“An Extraordinary Heist Thriller”: Suranne Jones and Jodie Whittaker Unite for ITV’s Explosive New Drama Frauds

It’s toxic friendship. It’s emotional betrayal. It’s a heist thriller with heart. And it’s coming this October.

Television has always had a soft spot for the heist. From slick Hollywood blockbusters to gritty British dramas, audiences love the thrill of the con, the adrenaline rush of a job gone wrong, and the intoxicating glamour of characters who live on the knife-edge between loyalty and betrayal. But ITV’s Frauds isn’t just another jewel in the crown of the heist genre — it’s a bold, emotional, and extraordinary new take that places female friendship right at the center of the crime.

Starring powerhouse duo Suranne Jones (Doctor Foster, Gentleman Jack) and Jodie Whittaker (Doctor Who, Broadchurch), Frauds tells the story of two women bound by years of love, mistrust, and unfinished business — and one last job that could either bring them redemption or ruin.

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A Heist Like No Other

The heart of Frauds lies in its daring inversion of the traditional gangster narrative. Instead of focusing on the mob bosses, the slick conmen, or the master thieves pulling strings in smoke-filled rooms, this story asks: What happens when the crime family is fractured by time, betrayal, and mortality?

The series introduces us to Bert (Suranne Jones), a seasoned con artist whose years behind bars have done little to dull her sharp wit and appetite for danger. After a decade in a maximum-security Spanish prison, Bert is unexpectedly released on compassionate grounds following a devastating cancer diagnosis. But instead of fading quietly into her final days, she has one last burning ambition: to pull off a spectacular multi-million-pound art heist.

Waiting for her on the outside is Sam (Jodie Whittaker), her once-inseparable partner in crime. While Bert has endured prison walls, Sam has built a quieter life in the rolling hills of Southern Spain. She’s tried to bury her past, tried to suppress the guilt that still haunts her, and tried to live a life untouched by the chaos of her old partner. But when Bert turns up at her door — frail, fiery, and full of schemes — Sam is inevitably pulled back into the toxic web of their friendship.

What follows is a six-part rollercoaster through trust and treachery, family and betrayal, love and vengeance. The stakes? A priceless art collection. The cost? Possibly everything.

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“Toxic Female Friendship” at Its Core

What makes Frauds so electrifying is not just the heist itself, but the relationship at its heart. As co-creator Suranne Jones explains:

“We took the idea of toxic female friendship and turned it on its head to give the heist genre an emotional heartbeat. I have always wanted to work with Jodie, and now I am. I hope you love Bert and Sam and all they get up to as much as we do.”

The friendship between Bert and Sam is no ordinary bond. It’s equal parts devotion and destruction, loyalty and manipulation. They’ve loved each other, betrayed each other, saved each other, and ruined each other — and the heist becomes the perfect metaphor for the impossible push and pull of their connection.

Viewers are not just watching two women attempt a daring theft; they’re watching a lifetime of unresolved tension boil to the surface. Will Sam stand by Bert one last time? Or will Bert’s relentless hunger for risk drag them both down?

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First Look: Glamour, Grit, and Danger

ITV has already released tantalizing first-look images from the series, and the tone is unmistakable: a blend of sun-soaked glamour and underworld grit.

The mountains of Southern Spain provide a breathtaking backdrop — a paradise hiding the shadows of secrets and lies. In one image, Jodie Whittaker’s Sam gazes anxiously across a vineyard, her face marked by both serenity and dread. In another, Suranne Jones’s Bert smirks knowingly, her prison years etched into her expression but her eyes still blazing with defiance.

It’s clear that this isn’t just a tale of disguises and break-ins — it’s a character study of two women who know each other’s deepest weaknesses and darkest desires.

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The Plot: Betrayal, Revenge, and One Last Job

The official synopsis from ITV paints a vivid picture:

“Set in the picturesque mountainous region of Southern Spain, Sam and Bert have unresolved issues of the thieving kind. Locked into a pattern of fierce friendship coupled with deep mistrust, Bert has no one else to turn to in the final weeks of her life. Sam reluctantly agrees to give her former friend a bed in the idyllic smallholding she calls home. But Bert’s ulterior motive soon becomes clear: on the pretext of one final, multi-million-pound art heist, Bert attempts to lure Sam out of retirement. At what cost?”

