'This show means so much to me': Everything we know about Blackpool star Hayley Tamaddon's new show
Fylde Coast star Hayley Tamaddon has took to social media to share her pride at an upcoming TV series starring herself.
Back in the summer, it was announced that Blackpool born actress Hayley Tamaddon had joined the cast of a brand new ITV drama called ‘Betrayal’.
As a trailer for the show has this week been revealed, we thought we’d take a look at everything we know so far about Betrayal, as well as what are local star has said about it all.
What is Betrayal about?
Written by award-winning playwright and screenwriter David Eldridge and directed by BAFTA and Emmy nominee Julian Jarrold (A Very Royal Scandal, This England), the four-part series is set against the backdrop of MI5, and explores the fragile, tangled web of human relationships, where loyalty and deception collide.
At the heart of the story is John Hughes (played by Endeavour’s Shaun Evans), a mid-career MI5 officer navigating a rapidly evolving intelligence landscape while struggling to keep his personal life intact.
Acting on a hunch, John meets a British-Iranian man with links to the Stockport gangland who claims to have intelligence about an imminent plot on UK soil.
When the encounter takes an unexpected turn, John finds himself under internal investigation, facing scrutiny from his superiors, including Simone Grant (I, Jack Wright’s Nikki Amuka-Bird), while his partner Claire (Atonement’s Romola Garai) grapples with the secrecy that defines his world.
John’s efforts to save his marriage are complicated by his inability to let the case go and when he meets Mehreen Askari-Evans (Beyond Paradise’s Zahra Ahmadi), an intelligence operative who is tasked with taking over John’s duties, he finds an unlikely ally.
As John becomes increasingly convinced of the involvement of a hardline faction of the Iranian regime, he also starts to worry there are enemies closer to home but can he identify the target and avert the attack before it’s too late?
What has Hayley said about the show?
Sharing the new trailer to her Instagram story this week, Hayley told her 103k followers: “Being in this show, being Iranian, means so much to me esepcially now. Please watch [heart emoji]”
The former Norebreck Primary School and Montgomery High School pupil has however been sharing her excitment at the show for the past few months.
For instance when her role was officially revealeded last July, Hayley commented on the ITV announcement: “SO exciting! ❤️”
Who else stars in it?
The full cast list is:
- Shaun Evans
- Romola Garai
- Zahra Ahmadi
- Nikki Amuka-Bird
- Gamba Cole
- Omid Djalili
- Matthew Tennyson
- Hayley Tamaddon
- Anthony Flanagan
- Paddy Rowan
- Waj Ali
- Karim Kadjar
- Emma Cunniffe
- Georgina Rylance
- Ben Lambert
- Julia Watson
- Julian Wadham
- Elham Karimpour
- Aidan Rivers
- Corin Silva
- Eliza Agrosoaie
When will the series air?
So far a release date of 2026 is all that has been revealed.
The trailer, released two days ago, does however tease ‘coming soon’ implying there is not long to wait!
Betrayal is produced by Mammoth Screen, the ITV Studios label behind the acclaimed Code of Silence, in association with Navarino Pictures. Executive producers are David Eldridge, Shaun Evans, Julian Jarrold, Tom Leggett and Damien Timmer, with development led by Mammoth’s Creative Director Rebecca Keane. ITV’s Director of Drama, Polly Hill, and Drama Commissioner Huw Kennair Jones oversee the production on behalf of the broadcaster.