Money. Romance. Tragedy. Deception. From Executive Producer Elizabeth Meriwether, The Dropout is the story of Elizabeth Holmes (Amanda Seyfried) and Theranos, an unbelievable tale of ambition and fame gone terribly wrong

In 2015, Forbes magazine hailed her as the youngest and wealthiest self-made female billionaire in the United States, but she’s currently serving an 11-year sentence after being found guilty of four counts of fraud.

Just like Theranos’ initial claims, it’s a story that has clearly captured the public imagination. It’s been the subject of the successful book, Bad Blood, by John Carreyrou and a podcast, The Dropout.

And now this acclaimed TV series of the same name, which has previously been available to stream on Disney+, comes to BBC1.

Perhaps one reason why Holmes has proved so compelling is because of her distinctive image – with her strikingly deep voice and trademark black polo necks, she was a very recognisable figure.

So, you could forgive Amanda Seyfried, who plays Holmes in The Dropout, for being a little daunted. However, the actress, who shot to fame in Mean Girls and Mamma Mia! before being nominated for an Oscar for her role in Mank, decided early on that her performance would be more than just an impression.

She told Vanity Fair: “I’m a mimic to a point, but I can only hide so much of myself. You can’t completely be a clone or disappear yourself. I’m not going to do it quite like somebody else would do, it but I’m definitely going to nail the mannerisms as much as possible and take the essence of her voice.

“The turtleneck’s easy. You just find the right one—which I think was a Gap shirt, actually. And then [there’s an] evolution from that to the essence of her.”

It seems most people agree she’d captured that essence. Not only did she win an Emmy Award, but she also inspired Jennifer Lawrence to ‘drop out’ of a movie version of the story as Seyfried’s portrayal was definitive.

Lawrence said: “I thought she was terrific. I was like, ‘Yeah, we don’t need to redo that.’ She did it.”

It’s far from being a one-woman show though. The supporting cast includes Naveen Andrews, Stephen Fry, William H Macy and Laurie Metcalfe, along with the stars of two of most acclaimed series of the past few years, Succession’s Alan Ruck and The Bear’s Ebon Moss-Bachrach.

The tale begins with a double bill of episodes, as Elizabeth heads off to Stanford University only to drop out to pursue her dreams of revolutionising the health industry. But in her search for funding, she makes some dubious decisions.