When it comes to a true crime drama, nothing grips us more than one rooted in a shocking real-life story – and ITV’s newest offering, The Lady, offers exactly that.
The show follows Jane Andrews (played by Mia McKenna Bruce), a working-class woman who became Sarah Ferguson’s (played by Natalie Dormer) dresser. However, it wasn’t her connection to Fergie that saw her name in headlines – with Jane standing trial in the early 2000’s for the murder of her boyfriend, Thomas Cressman.
Produced by the company behind The Crown, the drama opens with the disclaimer ‘This drama has been inspired by a true story,’ adding, ‘Some names have been changed and some characters, events and scenes have been created and merged for dramatic purposes’.
So, how much of the show is fictionalised, and just how much is based on the chilling truth? Here’s what you need to know about The Lady.
Who is Jane Andrews?
Born in 1967 in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire, Jane grew up in a working-class household. With her father a joiner and her mother a social worker, financial struggles saw them later move to Grimsby – with Jane saying in a 2003 interview, ‘I remember one day we didn’t have enough to buy a load of bread, and Mum had us looking down the sides of the settee and in our coats for money to scrape together.’
Although academically gifted, Jane struggled with her mental health during her teenage years. After completing her O-levels, she chose not to pursue A-Levels, and instead enrolled to study fashion at Grimsby College of Art.
When did Jane Andrews and Sarah Ferguson meet?
So, how exactly did a girl from Grimsby find herself dressing the then-Duchess of York?
After graduating, Jane worked as a sales assistant at Marks & Spencer. One day, she spotted an ad in a magazine for a personal dresser and decided to apply. Six months later, she found herself being interviewed by Fergie (who was pregnant at the time with Princess Beatrice.) The pair reportedly hit it off, with Jane beginning her role as Sarah’s personal dresser in July 1988.
Adapting to royal life, Jane began softening her northern accent – landing her the nickname ‘Lady Jane.’ She told The Guardian, ‘I was a country bumpkin. Suddenly I was at Balmoral mixing with the royals, having long chats with Princess Diana. I was 21 years old and of course I enjoyed it. Fergie was headstrong, but she was good to me.’
At the time of the hiring, Sarah was still married to Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor (formerly known as Prince Andrew at that point in time). The pair would separate in 1992, with Jane’s job only becoming more important. She grew close to the former Duchess during that time, with Fergie said to keep Jane close despite letting other staff go.
It wasn’t until 1997 that Jane would leave the palace, being made redundant as part of cost-cutting measured inside the palace. It was a move that left her shocked, given Fergie had reportedly reassured her just weeks earlier that she would ‘never get rid’ of her.
Who was Jane Andrews married to?
While Jane’s career boomed while employed by Fergie, her love life was more complicated.
She was briefly married to Christopher Dunn-Butler (played by Mark Stanley in The Lady), who was 21 years her senior. The couple knew each other just three months before he proposed, with their relationship lasting only a few years. Jane had several affairs during their time together, later describing them as being ‘more like good friends.’
Not long after, Jane met Greek shipping magnate Dimitri Horne. When Dimitri tried to end their relationship, Jane admitted to smashing up items in their shared flat that were ‘special’ to Dimitri. She told The Guardian, ‘I’m ashamed of what I did. I’ve never done that to anyone else’s possessions.’ Following their breakup, Jane once again attempted to take her own life (something she had attempted as a teenager).
In The Lady, a character similar to Horne is portrayed by Mother Of The Bride‘s Sean Teale.
Is The Lady based on a true story? Inside Jane Andrews’ relationship with Thomas Cressman
After losing her job in the palace and struggling to find employment, Jane secured a job with Knightsbridge jewellers Theo Fennell (father of Wuthering Heights director Emerald Fennell) and Annabel Jones. It was while working here in 1998 that she met Thomas Cresswell (portrayed by Ed Speleers in the ITV series), with their relationship soon progressing.
