The Passion

During Holy Week 2008 BBC1 broadcast The Passion, a dramatic re-telling of the last days of Jesus. The series was shown in peak time and was seen by many millions of people.

Episode 1

Palm Sunday 16^th March, BBC ONE, 8pm (One hour)

It's Passover in Jerusalem, and the city is bursting with pilgrims. It's a tense time for those charged with keeping order - like Pilate the Roman Prefect and Caiaphas the High Priest. The arrival of a preacher from Galilee called Jesus causes great excitement when he enters through the East Gate on a donkey's colt, fulfilling prophecies of the coming of the Messiah. For Jesus's band of disciples, hardened by several years on the road, this is the moment they've been waiting for, but none of them suspects how momentous this week will be.

Episode 2

Monday 17^th March, BBC ONE, 8.30pm (30 minutes)

Caiaphas is growing increasingly anxious that Jesus's preaching will provoke unrest and bring in the Romans, and when Jesus appears to threaten the Temple it's the final straw. As Jesus tries to explain his destiny to the disciples, Caiaphas calls a council and presents it with a stark choice. With Passover approaching, a fateful decision is taken, and Judas finds himself placed in an impossible position.

Episode 3

Good Friday 21st March, BBC ONE, 9pm (One hour)

Jesus shares his Last Supper with the disciples, and teaches them their last and most important lesson. Whilst Judas slips away to fetch the Temple guards, Jesus leads the disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane and tries to prepare himself for what is to come. The next few hours will bring him face to face with Caiaphas, with Pilate and with his own destiny.

Episode 4

Easter Sunday 23rd March, BBC ONE, Time TBC (30 minutes)

As Jesus is taken from the cross and buried, his disciples cower in hiding. Caiaphas, fearful that the body will be stolen, orders the tomb to be guarded. But when Mary Magdalene discovers it empty, a chain of events is about to begin that will transform the lives of the disciples and reverberate throughout the world for the next two thousand years.

Guidance from the Churches' Media Council

These notes have been prepared by a group representing many of the major Christian denominations, brought together by the Churches' Media Council. They are intended to help churches and others to prepare for the series.

These are the principles we would like to commend to the Christian community in approaching the series.

We welcome this production

There's no need to debate whether or not the Christian community should welcome this production or not. We celebrate the fact that the story of Jesus is being retold for an audience of millions. We should resist the temptation to focus on details. Instead we welcome this production.

This is a BBC series

We don't wish to “claim“ The Passion in any way as ”our“ series. We have not had any editorial input into the series, nor would we wish to. The story of Jesus is central to the Christian community – but it belongs to the world.

This is a work of drama

That may seem obvious – but it's important. This series wasn't conceived as an exercise in evangelism. It wasn't intended as a dramatisation of the gospel text. It springs from the story of the gospels, and the producers have used the gospels as their source. But this is a work of drama. So we need to judge it as a work of drama and not as a piece of theology.

Let's talk about Jesus

This is the story of the last few days of the life of Jesus. It will prompt believers and unbelievers alike to think about Jesus. This is probably not the moment to discuss the state of the church or the finer points of theology. Instead we should aim to keep the focus of our discussions on the person of Jesus.

For further information and guidance please see:

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the National Church Doing?

What can a Local Church Do?

Nigel Stafford-Clark

on putting Jesus on TV.

Nigel runs Deep Indigo Productions. His work includes The Way We Live Now, Bleak House and Warriors all of which won BAFTAs. He spoke at the Churches' Media Conference 2007 about The Passion – a six-part life story of Jesus for BBC1 which he produced.

Nigel Stafford-Clark on The Passion. Listen Now

Printable Leaflet

The information available on this website can also be found in our leaflet on The Passion. Please feel free to download and print the leaflet if you wish.

The Passion leaflet 414 KB

You will need Adobe Reader software to read the leaflet PDF file.

Related Links:

The Passion BBC website

Bible Society resources

Tell me more about Jesus

Media enquiries

Media enquires about the series can be made to Michelle Osborn at the BBC Press Office on 0208 225 7283 or via michelle.osborn@bbc.co.uk.

To obtain pictures for press or publicity contact pictures@bbc.co.uk. Pictures will be available from the end of January.

If you would like to speak to a representative of the Christian community about the series please call Andrew Graystone (Churches' Media Council) on 07772 710090 or Charis Gibson on 0207 207 2117 or c.gibson@eauk.org who are acting as contact-points for the wider Christian community. They will be pleased to advise you. If your enquiry is of a local or denominational nature you may wish to speak to the relevant local or regional communications officer.