| Genre: | Crime drama |
| Director: | Lynsey Miller |
| Country: | Ireland |
| Language: | English |
| Num Episodes: | 1 |
| Producer: | Mike Dormer |
| Cinematography: | Neus Ollé |
| Editor: | Kristina Hetherington |
| Runtime: | 90 minutes |
| Company: | Renegade Pictures |
Doing Money is a British television crime drama, written by Gwyneth Hughes and directed by Lynsey Miller, that was first broadcast on BBC Two on 5 November 2018. Focusing on the subject of modern slavery in the sex trade, the film, starring Anca Dumitra and Allen Leech,[1] is based upon the novel Slave by Jason Johnson, published on 3 May 2018.[2]
The film documents the story of 'Ana', a Romanian student training to be a nurse who is kidnapped in broad daylight from the streets of London and ordered to work as a prostitute in a number of brothels in Ireland and Northern Ireland. Casting for the film was announced in August 2018.[3] The film was broadcast as part of the BBC's Why Slavery? season, to coincide with International Anti Slavery Day.[4]
Anca Dumitra said of her role as Ana; “Ana is a truly remarkable person, someone who has survived endless abuse with courage and determination, a real-life hero. I have been deeply moved by her story and it’s an honour to play her in Doing Money. This is a story that needs to be seen.”[3]
Allen Leech added; “I’m delighted to be part of telling this moving and important true story. Doing Money, Ana’s experience, shines a light on the shocking truth of human trafficking and slavery in Britain. DI Dougie Grant was one of the key officers at the centre of the original investigation. It’s a real privilege to play him.”[3]
Alison Graham of the Radio Times wrote; "After watching Gwyneth Hughes’s fact-based drama Doing Money, I went home stifled by a cloud of misery that couldn’t be dispersed, even by the repeats of ancient Big Bang Theories I watched long into the evening just to try to flush the horror from my system. I found Doing Money so overwhelming – the true story of Ana, a young Romanian woman working as a cleaner in Britain who was abducted by a trafficking gang from a street in Wood Green London and forced into sex slavery. I was harrowed as she was repeatedly brutalised into submission by a series of men who treated her savagely."[4]
Viewers described the film as "horrific", "disturbing", "harrowing" and "heartbreaking."[5]