At the time, Thomas lived a life of privilege. He worked as a stockbroker, while his father had served as director of Aston Villa.
Did Jane Andrews really kill Thomas Cressman?
In the summer of 2000, around two years after they met, Jane murdered Thomas. While it’s accepted that the former royal dresser did indeed kill the stockbroker, the motives behind the crime remain up for debate…
After meeting in 1998, Jane and Thomas’s relationship developed quickly – with some reports suggesting that Jane viewed their romance as a way to enter back into the high society she had left behind. It was reported that one fallout came after a holiday in France, during which Jane had expected a proposal. After returning to Thomas’s Fulham flat in London, the stockbroker phoned the police, saying, ‘We are rowing – someone is going to get hurt unless… I would like the police to come and split us up.’
The police never came, and Thomas was killed.
Jane fled the scene immediately and was later discovered by police in a car in Cornwall. Despite an attempted overdose, she survived – and, after police interrogation, was arrested and charged with Thomas’s murder. Jane has always maintained that she was not responsible for his death, claiming that Thomas was being blackmailed at the time of his murder.
Did Jane Andrews go to prison?
During Jane’s high-profile murder trial in 2001, her defence team argued that Thomas had been physically and sexually violent towards her, also alleging that her depression ‘would have heightened her sense of fear and helplessness.’
Among her claims was one that a broken wrist she had suffered while dancing with him had been inflicted deliberately, as well as allegations that Thomas would hit her with a wooden brush. She later told The Guardian that Thomas’s decision not to propose was another one of his ‘mind-games,’ alleging, ‘I stayed with Tom for a thousand and one reasons, because every time he was violent or abusive, apologies came and he said he would change.’
They were claims Thomas’s family rejected as ‘lies.’ The prosecution argued that Jane’s anger over her boyfriend’s refusal to propose was what had fuelled the violent attack, with friends and relatives of Thomas claiming that Jane had displayed possessive behaviour during the relationship.
The jury were unconvinced by Jane’s version of events, and she was ultimately convicted of murder. Sentenced to life imprisonment, the Old Bailey judge told Jane: ‘In killing the man you loved, you ended his life and ruined your own.’
Is Jane Andrews still in prison?
Despite multiple attempts to appeal her sentence, Jane remained incarcerated until her release in 2019.
She briefly worked in a supermarket after her release, but later lost her job after her identity became public. Now 57 years old, she reportedly works at a charity-funded animal hospital.
Did Jane Andrews escape prison?
In 2009, Jane did escape from prison after being transferred to an open facility. After scaling the perimeter walls, she was later found hiding with members of her family at a nearby Premier Inn, and was returned to custody.
What has Jane Andrews said about The Lady?
As The Lady hit screens, it was only natural that viewers began to wonder how Jane felt about the ITV retelling. While many true crime shows see those involved contribute to the project, Jane was not involved with The Lady.
CEO of the Centre for Women’s Justice Harriet Wistrich, who also represented Jane during her 2003 appeal, said that she had ‘long ago served her prison sentence and has attempted to move on, but due to her past employment with the now discredited section of the Royal family, she continues to be the subject of media interest, intensified each time when yet another one-sided TV programme is made about her case.’
Describing The Lady as ‘one-sided,’ she added, ‘Jane has not contributed to The Lady despite it purportedly being about her life, nor has she contributed to any of the previous multiple TV documentaries made about her. The public are thus presented with a one-sided view that fails to explore why a vulnerable woman in her circumstances may have been driven to kill.’
Relatives of Thomas Cressman have also spoken about their upset at seeing his murder dramatized onscreen. His brother Rick told the BBC, ‘By the time we got into the final episode, I was feeling very, very tearful.’
The Lady is currently streaming on ITVX.
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Charlotte Roberts is a writer at Shoutfm.co.uk, specialising in SEO. She spends her days covering everything celebrity, culture, and entertainment – from film review roundups to cast explainers.