The films will explore the events surrounding the New Cross Fire in January 1981, which killed 13 black teenagers, the Black People’s Day of Action in the aftermath of the fire in March, which saw more than 20,000 people join the first organised protest by black British people, and the Brixton riots that followed in April.

Steve McQueen and James Rogan will both executive produce and direct the series, revealing how these three events intertwined and defined race relations for a generation.

McQueen said: “It is an honour to make these films with testimonials from the survivors, investigators, activists and representatives of the machinery of state.

“We can only learn if we look at things through the eyes of everyone concerned; the New Cross Fire passed into history as a tragic footnote, but that event and its aftermath can now be seen as momentous events in our nation’s history.”