Plot Synopsis

The Red Riding trilogy follows several characters in intertwining storylines over a ten-year period -- all linked by the gruesome real-life crimes of the Yorkshire Ripper, a serial killer who terrorized northwest England from 1975-1980. Part 1: In 1974 a cocky, libidinous young crime reporter discovers a cesspool of corruption and depravity as he tenaciously pursues a potential connection between a child murder and two earlier, unsolved cases of missing girls. Part 2: In 1980 a conscientious Manchester police constable is dispatched to Yorkshire to get the embarrassingly fruitless pursuit of the Ripper back on track. Part 3: In 1983 a new crime prompts a veteran detective and a low-rent lawyer to revisit the conviction of a mentally disabled man in the 1974 child murder case, unveiling the depth and breadth of the official crime and corruption. After its 2009 run on British television, RED RIDING played in select U.S. theatres in February 2010 as a five-hour film. Later that year, Sundance aired the U.S. television premiere when it showed the trilogy on consecutive Sundays at 10pm, starting November 28, 2010.