Why self-confessed 'superfans' were engrossed by Post Office inquiry

People with nary transportation to the Post Office person told the BBC however they became engrossed watching the nationalist enquiry into the Horizon IT scandal.

It became astir container bureau viewing - racking up much than 20 cardinal views connected YouTube – mostly helped by the ITV play Mr Bates vs The Post Office which brought the ungraded to wider nationalist attention.

It was a communicative of mean radical going astir their moving lives who were victims of a faulty IT system, with catastrophic consequences. Some were financially ruined, others went to prison. Some died portion waiting for justice.

The sub-postmasters' plight struck a chord with many, and immoderate "superfans" avidly followed each measurement of the inquiry, some online and successful person.

These "superfans" told the BBC what it was that gripped them and what they anticipation for present that the enquiry has travel to an end, aft 225 days of hearings involving 298 witnesses.

Anthony Abdool thinks he's 1 of the fewer "superfans" who hasn't seen the ITV drama. Instead, helium heard astir the ungraded connected the quality and would ticker the enquiry online astatine home, uncovering it "profoundly moving and outrageous".

"The much they got into it, the much outraged I became," Anthony says.

That's erstwhile helium decided to be and took clip disconnected enactment to go. Anthony, who is simply a freelance advertizing copywriter, says helium was "very lucky" his brag fto him instrumentality a full of 9 days arsenic paid leave.

His colleagues were besides supportive of his determination to be and regularly asked him for updates.

"I deliberation that reflects the wider value that radical connect to the enquiry and I can't deliberation of thing I've been funny successful that agreed the nationalist successful specified a way."

Anthony would station connected X portion astatine the enquiry and made friends online with others funny successful the story. He says he'll beryllium funny to spot if they privation to enactment "Twitter mates oregon if we've reached the extremity of our journey".

And present that the enquiry is over, helium says: "Well, I'll person to spell backmost to work!"

Isabella Thomas, 19, attended the enquiry for a week of enactment acquisition implicit the summer.

"I was genuinely humbled to beryllium successful the beingness of truthful galore unthinkable people, moving to guarantee justness is served to those who truthful merit it," says the second-year instrumentality and authorities student.

The scandal, which saw much than 900 sub-postmasters prosecuted for stealing due to the fact that of incorrect accusation from the Horizon machine system, has been called the UK's astir wide miscarriage of justice.

"This acquisition inspired maine to specified an grade that I chose a module called 'Miscarriages of Justice' for my grade this year."

After attending the enquiry successful June, she carried connected watching it online.

She says she has been near successful awe by the bravery of the sub-postmasters themselves, galore of whom person "lost homes, jobs, state and adjacent lives, to support warring for themselves and others".

Isabella is present pursuing different inquiries regarding injustices but inactive thinks "the occupation is acold from complete" erstwhile it comes to justness for the sub-postmasters.

• Why were hundreds of sub-postmasters wrongly prosecuted?

Carrie, 63, archetypal heard astir the Post Office ungraded connected the quality earlier watching the ITV drama.

"Once I realised the enquiry was disposable regular connected YouTube, I was off! I was connected vacation past February and recovered myself listening to the idiosyncratic accounts of sub-postmasters whilst sat connected the formation with earbuds."

She besides listened to a batch of the Fujitsu engineers who were liable for Horizon due to the fact that she wanted to recognize much astir the bugs and errors successful the software.

"I became somewhat obsessed and backtracked to drawback up with a batch of the videos I realised I'd missed from earlier successful the inquiry," says Carrie, who is retired.

She tried to ticker the enquiry regular and became a instrumentality of Nick Wallis, a writer who has been reporting connected the ungraded for years, adjacent attending 1 of his circuit days and buying his book.

She says erstwhile sub-postmasters and campaigners Sir Alan Bates and Jo Hamilton are 2 of her "inquiry heroes", arsenic good arsenic Jason Beer, the pb counsel for the inquiry.

Mr Beer has emerged arsenic an improbable cult leader acknowledgment to his grilling of cardinal witnesses astatine the inquiry.

"He was fantastic to watch," says Carrie.

She is present looking guardant to speechmaking the study by enquiry seat Sir Wyn Williams, which is expected to beryllium published adjacent year.

"I would dearly similar to spot a fig of individuals prosecuted, though I uncertainty this volition ever happen," she says.

• Sir Alan Bates receives knighthood

Abi Smith, 55, watched the enquiry online and says she became much drawn into it aft proceeding erstwhile Post Office main enforcement Paula Vennells springiness evidence.

Ms Vennells, who had not spoken publically astir Horizon for astir a decade, was quizzed implicit 3 days successful May successful the astir anticipated quality of the inquiry.

Abi, who works successful acquisition management, says she recovered it "quite bizarre" and "incredible" that a main enforcement could assertion "she didn't cognize truthful much".

She was truthful inspired by the events that she decided to knit a station container topper of Ms Vennells being questioned by Mr Beer.

"I conscionable wanted to marque a connection really," she says.

Abi, whose grandad and aunt utilized to enactment for the Post Office, thinks the ungraded touched truthful galore radical due to the fact that "it's ever been a precise trusted institution".

She describes the events arsenic a "tragedy of trust" and thinks it volition instrumentality immoderate clip earlier thing other inspires her to knit a country of specified impact.

As an expat surviving successful Australia for the past 12 years, Paul Duckett initially watched Mr Bates vs The Post Office to "reconnect with my homeland".

"But I was besides compelled by interest for the radical I lived among for astir of my life," helium says.

The 56-year-old captious scientist and assemblage lecturer started posting astir the enquiry hearings connected his YouTube channel.

He is different subordinate of the Jason Beer instrumentality club. One of his videos, titled "What makes Mr Beer magnificent?", presently has 80,000 views.

He says Mr Beer's wit stood out. "He was sharp, speedy to spot erstwhile answers were evasive oregon erstwhile witnesses passed disconnected phantasy arsenic fact. He utilized humour sparingly but effectively, often exposing the absurdity of definite explanations.

"If you asked Mr Beer, I fishy he'd property the inquiry's occurrence to the squad astir him and, successful doing so, he'd show his ain magnificence. That humility is 1 of his defining qualities."

Although enthralled by the inquiry, Paul is gladsome it's present travel to an extremity and hopes "meaningful action" volition beryllium taken.

Pey Kan Su archetypal heard astir the Post Office ungraded erstwhile his woman mentioned the ITV drama.

After watching online and seeing "the bonzer complexity of the full thing", helium decided to be the hearings successful person, going a full of 29 times.

"It has been the astir eye-opening but uplifting experience," helium says.

Pey Kan is simply a litigation solicitor, though helium is presently not practising, and an artist. He ever carries papers and pencils with him and attending his archetypal enquiry proceeding was nary exception. He began to regularly gully the country portion listening to the evidence.

"Drawing helps 1 to see. I person a fewer paintings of the enquiry hearings, the fewer that I felt I indispensable bash a coating of successful bid to explicit my thoughts astir the witnesser and counsel."

Pey Kan hopes the enquiry volition permission lawyers with "food for thought".

"I anticipation we ne'er suffer the motivation clarity to basal up erstwhile we spot the small feline being beaten down, and that the nationalist volition ever backmost those who request it most," helium says.