Buried With Michael Sheen review – this vital look at a toxic waste scandal is deeply enraging TV

Michael Sheen’s documentary *Buried With Michael Sheen* offers a sobering investigation into a decades-old environmental scandal involving toxic waste dumped in Welsh quarries, proving that celebrity-led documentaries can deliver vital public service reporting when the subject demands it.

The two-part series draws heavily on a filmed interview conducted nearly a decade ago by environmental campaigner Douglas Gowan, who, aware of his terminal illness, sought to expose what he had uncovered about the disposal of harmful “forever chemicals.” The interview, captured by Sheen over two days, stands as one of the most comprehensive accounts of the issue to date. While Sheen remains vague about how he became involved, his involvement has yielded a compelling and meticulously researched documentary.

The investigation centers on the legacy of Monsanto, the now-defunct American agrochemical giant whose Newport plant produced polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from the 1940s to the late 1970s. PCBs, once hailed as miracle chemicals, were later found to be toxic and carcinogenic. Gowan’s research suggests that Monsanto’s hazardous waste was buried in landfills across south Wales, potentially contaminating local water and soil.

Sheen’s journey begins in Ynysddu, where two local councillors—both named Jan—have long campaigned on the issue. Residents recall nighttime deliveries to a nearby quarry, now an overgrown and neglected site, where lorries left behind a jelly-like substance that children played with the following morning. At a meeting in Ynysddu Progressive Workingmans Club, locals describe ongoing concerns, including the unexplained deaths of dogs walked in the woods, which they attribute to lingering contamination.

The documentary also travels to Anniston, Alabama, home to Monsanto’s former PCB factory in the US. A local paediatrician describes an unusually high incidence of health problems among children in the area, though direct causation remains unproven. As with many environmental scandals, the narrative is marked by anecdotal evidence and unresolved questions, leaving viewers with a sense of lingering injustice.