Stephen Graham has a knack of picking a good script and gave a storming performance as a conflicted undercover detective recently in Jed Mercurio’s Line of Duty and he continues to show why his reputation is on the rise with a cracking portrayal in Shane Meadow’s The Virtues.
In the third episode of this four-parter, Graham continues his redemptive journey as Joseph, a painter-decorator and recovering alcoholic who arrives in Ireland to confront hazy, fear-inducing memories from a childhood spent in the care system.
The Virtues is not a comfortable watch by any means and it is credit to Meadows as writer/director and Graham as the damaged Joseph that this drama has remained a slow-burning personal journey that while aiming to close off a difficult past is as likely to churn up destructive memories with tough consequences.
The Virtues – Wednesday at 9.00pm on Channel 4.
