Banged Up Abroad
| Banged Up Abroad | |
|---|---|
Title Screen
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| Also known as | See International airings below |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| No. of series | 8 |
| No. of episodes | 80 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 60 minutes (with commercials) |
| Production company(s) | Raw TV |
| Release | |
| Original network |
Channel 5 (UK) National Geographic Channel |
| Picture format | 16:9 |
| Original release | March 2006 – present |
Banged Up Abroad (rebadged as Locked Up Abroad for the National Geographic Channel) is a British documentary/docudrama television series created by Bart Layton that was produced for Channel 5 and that premiered in March 2006. Most episodes feature stories of people who have been arrested while travelling abroad, usually for trying to smuggle illegal drugs, although some episodes feature people who were kidnapped or captured while travelling or living in any other country. Some episodes have featured real-life stories that first became well-known when they were the subject of a film: films that have been "re-made" in this way include Midnight Express, Goodfellas, The Devil's Double, Argo, Mr Nice, and, to a lesser extent (with the story of Frank Cullotta), Casino.
Eight series were broadcast, between 2006 and 2013. A ninth aired in 2016.
The episodes typically contain a mixture of interviews with the real people and actors reconstructing the events. The convicted or captured are shown talking about their experiences, over dramatic reenactments of their respective experiences. The episodes focus on the events leading up to the arrest or time in captivity.
In a few cases, at the end of the episode, the convicted are shown sitting with handcuffs on, where they are still in jail. In most cases, the convicted or captured have returned home from where they are telling their story. In other cases, the convicted or captured are shown revisiting the country of the incident.
In 2008, five additional episodes were produced, each one about a kidnapping, under the alternate title "Kidnapped Abroad".
Ernie Brace is a civilian American pilot during the Vietnam War who was held as a prisoner of war for about eight years in Vietnam, including at the infamous "Hanoi Hilton". He communicated with fellow POW John McCain by tapping through the wall; the two never spoke face-to-face until after the war ended. The episode features interviews with both Brace and McCain. This episode was blocked in Vietnam due to what the Vietnamese government called "inaccurate information" about the Viet Cong.
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