While winter television has been a delight, there’s one series that has everyone’s attention and the good news is – it’s airing on BBC One on Boxing Day.

A Very British Scandal stars Claire Foy front and centre as Margaret, Duchess of Argyll – one of the most talked-about women in modern British history. Why, you ask? Allow me to explain.

It sounds ludicrous to a modern audience – and that’s part of the current drama’s appeal – but it was her divorce from the Duke of Argyll that saw Margaret become the focus of intense media onslaught. Newspapers sought to vilify, humiliate and dehumanise her, and the new BBC series is most concerned with showcasing the woman behind the headlines.

The first episode transports you straight into the action of it all and we’re introduced to a composed Margaret, sat in the back of a car that is being steadily ambushed by passersby.

“You’re scum”, “hussy”, “you’re disgusting”, “slut” are some of the insults flung her way and then, almost as soon as you realise what people are shouting at her, one woman leans over to spit at the window closest to Margaret, shocking her out of her trance.

A Very British Scandal is BBC’s new historical drama but this powerful sex-positive message will captivate a modern audience