The Story

The Story is running at the Olivier Theatre on the South Bank until Saturday 24 October, having opened on 27 August. It's Tracey Scott Wilson's newsroom thriller, and it's based on true events.

The plot kicks off when a white man is killed in a Black neighbourhood. Four journalists from a newspaper's Vanguard section race to break the headline, but as they dig in, they get pulled into the dark heart of the case. Along the way they end up confronting race, bias, professional rivalry, and exactly what they're willing to overlook to be first to publish. The Vanguard section itself has a bit of a history: it started as a pro-slavery paper and later turned into a champion of positive community stories, so there's a whole legacy of shifting perspectives running beneath the surface.

Clint Dyer directs, and if his name sounds familiar, it's because he's worked with the National Theatre before — his previous credits include the Death of England series. The play runs about two and a half hours, including an interval, so it's a proper evening's commitment rather than a quick one.

Tickets are £30, £42, £65, £85, and £110 for Monday-Saturday evenings and matinees, with a £4 booking fee per order. It's at the Olivier Theatre, part of the National Theatre on the South Bank, London SE1 9PX, and it runs until 24 October.