In 1954, 19-year-old Derek Bentley (Christopher Eccleston, making his debut) was executed for a shooting committed by his 16-year-old (and therefore too young to hang) partner-in-crime Christopher Craig (Paul Reynolds).
Bentley had a mental age of 11, and his titular cry was more likely an appeal for surrender than a call to arms.
Directed by Peter Medak (The Krays), this recreation seethes with quiet outrage, building, albeit slowly, to a climax that should put anyone who favours state retribution over rehabilitation to shame.
