unbeknown to them, a betting addiction that is likely to draw unneeded scrutiny) in the guise of magician’s assistant Jackie (Elizabeth Berrington), who possesses the necessary skills to assist in swapping the intended artwork (a renowned Dali painting at a prominent gallery). Additionally, they recruit art enthusiast Celine (Kate Fleetwood), who specialises in works by male artists exploiting women. She is equally merciless as all the criminals the forger and their funeral robbery are drawing towards them, including – most perilously of all – their former leader Miss Take (Talisa Garcia), a contemporary crime lord who employed them in frauds for her from their teens. She reacted poorly to the pair’s assertion of themselves as self-reliant tricksters so unresolved issues remain in that area.

Plot twists are interspersed with progressively uncovered truths about Bert and Sam’s history, so you experience the full enjoyment of a sophisticated heist tale – executed with no shortage of brio and praiseworthy readiness to overlook obvious implausibilities – alongside a captivatingly detailed portrait of a bond that is potentially as harmful as her illness but equally difficult to eradicate. Jones delivers arguably her best and multifaceted portrayal yet, as the wounded, bitter Bert with her lifetime pursuit of excitement to distract from her internal anguish that is unrelated to metastasising cells. Whittaker supports her, delivering excellent acting in a slightly less interesting part, and alongside the creative team they create a fantastically stylish, emotionally rich and profoundly intelligent work of art that is inherently empowering without preaching and an absolute success. Eagerly awaiting future installments.