The genius of Frauds lies in its duality. On the surface, it’s a thrilling crime caper — the suspense of the plan, the high stakes of the job, the fear of betrayal at every turn. But beneath the surface, it’s about guilt, redemption, and the devastating ways friendship can both sustain and destroy.

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Meet the Cast: A Powerhouse Ensemble

If the plot promises fireworks, the cast ensures detonation. Frauds has assembled one of ITV’s most impressive line-ups in years:

• Suranne Jones as Bert — fierce, fragile, and impossible to ignore.

• Jodie Whittaker as Sam — torn between guilt, loyalty, and the hope of escape.

• Talisa García as Miss Take — a sharp, funny Spanish trans woman who hosts drag bingo on the Costa del Sol.

• Elizabeth Berrington as Jackie Diamond — a magician’s assistant with a razor-sharp tongue and secrets of her own.

• Christian Cooke as Deegs — a moneylender whose arrival in Spain spells trouble.

• Nansi Nsue as Amaya — a Spanish cop and working mother chasing a string of bizarre thefts.

• Lee Boardman as Craig — Jackie’s husband, a manipulative narcissist who hides behind smoke and mirrors.

• Abdul Salis as Mateo — Miss Take’s loving husband and biggest champion.

• Karan Gill as Bilal — a loner with an extraordinary talent for forgery.

• Thais Martin as Caitlin — Sam’s estranged daughter, a petty criminal eyeing her own prize.

• Kate Fleetwood as Celine — an art dealer running a children’s soft play centre as a front.

• Javier Taboada as Blas — a charismatic prison guard entangled with Bert during her sentence.

Together, they form a kaleidoscope of characters — cops and criminals, lovers and liars — all colliding in a high-stakes drama where no one is entirely trustworthy.

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Behind the Scenes: Vision and Creation

Frauds comes from Monumental Television, the powerhouse studio behind hits like Ghosts and Harlots. It is co-created by Suranne Jones and Anne-Marie O’Connor (Maryland, Trollied), whose vision was to blend the adrenaline of a heist with the raw intimacy of female relationships.

As O’Connor puts it:

“We wanted to take a look at the importance and fierceness of female friendship — and to do it using the propulsive heist genre. Having Jodie and Suranne at the center of it all is a dream.”

Directed with cinematic flair and shot on location in Spain, the series promises a visual feast — golden sunsets clashing with shadowy alleys, warm family dinners contrasting with cold betrayals. It’s heist drama elevated to prestige television.

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The Themes: Family, Fear, and Female Power

Beyond the twists and tension, Frauds is a show about family — chosen, broken, and betrayed.

For Bert, family is the partner she left behind and the daughter she never truly had. For Sam, family is both refuge and regret. And for Caitlin, Sam’s long-lost daughter, family is just another battleground in the fight for survival.

It’s also a story of female power in a world dominated by male violence. The women of Frauds aren’t sidekicks, victims, or molls — they are the schemers, the leaders, the masterminds, and the threats. And they’re not afraid to outsmart anyone who underestimates them.

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The Hype: Why Frauds Could Be ITV’s Next Big Hit

Already dubbed by early insiders as “an extraordinary heist thriller” and “Shetland meets The Split with a dangerous twist”, Frauds is poised to be ITV’s most buzzed-about release of 2025.

With two of Britain’s most beloved actresses at its core, a script that promises both spectacle and soul, and a release date perfectly timed for autumn bingeing, the drama seems destined to capture both ratings and critical acclaim.

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When and Where to Watch

The wait won’t be long. ITV has confirmed that Frauds will premiere on ITV1 and ITVX this October. The exact date is set to drop imminently, but one thing is certain: the countdown to television’s next obsession has begun.

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Final Word

At its heart, Frauds is about two women who can’t escape each other — and perhaps don’t really want to. It’s about the exhilarating danger of chasing one last big score, and the devastating reality of what it costs. It’s about friendship, betrayal, and the impossibility of walking away from the people who know you best — even when they might destroy you.

In a television landscape crowded with crime dramas, Frauds dares to be something different: a heist thriller with a beating heart.

And when Suranne Jones and Jodie Whittaker collide on screen this October, viewers won’t just be watching a con. They’ll be watching two of Britain’s greatest actresses pull off the ultimate trick — stealing our hearts while breaking them.

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📺 Frauds premieres on ITV1 and ITVX this October 2025.