A new drama film from the BBC will air tonight, which details the 'Climategate' crisis from 2009.
The Trick tells the story of Professor Simon Jones - played by Jason Watkins - the Director of Climate Research at the University of East Anglia.
It details Jones being the victim of hacking that saw thousands of emails stolen and then used by climate change deniers.
The ensuing media storm that undermined public confidence in science and Jones having to fight unjustified persecution is then brought to the forefront.
Alongside Watkins, Victoria Hamilton, George MacKay, Adrian Edmondson, Jerome Flynn, Chris Larkin, Pooky Quesnel and David Calder will feature.
The cybercrime that stole a decade…
— BBC (@BBC) October 7, 2021
#TheTrick, a landmark film that tells the real-life story of the ‘Climategate' affair from 2009
The Trick / Streaming 18th October / BBC iPlayer / #OurPlanetNow pic.twitter.com/K6RlgaRESy
It was directed by Pip Broughton, best known for helming the series Keeping Faith, and written by Owen Sheers.
The Trick will air on BBC One at 8.30pm and then be made available on the BBC iPlayer.
But some people might not know the full story behind the 'Climategate' incident and what it was all about.
What is the full story behind the 'Climategate' crisis from The Trick?
The incident which become known as 'Climategate' began in November 2009.
A server at the Climate Research Unit at the University of East Anglia was hacked, with thousands of emails and files copied to various places weeks before a Copenhagen summit on climate change.
The story was first broken by climate change deniers, who falsely claimed that the emails showed climate change was a scientific conspiracy, and that scientists had manipulated data on the topic.
Due to the timing of the Copenhagen summit discussing climate change mitigation, policy experts said this story was a smear campaign intended to undermine the conference.
In the end eight different committees investigated the allegations and published reports, finding that there was no evidence of fraud or scientific misconduct.
The Trick will air on BBC One at 8.30pm on Monday October 18
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