We can't wait to watch powerful new drama Anne. The series, which is set to air in January 2022, tells the true story of Liverpool-based couple Anne and Steve Williams, who spent decades fighting for justice after their son Kevin died aged 15 in the Hillsborough disaster of 1989.
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Appearing on the sofa of This Morning, Maxine Peake and Stephen Walters, who play the couple in the ITV show, opened up about their experience of filming the show, with Stephen revealing that he has a close connection to the tragedy himself.
WATCH: Anne is set to air in January 2022
The actor, who is also known for his roles in Shetland, Silent Witness and Outlander and hails from Merseyside, admitted that he had family members who attended the game but fortunately made it out alive.
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"I remember my dad trying to contact my uncle John because his son was at the game - he was a season ticket holder - and there was a frantic panic with that," he told hosts Vernon Kay and Rochelle Humes.
Stephen revealed his own close connection to the tragedy on This Morning
"As the day went on, you realise something more serious was happening. And then by the end of the day's play, there was, I don't know how many fatalities, but you knew it was bad."
Stephen also looked back on his own memories of the sad days that followed the disaster. "I remember my brother going down to Anfield with his scarf, bless him. There was a memorial, there was just a sea of red and white with flowers and cards and photographs and stuff," he said.
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"And everybody has a story like that in the community, whether it was your neighbours or in school, and the reverberations of that still continue 30-odd years later and we're talking about it now."
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Stephen also told viewers that to prepare for his role in the show, he met with the real-life Steve and bonded over music. "It's always a gift to meet someone that you're going to play but you don't want to impersonate them either. When you're playing someone who is real in a biographical sense you want to do justice to that."
Meanwhile, the real-life Anne sadly died in 2013, but the couple's youngest daughter Sara Williams has already spoken out in praise of Maxine's touching and realistic portrayal of her mum.
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