Suranne Jones shocked by discovery in Channel 4 Investigating Witch Trials series

It's hundreds of years since they faced persecution for being witches, but Suranne Jones Jones says women are still suffering the same kind of dark oppression today.

As the actress delved into the history of witchcraft for a new documentary on TV tonight, she found disturbing parallels between the hounding of innocent people centuries ago and the treatment many now suffer online.

Experts tell the former Corrie star that witch trials have moved onto social media – where women are being tortured with misogynist behaviour and threats of violence. Suranne, 45, also found moments from the past that resonated deeply with some of her own life experiences.

She said: “One of the biggest things that has struck me is that women were silenced. Women didn’t have a voice, they were repressed.

Suranne Jones was shocked by what she discovered in Germany as part of the documentary

“That is something that has stuck through society and it has been repeated and repeated. It’s still a big issue now. I had so many occasions coming up through my career when you have an opinion – and the moment you do you can feel the atmosphere change

“You’re either too mouthy, too loud, too brash, that’s not your job, you need to be quiet, you need to look pretty, smile... all of that stuff has happened.” Suranne shot to fame playing strong female characters, including DC Rachel Bailey in ITV ’s detective show Scott & Bailey and the title character in BBC series Doctor Foster.

She also took the lead in Gentleman Jack – the BBC drama about 19th-century trailblazer Anne Lister, who had a secret relationship with Ann Walker, played by Sophie Rundle. But the star is fascinated by the horrific fate of thousands of women victimised during the witch trials. Up to 60,000 people were executed – many burned at the stake – between 1427 and 1782.

Suranne played lesbian Anne Lister, the 'first modern lesbian' in Gentlemen Jack

TeamAkers, the production company Suranne owns with husband Laurence Akers, made the two-part documentary for Channel 4. She said: “I feel like I needed to do this...it’s part of my female story. I thought I was interested in witches but the more I look into it the more I have found so much in it. I feel like I’ve cracked open myself as a woman.”

In the documentary, mum-of-one Suranne investigates Lancashire’s ­infamous Pendle Witch Trials of 1612, which happened close to where she grew up. Ten people were sentenced to death – but the key witness was a nine-year-old girl whose childlike testimony even resulted in the death of her own mother, brother and sister.

Witch hunting swept across Europe in the 17th century and crossed the Atlantic to America, where the Salem Witch Trials of 1692 used documents from the Pendle case to help send 19 people to their deaths.

Illustrations of the witch trials

Suranne made scary discoveries in Bamberg, Germany. She said: “I was shocked to learn about the ‘witch ovens’ that were built so they could get through people’s bodies quicker... they could put four or five people in at a time.” But even more frightening for Suranne was discovering the witch trials are not just a thing of the past.

Feminist writer and campaigner Laura Bates tells the actress: “The witch trials have gone online. There’s so many parallels to what women went through then. There was a horrible form of torture called ‘pricking the witch’. They kept women awake by injuring their body for days so they became so delirious they started hallucinating.

“[Now] women are being tortured through the night with the 24/7 bombardment of social media.” Laura also says the internet is spreading “frightening” misogyny in just the same way as the invention of the printing press, in the 15th century, spread the word on witches. Suranne was also shocked to discover how the witch trials continue to impact the rights of women.

Surannne and her husband Laurence Akers

Suranne has played strong characters in the past

In 2022, when the US Supreme Court overturned the Roe v Wade ruling – which led to abortion restrictions in some states – it referenced a ruling made almost 400 years ago by Sir Matthew Hale, witch trial judge, Suranne raged: “The fact he has any say over women’s autonomy in the 21st century is madness.”

The actress also examines how the phrase “witch hunt” is still used by powerful men, like Donald Trump, to paint themselves as victims.

And she looks at how women are being labelled witches by modern conspiracy groups, such as QAnon, which hounded Hillary Clinton during her 2016 election campaign.

After making her documentary, Suranne said of the witch trials: “I want to rename them. They’re the mistrials of women... the persecution, abuse of women of all ages.”

She added: “There was a really hard day for me when I came away thinking, ‘Oh, my God, this is extreme. Misogyny still exists and we’re in 2024 and it is perhaps on the rise again because of the internet.’ But other than that, I think it is an uplifting story, in a way. We’ve worked so hard at telling women to speak up, but we’re in danger of being silenced.

“It’s about using your voice, speaking out. Life’s too short to do anything other than that.”

• Suranne Jones: Investigating Witch Trials is on Channel 4, tomorrow, at 9pm