Witness to a Prosecution

Witness to a Prosecution is a Hong Kong television series produced by TVB. The original broadcast was on the TVB Jade network with 45-minute episodes airing five days a week from 20 December 1999 to 16 January 2000. The drama stars Bobby Au-yeung as the famous historical forensic medical expert Song Ci ("Sung Chee" in Cantonese romanisation). Set during the Southern Song Dynasty of Mid-Imperial China, Witness to a Prosecution tells a fictionalised account of Chee's modest beginnings and the events leading to the creation of his book Collected Cases of Injustice Rectified, the world's earliest documentation of forensic science.

For other uses, see Witness for the Prosecution (disambiguation).

Witness to a Prosecution
DVD cover of first season
GenreHistorical fiction
Detective fiction
Written byChan Ching-yee
Chiu Ching-yung
Ng Siu-tung
StarringBobby Au-yeung
Jessica Hsuan
Mariane Chan
Frankie Lam
Michael Tse
May Kwong
Anderson Junior
Theme music composerPeter Kam
Opening theme"Only Me" (一個人) performed by Eason Chan
Country of originHong Kong
Original languageCantonese
No. of series2
No. of episodes44 (I–II)
Production
ProducerSiu Hin-fai
Production locationHong Kong
Camera setupMulti camera
Running time45 minutes (each)
Production companyTVB
Release
Original networkTVB Jade
Original release20 December 1999 (1999-12-20) –
23 March 2003 (2003-03-23)
Related
Witness to a Prosecution II
Witness to a Prosecution
Traditional Chinese洗冤錄
Simplified Chinese洗冤录
Literal meaningCases of Injustice Rectified

Witness to a Prosecution was met with positive reviews and quickly became a popular success. Viewership ratings were consistently high, and the drama was the seventh most-viewed drama in 2000, drawing an average of 33 rating points, peaking at 44 points.[1] The drama also yielded Au-yeung a "Best Actor" win at the 2000 TVB Anniversary Awards. A subsequent sequel was released in 2003, airing on the same channel from 24 February to 23 March 2003. Although viewership ratings peaked higher to 47 points, it was met with mixed reviews.

Synopsis

For 30 years, nighttime keeper Song Ci (Bobby Au-yeung) was despised in To Yuen village due to his posthumous birth in a coffin, having only the sickly scholar Sit Dan (Michael Tse) and the coolie Cha Siu-chaan (Lo Mang) as his friends.

After disputing with the village chief over his family's land, Ci, along with a homeless female thief Tong Sze (Jessica Hsuan), are accused for murdering the chief and are sentenced to death. The village's newly appointed magistrate Sung Yik (Frankie Lam) finds the case suspicious and investigates.

With the help of the mysterious yet experienced coroner Ma Kwai (Lau Kong), Yik successfully revokes Ci and Sze's sentences. Kwai becomes Ci's coroner master and Yik employs Ci to be his personal forensic medical doctor. The two become good friends and partners, successfully solving many murder cases in town.

Sze develops a crush on Yik, unaware that Yik and Nip Fung (Mariane Chan), daughter of chief constable Nip Yan-lung (Gordon Liu), are already in a relationship. Ci, on the other hand, falls for Lam Choi-dip (Eileen Yeow), the spoiled daughter of rich merchant Lam To (Lee Lung-kei). Choi-dip, however, has her eyes on Yik.

Several months later, a man also by the name of Sung Yik shows up and confronts Yik, calling him a traitor. After the two intensely quarrel, the fake Yik accidentally kills the real Sung Yik. In a panic, he buries Sung Yik's body in the garden of the Sung family rice shop. Yik's relatives then mysteriously die one by one; Ci eventually uncovers the body of the real Sung Yik and begins to grow suspicious of the current Yik, a man whom he has always respected and treated as a friend.

Cast
Note: Some of the characters' names are romanised via Cantonese pronunciation, instead of Mandarin.

References
  1. TVB's Top 10 Dramas (1997–2009)
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