Sky has today announced the commission of documentary series, The Lie That Exposed the Truth, coming to Sky Documentaries and NOW later this year. 

When Ellie Williams’ allegations of grooming went viral, they tore the town of Barrow apart and triggered national outrage. Police quickly denied there was a grooming gang and Ellie was sentenced to eight and a half years in jail. But was there truth beneath the lies? And did the focus on proving one young woman a liar lead to denial of a wider grooming problem?

Produced by Sandpaper Films (The Betrayed Girls, A Deadly American Marriage) this three-part series reframes the Ellie Williams case, moving beyond a single question of truth or lies to expose a far wider and more troubling story.  The series sheds new light on the Ellie Williams case, as well as uncovering accounts from other women in Barrow whose allegations of abuse by a group of predominantly Asian men were dismissed or ignored. The Lie That Exposed The Truth also explores how far-right groups have weaponised such cases to fuel outrage and mistrust while agencies, wary of racism accusations, have often avoided confronting perpetrators’ ethnicity. 

Developed and filmed over three years, against the backdrop of a growing national reckoning and public inquiry into grooming, the series is based on extensive access and original research and features survivor testimony and first-time interviews with Ellie Williams’ family. It is made in co-production with Full Story Films and draws on the journalism of Sky News’ Unreliable Witness podcast. At its heart, the series is about women who were abused and not believed, placing Barrow within a wider pattern of grooming scandals and asks: why can’t Britain confront this problem, and who pays the price?

Henry Singer, Executive Producer, Sandpaper Films said: “We’d previously made a film on the Rochdale grooming scandal so when the Ellie Williams story broke, something didn’t sit right with us with how the press was telling it.  It just felt there was more to it.  That was the start of a three-and-a-half-year journey, navigating a tricky landscape to separate fact from fiction. In so doing, we discovered there was a much larger story to tell — not just in Barrow — but nationally.  The abuse of young girls has been ignored and dismissed for far too long, and we hope the series does justice to their voices and sparks a long-overdue debate.”

Hayley Reynolds, Head of Documentary Commissioning at Sky said: "This series re-examines the narrative around Ellie Williams, using her case to uncover a broader and more troubling story, and expands the focus to include the experiences of other women and girls in Barrow. Sky Documentaries is thrilled to be working with the exceptional team at Sandpaper Films, whose work in this area is both authoritative and deeply respected, and in co-production with the newly formed Full Story Films. Over the three years this series has been in the making, the national conversation around grooming has grown increasingly charged and divisive — making this series all the more timely.”

The Lie That Exposed The Truth (3x60) was commissioned by Phil Edgar-Jones, Executive Director, Unscripted Originals at Sky for Cécile Frot-Coutaz, Chief Advertising and Content Officer, CEO Sky Studios. The Head of Documentary Commissioning is Hayley Reynolds and the Commissioning Editor for Sky is Bruce Fletcher. The Lie That Exposed The Truth is produced by Sandpaper Films in co-production with Full Story Films, Sky News’ premium long-form documentary unit. Henry Singer, Catey Sexton and Susannah Price serve as Executive Producers for Sandpaper Films.  The series is directed by Ceri Isfryn and Katie Hindley, the Series Producer is Farah Qayum, the Senior Producer is Alexandra McArdle and the Producer is Bill Mostyn. Siobhan Sinnerton and Vesna Cudic are Executive Producers for Full Story Films and Liz Lane is Producer.