True Files is an English languagetelevision docu-drama telecast on MediaCorp Channel 5, with each episode re-enacting major court proceedings, mostly of murder, in Singapore. When the inaugural season was telecast in 2002, its first episode was re-slotted to be telecast later, when numerous public feedback was received by the station complaining that it was too graphic after watching trailers for the pilot episode. The show was also pushed back to a 10 p.m. time slot from the fourth episode onwards as a result. Nonetheless, the hype helped the show to enjoy favourable viewership ratings. Over five years, a total of five seasons had been telecasted, with the final season airing in 2007. The show was hosted and narrated by veteran actor Lim Kay Tong from Seasons 1 to 4. In Season 5, the host is Tay Ping Hui, and the narration is done by Brian Richmond. Currently, the show is viewable on meWATCH. 60 out of 62 episodes is available on the said website from 5 February 2016 onwards.
Episodes
Season 1 (Thursdays, 10.00 p.m. (Tuesdays, 8:30 p.m. for 1st to 3rd episodes))
The legal consultant for Seasons 1 and 2 is Senior Counsel R Palakrishnan. After Palakrishnan died in July 2003, the same year as Season 2's first telecast, Subhas Anandan becomes the new legal consultant for this docu-drama from Season 3 onwards, which first aired in the following year.
The closing credits for Seasons 1 and 2 flipped from page to page on a black screen, accompanied by random music. In Season 3, the closing credits scrolled from bottom-to-top in a red background similar to a scene in the opening sequence, featuring the allegory of justice found at the entrance of the old Supreme Court building in Singapore; as well as accompaniment by only the opening theme music. This background and music continued to be used for closing credits in Seasons 4 and 5, except that the credits flipped from page to page as per Seasons 1 and 2.
The front gate of Changi Prison, despite appearing in the opening sequence throughout the first season, only appeared as a background in one of the last episodes for that season, The Burnt Body Case, when the date of execution for that accused was revealed near to the end of the episode. This background would continue to be used at the end of most episodes in Seasons 2 and 3, either revealing the date of execution or the verdict for the accused, or any important information or records. It was last used in Fatal Step, the second last episode of Season 3 and the last episode in that season to feature a High Court case.
