The Bombing of Pan Am 103 is a six-part British television drama, starring Connor Swindells, Merritt Wever and Patrick J. Adams. It is about the 1988 disaster of Pan Am Flight 103, which was the deadliest terrorist attack in British history. The series premiered on 18 May 2025 on BBC One in the UK and worldwide on 30 July 2026 on Netflix.
Contents
Premise
The Bombing of Pan Am 103 focuses on the two investigations by the British and U.S. governments into the bombing on Pan Am Flight 103 after the explosion over the town of Lockerbie in Scotland in 1988.
Cast and characters
Connor Swindells as DS Ed McCusker
Eddie Marsan as Tom Thurman
Peter Mullan as DCS John Orr
Lauren Lyle as June McCusker
Phyllis Logan as Moira Shearer
Tony Curran as DCI Harry Bell
Patrick J. Adams as FBI Special Agent Dick Marquise
Merritt Wever as Kathryn Turman
James Harkness as DS Sandy Gay
Amanda Drew as Linda Burman
Molly Geddes as WPC Lauren Aitken
Nicholas Gleaves as Allen Feraday
Douglas Hodge as DCS Stuart Henderson
Alastair Mackenzie as Alastair Campbell QC
Kevin McKidd as DCS Tom McCulloch
Dominik Tiefenthaler as Edwin Bollier
Terence Maynard as Gabe Lepley
Parker Sawyers as Phil Reid
Adam Rothenberg as Neil Gallagher
James Anderson as Thomas G. Plaskett
Production
Development
The series was commissioned in July 2023 by BBC One and Netflix. It was developed by MGM Television and Night Train Media alongside filmmaker Adam Morane-Griffiths, who had brought the project to them, and Sara Curran, in 2020.
It is written by Jonathan Lee and Gillian Roger Park, while Michael Keillor directs. Park was born on the west coast of Scotland four days after the disaster, and she told Deadline Hollywood: "The Lockerbie bombing hangs over Scottish culture very heavily. I felt the weight of that. This was a job that I really wanted to do and it’s a real honor to be asked. It's a precious story."
The series is produced by World Productions, in association with MGM Television and Night Train Media with Julia Stannard as producer.
Casting
In March 2024, Patrick J. Adams, Connor Swindells and Merritt Wever were confirmed in the lead cast as well as Eddie Marsan, Lauren Lyle, Phyllis Logan and Peter Mullan.
Filming
Principal photography started in Scotland in early 2024, with filming locations also including Malta and Toronto.
Marketing
First-look images from filming and the confirmed series title, The Bombing of Pan Am 103, were provided to the media in March 2025.
Music
In May 2025, the post-rock band Mogwai were revealed to have provided the series soundtrack.
Release
The first episode of six-part series aired on BBC One and BBC iPlayer in the United Kingdom on 18 May 2025 before heading to Netflix globally on 30 July 2026.
