Waiting for the Out

Waiting for the Out
Based on	The Life Inside: A Memoir Of Prison, Family and Learning to be Free by Andy West
Screenplay by	Dennis Kelly Levi David Addai
Directed by	Jeanette Nordahl Ben Palmer
Starring	Josh Finan Francis Lovehall Gerard Kearns Samantha Spiro Phil Daniels Stephen Wight
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of series	1
No. of episodes	6
Production
Executive producers	Dennis Kelly Jane Featherstone Chris Fry Katie Carpenter Andy West Tanya Qureshi
Producers	Ken Horn Louise Sutton
Production company	Sister
Original release
Network	BBC One
Release	3 January 2026 (2026-01-03)

Waiting for the Out is a British six-part television series based on Andy West's memoir The Life Inside: A Memoir Of Prison, Family and Learning to be Free, from writer Dennis Kelly. It premiered on 3 January 2026 on BBC One.

Cast and characters

• Josh Finan as Dan Stewer
• Stephen Wight as Lee Gifford
• Gerard Kearns as Dan's Dad
• Ronkẹ Adékoluẹjo as Officer Stephens
• Neal Barry as Officer Guthrie
• Josef Altin as Greg Turner
• Steven Meo as Daniel 'Macca' McKenzie
• Ric Renton as Wallace Robson
• Tom Moutchi as Tom 'Junior' Kouame Jr
• Nima Taleghani as Malik Zahir
• Charlie Rix as Zac Colton
• Alex Ferns as Keith McKellar
• Sule Rimi
• Jude Mack as Jessica Atherton
• Samantha Spiro
• Phil Daniels
• Francis Lovehall

Production

The series is produced by Sister. It is adapted from Andy West's memoir The Life Inside: A Memoir Of Prison, Family and Learning to be Free, adapted by writers Dennis Kelly, Levi David Addai and Ric Renton. ^[1] The series is directed by Jeanette Nordahl and Ben Palmer, with Ken Horn and Louise Sutton serving as producers. The executive producers are Kelly, Jane Featherstone, Chris Fry, Katie Carpenter and West, with Tanya Qureshi for the BBC. ^[2]

It is starring Josh Finan alongside Francis Lovehall, Gerard Kearns, Samantha Spiro, Phil Daniels, Stephen Wight, Ronkẹ Adékoluẹjo, Neal Barry, Alex Ferns, Steven Meo, Ric Renton, Tom Moutchi, Nima Taleghani, Sule Rimi, Charlie Rix, and Jude Mack. ^[3]

Principal photography took place in Liverpool in May 2025. ^{[4] [5]}

Broadcast

It premiered on 3 January 2026 in the United Kingdom on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. ^[6]

References

1. Goldbart, Max (6 March 2025). "'Matilda The Musical' Scribe Dennis Kelly Penning BBC Adaptation Of Andy West's Prison Memoir 'The Life Inside'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 6 May 2025.
2. Goldbart, Max (6 May 2025). "BBC Confirms Dennis Kelly Adaptation Of Andy West's Prison Memoir Starring 'The Responder's Josh Finan". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 6 May 2025.
3. "BBC confirms new Dennis Kelly drama from Sister". Televisual. 6 May 2025. Retrieved 6 May 2025.
4. Dukes, Emma (6 May 2025). "New BBC series starring The Responder & Black Mirror actor Josh Finan begins filming in Liverpool". Liverpool World. Retrieved 6 May 2025.
5. Greer, Jamie (7 May 2025). "BBC TV series with 'brilliant' Merseyside actor starts filming across Liverpool" . Retrieved 8 May 2025.
6. Moss, Molly (12 December 2025). "The Responder star's new BBC drama based on "deeply emotional" true story gets release date confirmed". Radio Times. Retrieved 15 December 2025.