Before the summer is not just merely dead but really most sincerely dead, here’s a flashback to a limited series that premiered on AMC on May 31. Called “Quiz,” it’s worth a look, and not solely because it stars Matthew Macfadyen, the actor who plays the marvelously sycophantic Tom Wambsgans on “Succession.”
The three-parter is based on a real-life “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” scandal from the early 2000s in England. Macfadyen’s Major Charles Ingram, his wife, Diana (Sian Clifford, the sister on “Fleabag”), and another contestant were accused of cheating during the games that led to Charles winning a million dollars. The reputed weapon of choice? Coughing in the audience to guide Charles to the correct answers.
Advertisement
Written by James Graham, who also wrote a play of the same title, “Quiz” takes us from the creation of “Millionaire” (before it came to the States) with host Chris Tarrant (Michael Sheen) all the way through the high-profile trial that riveted the country and ruined the Ingrams’ lives. We see the underground of game lovers who help contestants, legally if not ethically, and we see compelling re-creations of Charles’s odd, halting appearances on the show.
“Quiz,” which is intelligently directed by Stephen Frears (“A Very English Scandal”), is entertaining and provocative, too, as we hear both the prosecutor and the defense cases in persuasive detail. The whole thing has an appealingly light tone, with strong performances to match. By the time Charles shows up in court wearing a Mensa pin, Macfadyen has made Charles’s desperation palpable — like “Quiz,” both humorous and kind of sad.
Matthew Gilbert can be reached at matthew.gilbert@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @MatthewGilbert.