By Press Release
The question was asked: “Will you carry on?” And the answer was emphatic. “I won’t stop until I see justice.”
Jamie Green, who has just been released from prison after serving half a 24-year sentence for his part in a conspiracy to import the largest haul of cocaine ever found in UK waters, was speaking at a post-show question-and-answer session at the end of ‘The Freshwater Five’ play at Quay Arts, Newport, last Thursday (March 2).
The play, which tells the story of five men who were sentenced to a total of 104 years for conspiracy to import £53 million worth of cocaine into the UK, returned to the Island for a second stint last week.
Despite the five (Green, Jon Beere, Zoran Dresic, Daniel Payne and Scott Birtwistle) serving various amounts of time in prison, they all continue to proclaim their innocence.
The play is written and directed by Island-born Samuel Bossman and Liam Patrick Harrison, whose research and development process and performances brought them into contact with the men’s legal champion, Emily Bolton, who was also there to support Jamie.
Jamie said on stage: “When you go to court you are in the police’s playground; you are a rabbit in the headlight.
“When I was first interviewed, I was only asked about the Oriane, the boat the drugs were supposed to have been dropped from. Even then, my QC said there was corruption in the case. The system is designed to beat you.
“It still hurts; it’s frustrating – all I have got left to sort this out.”
Emily added: “The police have so much power to take away someone’s liberty. There is a code of silence among them.”
The production by Deadman Theatre, supported by Arts Council England, will continue its run on the south coast and in London. It has been completely rewritten, following the original performance last year with more emphasis on Jamie. Samuel said: “I have evolved the play and engaged more with the family; it gives it a more authentic feel.”
The lead role is played by Leigh Kelly, who looks similar to Jamie and gives a strong performance, especially in an emotive scene when Jamie is taken, handcuffed, to a prison officer to attend his wife, Nikki’s, funeral.
