What Does the Real Jim Swire Think of Lockerbie: A Search for Truth & Colin Firth's Performance?

In Lockerbie: A Search for Truth (all five episodes are now streaming on Peacock), Colin Firth plays the role of Dr. Jim Swire, a physician turned investigator in the wake of the 1988 terror attack on Pan Am Flight 103 that killed his daughter, Flora. Unable to let the matter go, Swire devoted his life to both finding answers and seeing that the responsible parties were brought to justice.

The real Jim Swire, who is now in his late 80s, was directly involved with the limited series, visiting the set; chatting extensively with Firth; and allowing his own non-fiction book — The Lockerbie Bombing: A Father's Search for Justice (co-authored with Peter Biddulph) — to serve as the basis for the scripts written by David Harrower and Maryam Hamidi. But all of that would mean nothing if the man playing Swire wasn't up to the task. Thankfully, he was.

RELATED: Colin Firth & Catherine McCormack Go Inside Heart-Stopping Lockerbie: A Search for Truth Scene

What did the real Dr. Jim Swire think of Colin Firth's performance in Lockerbie: A Search for Truth?

Recently speaking with the BBC, Swire recalled his initial meetings with Firth, stating that the Oscar-winning actor came to the project with zero ego. "We were very taken with Colin because there was none of the swollen-headedness that you might expect from an important actor … he’s an ordinary, open guy who is prepared to talk ...  I’d admired his acting in the past and when I came to actually meet him face-to-face, I was delighted to meet a man who still had an open mind and very bravely stood up and said, ‘I believe Jim Swire still has an open mind.’ I think that’s the key to the making of this series."

He later continued: “I was rung up by the makers of the series who said, ‘We’ve got some news for you. We’ve selected two of the actors. One of Colin Firth, who is playing you and the other is Catherine [McCormack], who is playing Jane.' I must say that the two of them could not have delighted us more because they’re both lovely people and Colin Firth has been a pillar of strength … I don’t think he’d say that I was misrepresenting him if I said that he became more involved than he ever dreamt that he would. We had expressed to other people in the media, ‘Wouldn’t it be lovely if someone like Colin Firth [was cast] to play me and someone equally as lovely to play Jane?’"

NBCUniversal's streaming platform offers two monthly subscription plans: Premium ($7.99 a month with ads) and Premium Plus ($13.99 a month with no ads and download access for certain titles). If you're a student, you can enjoy the Premium plan for just $1.99 for an entire year!