Dirty Business Review: A Blast of Controlled Fury Over Water Pollution
Following the impactful precedent set by ITV's Mr Bates vs the Post Office, television drama has proven its power to amplify public disgust and drive change. Now, Channel 4's Dirty Business, a drama-documentary by Joseph Bullman, takes aim at the scandalous pollution of English and Welsh rivers. If this gripping portrayal fails to incite righteous anger, perhaps nothing will. This production is a fist in the face, mounting an unanswerable case against environmental negligence with a blast of controlled fury.
The Amateur Sleuths Uncovering a National Disgrace
Set in the Cotswolds in 2016, the story follows two neighbours: Ashley Smith, played by David Thewlis, a former real-life investigator of corrupt police, and Peter Hammond, portrayed by Jason Watkins, an Oxford mathematics professor. After noticing brown murk in the once-beautiful River Windrush, they delve into a curious sewage dumping incident. When explanations from the privatised local water company prove unsatisfactory, their investigation deepens.
Ash's keen nose for dishonesty, combined with Peter's algorithmic analysis of confusing data, reveals a devastating truth. Three decades of underinvestment have crippled water infrastructure, leading to environmental calamity on a staggering scale. Thousands of instances of untreated sewage contaminating rivers and seas are exposed, with real footage from campaigners woven into the drama to underscore the damage.
A Heartbreaking Parallel Timeline
A second narrative begins in 1999, following Mark and Julie Preen, played by Tom McKay and Posy Sterling, on a family holiday to Dawlish in Devon. Chosen for its Blue Flag status indicating a clean beach, they instead encounter effluent pumping from a shore pipe. Their eight-year-old daughter Heather steps in the dirty water and tragically dies from E coli O157 poisoning within two weeks.
Although the outbreak's cause was never definitively identified, resulting in a misadventure verdict, the coroner recommended tertiary sewage treatment and a summertime dog ban on the beach. Bullman skillfully navigates the tonal clash between the 2016 scenes' witty banter and the 1999 timeline's pure horror, drawing the Preens' tragedy with devastating starkness.
Comedy as a Weapon Against Corporate Evasion
Dirty Business excels at using comedy as a weapon, particularly in portraying corporate and regulatory failures. Supercilious evasions from water companies are read direct to camera, while the introduction of "operational self-monitoring" in 2008—a policy worsened by David Cameron's spending cuts—is depicted as a darkly absurd comic sketch. This move shifted the burden of identifying environmental breaches from the Environment Agency to the water companies themselves, highlighting systemic flaws.
The drama hits ancillary targets too, critiquing ineffective fines, the revolving door between regulators and companies, and inflated executive salaries. From its opening with Margaret Thatcher's 1989 prediction of successful water privatisation, Bullman maintains focus on the fundamental issue: privatising water provision for profit, without government will to reverse it, perpetuates the crisis.
The Exhausting Battle for Accountability
Unlike typical underdog triumphs, Dirty Business acknowledges the ongoing struggle. Watkins brilliantly captures the stress of citizens battling well-resourced opponents, with Peter nearly giving up amid exhaustion. "Nothing will happen," he anticipates, facing yet more condescending obfuscation. The series leaves viewers questioning whether change will come, emphasizing that television has done its part—now the response is up to the public.
With a right-of-reply statement noting the discontinuation of operational self-monitoring, but clips of Keir Starmer and former environment secretary Steve Reed offering little hope, the drama remains clear and urgent. Dirty Business is a compelling call to action, airing on Channel 4, that could very well become the next catalyst for public outrage and policy change.
