Lawyer X gets Sky News doco, book deal, and Foxtel mini series
News Corp’s coverage of the now-infamous ‘Lawyer X’ Nicola Gobbo has led to a book deal, Sky News documentary and Foxtel mini series centring on the story.
The two-part investigation by Sky News will premiere next week, with the Harper Collins book and Foxtel series to follow in October and 2020 respectively. Gobbo, a criminal law barrister, came to notoriety after The Herald Sun revealed she was double-crossing prominent criminals – her clients – and acting as a police informant. She was known as Lawyer X until her name was made public in March, following the lifting of suppression orders.
“The Herald Sun’s reporting set off an extraordinary chain of events that rocked Victoria’s legal and law enforcement establishment, with the implications continuing to unfold across the judiciary and the wider community,” Paul Whittaker, Sky News’ chief executive said.
“The documentary will speak to key insiders and reveal new information into the events that shook Victoria’s justice system and sparked a Royal Commission into the scandal.”
The reporting by Anthony Dowsley and Patrick Carlyon began almost five years ago, with it taking that long to fight dozens of suppression orders preventing media from naming Lawyer X. Dowsley and Carlyon will author the Harper Collins book, to be titled ‘Lawyer X’.
A still-ongoing Royal Commission into how Victoria Police deal with informants was established as a result, and the convictions of Gobbo’s clients have been drawn into question.
“Victoria Police didn’t want the public to know about Lawyer X,” said the Herald Sun’s editor Damon Johnston.
“It took nearly five years of secret legal battles and dogged investigation before the Herald Sun could detail how police recruited a barrister who played both sides of the fence.
“This story was not just in the public interest, it was of great public interest. And the public deserved the truth.
“The Herald Sun is thrilled that its courageous reporting of this landmark legal scandal is now the subject of a Sky News documentary, Harper Collins book and Foxtel drama.”
The Foxtel series, Lawyer X: The Story of Informer 3838, will be released in eight parts in 2020.
Lawyer X: The Untold Story, presented by Peter Stefanovic, will air on Sky News next Monday 22 July and Tuesday 23 July.
Brittney Rigby was Mumbrella's deputy managing editor - news and analysis. She left Mumbrella in April 2021.
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Anthony Dowsley
Damon Johnston
Foxtel
Harper Collins
Lawyer X
Nicola Gobbo
Patrick Carlyon
Paul Whittaker
Sky News
What time does the show air please? .. it wasn’t in the article.
I have to go visit a friend to view it so, I need to know what time to ask her to cook my dinner.
Dinner and a show eh! .. pretty good .. and two nights in a row to boot! .. I’ve kicked!
Cheerz, Sally
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Hi Sally,
It’s on at 8pm (AEST) on Monday 22 and Tuesday 23 July.
Enjoy,
Vivienne – Mumbrella