Former Sutton postmaster praises ‘accurate’ Mr Bates vs The Post Office series bringing back ‘bad memories’

Between 1999 and 2015 more than 700 sub-postmasters were prosecuted and convicted based on information from Fujitsu's Horizon IT accounting system which made it look like money was missing.

The scandal took its toll on many incriminated by the system as some workers were imprisoned and forced to declare bankruptcy, while others were shunned from their community and some even took their own lives.

To date, 93 convictions have been overturned and, and of those, only 27 people have agreed to “full and final settlements”.

But not all convictions have been appealed as there are 54 cases where convictions were upheld after appeal and people were denied permission to appeal.

A public inquiry into the scandal is ongoing.

The new ITV drama Mr Bates vs the Post Office tells this ‘true story’ and stars actors Toby Jones, Will Mellor, Katherine Kelly and Shaun Dooley.

The series, that had a debut audience of 9.2 million viewers, centres around Alan Bates, a former postmaster who vowed to get justice for workers wrongfully convicted by the Post Office.

Speaking to ITV, when asked about what he hopes will come from the series, Mr Bates said the aim has always been to “expose” the truth.

More people have been affected by the scandal than in any other miscarriage of justice in the UK, and many postmasters in the area were affected by the scandal.

Harjinder Butoy, a former postmaster at Forest Side Sub Post Office in Sutton, said the series is “101 percent” accurate and brought back “bad” memories of his experience.

Mr Butoy endured 18 months behind bars for a crime he did not commit.

In 2008, a jury found him guilty of stealing £206,000 from the accounts of the post office he ran – but his conviction was finally overturned at the Court of Appeal in 2021.

He said: “I'm really happy that the television programme has come out so people know the truth.

“The TV series was 101 percent accurate, all the speeches and statements on it are recorded interviews.

“Watching it brings back some bad memories.”

John and Mandy Dickson ran the Pleasley post office for nearly three years but were suspended in 2011 after money went missing.

John ended up with a criminal record for false accounting and was ordered to carry out community service – but in 2021, his conviction was also quashed in the Court of Appeal.

In 2021, Mr Dickson told your Chad the scandal had caused his family a lot of “pain” over the years.

Since the show aired, Ex-Post Office boss Paula Vennells said that she will hand back her CBE with immediate effect following calls for her to be stripped of the honour after more than one million people signed an online petition.

Rishi Sunak has also announced new legislation to exonerate wrongly convicted Post Office branch managers.

The Prime Minister said there would be a new upfront payment of £75,000 for some of those affected.