Warning: Quiz spoilers follow.
The events of ITV's Quiz – a three-part series based on the real-life Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? coughing major scandal – are so extraordinary, you could forgiven for assuming that certain aspects of it were drummed up for dramatic effect.
From Paddy Spooner and the syndicate to Charles and Diana Ingram's cat being attacked by angry members of the public, the story can often appear stranger than fiction.
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One of the moments that will undoubtedly have caught your attention in the final episode is the coughing outburst during the trial. It caused such a ruckus that it forced the judge to halt proceedings until everyone had collected themselves.
The news headline in the show reads: "Coughing Major Trial Suspended By Coughing Outbreak".
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It's a bizarre incident and you may, like us, have assumed that it couldn't possibly have happened. Surely a criminal trial – which centred around coughing – didn't stall because of... coughing?
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Well, friends, it did. James Graham, who wrote the play of the same name before adapting it for the small screen, didn't pull that one out of his box of tricks, however far-fetched it might seem.
As defence barrister David Aubrey QC was delivering his closing speech, he was interrupted by a "rasping barrage" from "two jurors", according to The Guardian. The outburst "made Southwark crown court sound like a GP's surgery", added the article.
"If you are in difficulties when I am summing up, don't worry," said judge Geoffrey Rivlin, conscious that the jurors would not be able to concentrate given the commotion. "I will stop and rise."
A short break was taken, but the pair subsequently asked for the rest of the day off in order to recuperate. The judge then decided to adjourn the trial until the following day.
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And that wasn't the only time when coughing disturbed the trial.
On a separate occasion, a "coughing expert" was discussing medical evidence when a female juror had a similar flare up. The hearing was paused and she was given a glass of water.
"I don't want to pick on the juror but she was trying to control her cough there, but could not," said Alan Morris, professor of respiratory medicine at the University of Hull.
"If it is extreme it cannot be controlled."
Quiz is available to stream now on the ITV hub.
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