ITV’s Joan follows the life and career of notorious jewel thief Joan Hannington and some people might be wondering if the extraordinary storyline is based on real events or not.
There’s nothing quite like a show based on true events to capture both viewers’ imaginations and curiosity. So when we find ourselves drawn into a compelling new drama, from Baby Reindeer The Perfect Couple, it’s all-too-easy to wonder whether the storyline has any true inspiration behind it, just like so many series that have gone before. This might now be true of fans of ITV’s six-part series Joan, which delves into the life of one of Britain's most accomplished jewel thieves in 1980s London.
Joan Hannington, played by Game of Thrones star Sophie Turner, is a fascinating figure and the depth and remarkable journey of this character can’t fail to spark some curiosity. For those wondering if Joan is a true story, we have all the details about what inspired the ITV series and where Joan Hannington is now.
*Warning: Spoilers ahead*
Is ITV’s Joan a true story?
ITV’s new six-part series, Joan, is inspired by the true life story of Joan Hannington, who was formerly a successful jewel thief in the 1980s and was known to some in that criminal world as "The Godmother". The show’s writer, Anna Symon, met with the real Joan Hannington whilst working on the series, as did Sophie Turner. As per RadioTimes, Joan’s producer Ruth Kenley-Letts explained that she “really wanted” Joan to be "happy" with the scripts and felt a "huge" sense of responsibility to stay "true to her story".
Whilst the team were focused on faithfully bringing Joan Hannington’s story to life, certain things were slightly changed as they brought it to life on screen, such as the name of her daughter.
In the series we meet Joan as she strives to give six-year-old daughter Kelly (Debbie in real life) a better life after escaping her violent criminal husband. The real Joan experienced horrific childhood abuse by her father, before leaving home and marrying convicted criminal Ray Parvey at 17, with whom she had Debbie.
Their daughter was later placed in foster care and Joan embarked on her career as a thief with the goal of saving up money and getting Debbie out of foster care to live happily with her. Along the way Joan discovered her immense talent for jewel thievery in 1980s London.
According to Express.co.uk, in her memoir, I am What I am: The True Story of Britain’s Most Notorious Jewel Thief, Joan explained that she would swallow the gemstones and then later sterilise them in gin.
Her estimated value for her first haul of stolen diamonds was apparently £10,000 and at the height of her notoriety Joan Hannington is said to have had over £800,000 worth of jewels hidden carefully in a biscuit tin in her garden. During the course of her life, Joan Hannington has only been prosecuted twice, firstly when she was arrested for driving to see Debbie in foster care in a car that was stolen.
The second time she was sentenced to 30 months in prison for using a stolen cheque book. After her years working as a successful jewel thief, Joan Hannington later retired from a life of crime and has expressed how long ago the events seen in Joan took place and how she’s pleased with the portrayal.
According to Metro, in a Q&A about ITV’s Joan, the real Joan reflected, "I think [Sophie] and I think everybody here knows me well enough, and if I didn’t like it, I’d say so. I’ve led a certain life, although to be, you know, I’ve been retired 40 years. This was all, as you know, in the 80s – I just thought I’d get that in there! But kudos to Madame, she’s done an amazing job."
Not only is ITV’s Joan based on a true story, but its depiction of Joan Hannington’s life and Sophie’s portrayal of "The Godmother" have seemingly earned Joan’s approval.
Where is Joan Hannington now?
Joan Hannington is happily living her life and she retired from criminal activity after the death of her second husband, Boisie Hannington, who was a real person. As we see in ITV’s Joan, the real Joan married antiques dealer and thief Ronald Thomas Hannington, also known as Benny Boisie - with whom she had a son called Ben who appeared briefly in the series as a bartender. Boisie is played in the show by Frank Dillane and he helped Joan try and regain custody of Debbie and showed her the tricks of his trade.
Boisie and Joan lived a luxurious life together for many years. After his death, the devastated Joan decided to start over and turn her back on her former career.
"I had more than enough money to last for life. I sold Benny's antique shops, cleared out my home and started afresh in Islington, North London,” she reportedly once declared.
Joan Hannington now reportedly lives on the South Coast and is a proud mother and grandmother who also owns two pet dogs. At the press conference for Joan, she described how “amazing” yet unusual it was for her to be talking about herself and to have her story being in the spotlight again after all these years.
"To be sitting here at 68 with my son and my granddaughter, talking about me, I still find it a bit... I'm not a showbiz person, I'm a very private person and I just find it amazing,” she said.
All episodes of Joan are available to watch now on ITVX and the series is also airing on Sundays and Mondays at 9pm on ITV1.
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