Oldham, Lancashire 1932: Albert Pierrepoint (Timothy Spall), a local delivery truck driver, arrives home one day to a letter sent to him ‘On Her Majesty’s Service’. He has been accepted for training at Pentonville Prison, to honour the Pierrepoint name and become a British executioner, following in the footsteps of both his father and uncle. Despite his evident pride and excitement, his mother Mary disapproves and tells him exactly what she told his father: she never wants to hear, see, nor speak of it.

The opportunity is a dream come true for Albert and he makes the trip to London. The journey marks the beginning of the incredible career of the world’s most famous executioner, who will one day officiate at the hangings of some of Britain’s most notorious murderers. These included Haigh, the acid bath murderer, and Ruth Ellis (Mary Stockley), the last woman to be hanged in Britain.

Five years on, now married to local girl Anne Fletcher (Juliet Stevenson), Albert is happily combining domestic bliss with his secret double life as a hangman. He carries out every execution with professionalism and detachment, strictly separating ‘the man’ from ‘the executioner’. For his own dignity, as well as that of his victims, he refuses to divulge any details of his job and, as with his mother, it is not discussed at home.

Seeking refuge from the stresses and strains of war time, he and his friends spend many evenings enjoying a few drinks and having a sing-a-long beside the piano in their local pub. Within its blacked-out windows, Albert, nicknamed ‘Tosh’, loves nothing more than performing spirited duets with his pal ‘Tish’ (Eddie Marsan). The punters can’t get enough of ‘Tish and Tosh’. It’s a small but priceless distraction from the harsh realities of the war.

Nuremburg 1946: the full horrors of the Nazi atrocities are unveiled to a dumb-struck world. The UK Government has only one man in mind to administer true British justice to the convicted. Albert flies to Germany to face his biggest task yet; to hang hordes of Nazi war criminals including the notorious Beast of Belsen. As ever, he completes his task with stern resolution. Yet the magnitude of his actions disturbs him. His anonymity has vanished and he is alarmed at being pestered by people wherever he goes. The secret he has so carefully guarded all these years is now front page news.

Nonetheless Albert’s occupation has earned him a generous income, enabling him to take over the lease on the local pub where his new-found fame attracts hoards of curious customers. The jovial ‘Tish and Tosh’ performances, however, take on a distinctly sombre tone when a distraught Tish has his heart broken by the gorgeous, yet promiscuous, Jessie (Claire Keelan). Their brief affair meant everything to him but her attentions have strayed elsewhere.

As memories of the war recede into the 50s, there is a marked shift in the public mood against brutality and, consequently, an ever increasing presence of clamorous protesters on execution days. Although since his return from Germany the cracks have started to show, Albert vows never to let his emotions get the better of him and determinedly carries on with his grim duty.

Summoned to an execution at Strangeways in Manchester, Albert is unaware it will mark the beginning of the end of his career. When he arrives at the prison he makes a discovery every executioner dreads – the condemned man is one of his friends. It’s Tish, sentenced to death for murdering Jessie in a jealous rage. Ever the professional, Albert performs the execution but for the first time is unable to maintain his composure. The guilt he feels is unbearable and his spirit has finally been broken. Shortly after the execution of Ruth Ellis, a young mother of two, the harsh reality of his job overwhelms him and Albert Pierrepoint resigns – his conscience is finally victorious.

Monday, 25 August 2008, 9:00PM – 10:50PM ITV1