This documentary series took three years to come to fruition, and tells the story of how the Jesus Army became a feature of British life, and how its survivors are finding ways to heal.
Cult of the Jesus Army - Social Justice and Addressing Inequalities, Culture and Creative
“This TV project was a real labour of love for everyone involved,” begins Dr Helen Littleboy, talking about her role as executive producer on the documentary series Inside the Cult of the Jesus Army. Helen, a senior lecturer in the Media Arts department, is also a multi-Bafta-nominated documentary maker who received a Royal Television Society Award for the groundbreaking BBC documentary Hospital.
This latest series took three years to come to fruition, and tells the story of how the Jesus Army, with its thousands of followers in combat gear and scores of businesses and community houses, became a feature of British life. It traces how the organisation began as an idealistic religious commune in rural Northamptonshire which preached self-sufficiency and pooled resources. They developed a bizarre set of rules, governing every aspect of life and promoting a strict hierarchy, with only men allowed in leadership roles.
The group exercised a horrifying level of coercive control over its members, and abuse, particularly towards women and children, became commonplace. Survivors’ fight for justice led to the Jesus Army finally closing down in 2019. Around 600 former members eventually received some financial compensation, but many survivors are still campaigning for a fair share of the Jesus Army’s millions.
How can you tackle a story so complex and emotionally sensitive? How do you approach it safely, with respect to the people who are brave enough to want to tell their stories? Duty of care was the key concern for everyone involved in making these films.
“One of the reasons why the story seemed so compelling was, this was an organisation that I remembered seeing at events as a student myself; the [members] were almost figures of fun. And yet, behind closed doors, the terrible treatment of women, children and other vulnerable adults was taking place,” Helen says.
The documentary premiered at Sheffield DocFest, the UK’s leading documentary film festival, in June 2025. The screening was followed by a Q&A involving some of the survivors who took part in the films, who described the process as positive and therapeutic. The series attracted extensive news coverage, and was accompanied by an in-depth article in the Guardian, as well as a seven-part podcast available on BBC Sounds.
However, it’s the real-world impact of the series that is most striking. Since the documentary’s broadcast and launch on iPlayer, a hundred former members of the Jesus Army have joined its survivors’ support group, many disclosing abuse for the first time. More than sixty survivors have contacted the group’s lawyer, featured in the documentary, to pursue fresh abuse allegations.
Helen spoke about how gratifying it was to see the direct change the documentary created, both for those who participated in it and those who, through watching it, found the strength to come forward with their experiences.
“One of the hardest things for the team making these films was finding contributors who felt safe and able to talk about their experiences. Over the last 25 years, I’ve made documentaries about some sensitive subjects, so it’s not new to me, but it’s still tough terrain to navigate. You certainly don’t want to contribute any more harm – you want this to be a positive and productive experience for the contributors.”
This positive impact now includes moves by Northamptonshire MP Sarah Bool to sponsor a screening of the documentary at the Houses of Parliament. The programme will be used as part of the campaign by the government-sponsored National Working Group into Spiritual and Ritual Abuse who are lobbying for legislation to outlaw forms of coercive control exerted by cult-like organisations such as the Jesus Army. “The value of the films is really in raising awareness around this subject - it feels fantastic that our work has the potential to create a positive change in society.”
Inside the Cult of the Jesus Army is available to watch on BBC IPlayer.
