Turning a crisis into a drama - Post Office drama shows power of story telling.

Telling stories is one of the oldest forms of human communication.  From earliest times, when tales were told around the fire blazing at the entrance to the cave, to today’s Hollywood blockbusters and social media reels, stories that grab the imagination and touch us, emotionally, can have the most powerful and profound impact.

Nothing better illustrates this than the showing, last week, of the ITV drama Mr Bates versus the Post Office.  Few can be unaware of the long-running scandal of postmasters and postmistresses driven out of business, wrongly convicted and, in some cases jailed, for theft and false accounting when they were completely innocent.  Some even took their own lives.  Others have passed away before seeing justice.

But the brilliantly written and beautifully played drama has given new impetus to the campaign for a proper recognition of what the 700-plus victims of this appalling miscarriage of justice went through and for all their names to be cleared and meaningful compensation to be paid.

The impact of the television series, galvanising public opinion and forcing politicians to act with far greater speed, demonstrates the importance of owning the story.  A significant part of the power of Mr Bates versus the Post Office came from the fact that it was told from the point of view of the victims.  Taking control of the narrative is so important in any communication.

The drama would not have been possible without the hard work of investigative journalists like Nick Wallis, the freelancer who crowdfunded his diligent efforts to cover the case forensically over many years and build up a complete picture of the scale of the injustice.

But the fact that senior politicians - including the Prime Minister - are only now sitting up and taking proper notice or that parliament is fully debating this issue for the first time, is a testament to the fact that telling a story in the right way can make a huge difference to the way it is perceived.

The Post Office scandal has been told in news bulletins, in-depth newspaper reports, podcasts and even a book, written by Nick Wallis.  Yet it took this drama, on which Mr Wallis also acted as an adviser, to achieve the breakthrough that only now is getting the results those affected need and deserve.

Few stories can match this one for sheer emotional power.   It has made the whole nation angry and brought an out-pouring of sympathy and concern for the victims.

It would be crass and insensitive to look too hard for direct parallels in communications more generally.  Nothing should be allowed to diminish what the victims have suffered.

But there are lessons here, about storytelling, including the fact that it takes persistence to drive a message home and that finding a range of ways to communicate can often help a cause.  Above all it shows that point of view matters.  Mr Bates versus the Post Office had such an impact because it was told from the point of view of the victims’ terrible experiences.  It was their story.

The key for those at the heart of any story is to take the initiative.  Control the narrative and you have a much better chance of controlling the outcome, even if in extreme cases, you need a drama to fully drive home the message.