It’s normally easy to overlook the smaller and more personal stories on streaming services — instead watching the bigger and flashier shows on the likes of Netflix right now — but Toxic Town is increasingly becoming the talk of well, the town.
Adapting the real-life stories of families affected by the Corby toxic waste case, the British miniseries has been striking true with viewers watching families fighting for justice, following Corby Borough Council’s proven negligence in handling toxic waste between 1984 and 1999.
After a decade of taking the case to court, a judge finally ruled in favor of the families affected in 2009. Reported by outlets like The Herald at the time, the judge gave a very lengthy statement which included: “There was an extended period between 1983 and August 1997 in which Corby Borough Council was extensively negligent in its control and management of the sites which they acquired from British Steel and otherwise used”.
With well-known English and Scottish stars like Jodie Whittaker, Aimee Lou Wood, and Robert Carlyle, Toxic Town has been a huge splash with Netflix subscribers as a series adaptation. Numerous users on X (formerly Twitter) — like Laura Bough above — commented that not only were the cast great, but Toxic Town has shone an important light of awareness on the Corby case as well.
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Others would also agree that while it’s easy to look back at the 80s, 90s, and even the 2000s as a sort of “the before times” now that we’re in the mid-2020s, it’s important to note that the type of negligent attitudes which led to the landmark case still exist today.
On her own post about Toxic Town, Shauna Corr said: “If ever there was a show that highlights the very real danger of public authorities ignoring environmental regulations it’s #ToxicTown. There are still some cowboys out there thinking a bit of dust/air/water pollution doesn’t matter… but these things can cause real harm”.
Additional viewers, like Josh, noted on his post the painful personal element that the cast did great in portraying as well. He said: “Just finished watching #ToxicTown and it is heartbreaking to see the families’ struggles. Growing up in Corby this was such a massive thing for the town and was excellently portrayed by the cast.”
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Such high praise has been mirrored on Toxic Town’s Rotten Tomatoes page. While the audience score has unexplainably dropped from around 94 percent to 71, the consistent critical score of 100 percent — along with all of the positive buzz on social media, shows that it’s at least worth checking out.
For those using Netflix in the UK, you can quickly find Toxic Town by looking for the #1 spot in the “Top TV Programmes in the UK Today” section. In the US, Toxic Town isn’t as high in the streaming charts, but still in the top 10 — a testament to the power of strong word of mouth, considering American viewers wouldn’t even typically be in the show’s target audience.