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The Sixth Commandment: Real detective praises BBC drama

BBC Jonathan Aris alongside Mark GloverBBC
DCI Mark Glover, on the right, was played by Sherlock actor Jonathan Aris in The Sixth Commandment

A detective has described watching the BBC drama of a real life murder investigation he led as "a strange experience".

The murder of Peter Farquhar in Maids Moreton, Buckinghamshire, was adapted into The Sixth Commandment in July.

DCI Mark Glover, from Thames Valley Police, said the drama was "very accurate in its portrayal".

He praised Éanna Hardwicke for his portrayal of murderer Benjamin Field who "absolutely nailed it, spot on."

Filming on The Sixth Commandment
Detectives were invited to the set to advise actors on their portrayals

Speaking to Crimewatch Live, Mr Glover said BBC crews visited the offices of the detectives and allowed them to have input into the script to help with "terms of accuracy, sequence of events."

He added: "Myself and two of the sergeants went down to Bristol when they were filming it, and met the actors portraying us, and talked about our experiences to them."

The lead detective in the case had planned to watch the series on a weekly basis but had so many emails and messages after the first episode he had to watch the whole thing on BBC iPlayer.

"It was a strange experience to be honest with you," he said.

He praised the drama for not glorifying former church warden Field, who was sentenced to life in prison for the murder.

"It highlighted the plight of the family, the trauma the families went through as well and didn't glorify Ben Fields," he said.

Executive producer and writer Sarah Phelps had previously said she "didn't want Ben Field to be the main character" and instead focussed on the stories of victims.

Jonathan Aris as Mark Glover
DCI Mark Glover said it was important for his team to be recognised for two and half years of detective work

Mr Farquhar died in 2015. He had changed his will, naming Field as the main beneficiary and giving him a life interest in his house.

At Field's trial in 2019, it was revealed that he had carried out a sustained "gaslighting" plot aimed at making Mr Farquhar question his sanity.

Field had also seduced Mr Farquhar's neighbour, Ann Moore-Martin, who died in 2017.

Speaking of the investigation that linked the deaths of Mr Farquhar and Miss Moore-Martin, Mr Glover said his team "went above and beyond".

He said: "The attention to detail, long hours, all that kind of thing, it needed to be rewarded, so the team was recommended for a chief constables commendation which they received".

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