THE GOLD - SUNDAY 9pm Sunday - TV PACE. NO SPOILERS !!!!

[Blondeshavemorefun]

And looks like we finally have The Gold On for next Sunday

Been waiting for this

Seen ads. Looks great

So the loss of hv gains something good on a Sunday night - well hopefully

Based on a true life story

The drama explores one of the most remarkable true crime cases and its impact on the world after the event. Taking place on 26th November 1983, six armed men broke into the Brink’s-Mat security depot near London’s Heathrow Airport.

What was supposed to be a 'routine' armed robbery, actually ended up being one of the seminal events of British criminal history because the six men inadvertently stumbled across gold bullion worth £26m.

Known as the "Brink's-Mat robbery" or the "Brink's-Mat bullion heist", the largest gold heist in British history happened on 26th November 1983, like in The Gold.

At most, the gang of south London criminals thought that they would come away from the robbery with £3 million. But in reality, they actually ended up finding £26 million worth of gold bars, uncut diamonds and cash.

After the event proved even more wild, with the gang having to onboard the help of an expert jeweller to dispose of the gold, counterfeit stolen gold bars, the collapse of Johnson Matthey Bankers (where the bullion was stolen from) and the so-called "curse", which refers to the fact that several of those involved were shot and killed.

It was just supposed to be "a typical Old Kent Road armed robbery", according to detectives at the time. But it soon went on to be a massively remarkable event, not only due to the scale of the theft – at the time, the biggest in global history – but for its wider legacy.

The cast for The Gold is a star-studded one, to say the least. It's written by Neil Forsyth (Eric, Ernie & Me) and directed by Academy Award-winning Aneil Karia (The Long Goodbye) along with Lawrence Gough (The Last Bus, Snatch, Misfits).

The cast is led by Hugh Bonneville (Downton Abbey (www.radiotimes.com/going-out/best-downton-abbey-tours-uk/)) as Brian Boyce, Jack Lowden (Small Axe (www.radiotimes.com/tv/drama/small-axe-release-date-cast-trailer-bbc/): Mangrove) also stars as Kenneth Noye, Dominic Cooper (The Preacher) as Edwyn Cooper, Charlotte Spencer (The Duke) as Nicki Jennings, Tom Cullen (Becoming Elizabeth) as John Palmer and Emun Elliott (Guilt (www.radiotimes.com/programme/b-6qlfuh/guilt/)
, Old) as Tony Brightwell.

The cast also includes Sean Harris (Southcliffe), Ellora Torchia (Ali and Ava) and Stefanie Martini (
Prime Suspect (www.radiotimes.com/programme/b-jtsagk/prime-suspect/)
) in the real-life drama.

@XelaM
this is a good if you like listening to stuff
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0dwnj69

I’m still catching up and way behind. I noticed a few mistakes. In episode one, when the police knock on Mickey’s door, he escaped out the window.
The windows look too modern and in 1983, council flats properties wouldn’t have had double glazing windows. Lots of homes back then had single pane windows.

It's slow, but I'm loving it (only on ep 3 mind).

I remember the robbery but had to watch a documentary to remind me what happened. Its still pretty confusing though; I'd have liked to have seen a snapshot of the run up to the robbery before the programme started.

The 80s-ness of it was well done Imo and reminded me a lot of the Sweeney and Minder set in London in the 70s and 80s. Brought it all back.

Finished this yesterday, thought it was brilliant

Weakened and binged the last episode. I think it's one of the best things I've seen in ages.

I agree with those who say that the villains - particularly Noye - were portrayed rather too sympathetically. I can't remember seeing it covered in the programme, but Noye stabbed the policeman 17 times and still got off😮I wonder if the judge/jury were got at somehow...

Really enjoyed this. More than one Call the Midwife actress in there too!

all this freemasonry stuff is appalling

You know it's a true story? (Mostly)

We're enjoying it. My husband doesn't binge so we are watching at TV pace.

In the beginning Noye looked like a bit of a cheeky chappy but stabbing the police officer 5 times in the front and 5 times in the back wasn't self-defence. Has there ever been a suggestion of jury nobbling?

PS Passage quoted above is wrong. Later road rage murder was on M25.

so cooper was a mde up character but there was in fact a lawyer just with a different name

@Crumpetdisappointment , Cheltenham's Ladies College is somehow thought to have benefitted from the money laundering so I think they linked lots of possibles together to create the Dominic Cooper storyline/character.

I thought the cast was great , particularly the sarf London chap who was sorting the money laundering along with Dominic Cooper.
A villain very much like the characters in the likes of Better Call Saul, Breaking Bad , Ozark etc.

I really liked the John Palmer character and I love the actor. He's also in Five which is another excellent mini-series if you haven't seen it - my favourite of the Harlan Coben series.

I thought the actor playing Palmer resembled the real life version a lot. I watched a Roger Cook investigation on YouTube (remember him??) on Palmer which also investigated his death which was really interesting.

Currently watching another Brink's-Mat doc which features the interview between Kate Adie and Palmer in Tenerife.

@ageingdisgracefully this podcast on him paints a very different picture .

Apparently there's going to be another series.

Thanks! I take it you mean the one on Sounds?

I haven't listened to the podcast, but I know he became one of the most prominent mob bosses of his time. I actually thought that the series did portray that he was playing dumb and innocent, but he was anything but

The Inside Story, told by the police who were there, is on bbc1 tonight.

Interesting documentary. Has anyone read the book The Gold? It's had mixed reviews...

Re the documentary. If you were a copper in a car following a gold Rolls Royce with a smelter sticking out of the boot and it suddenly turned into a country lane, do you think you would "lose it"? A gold Roller. How many can there have been at the time?

Absolutely loved this. Every bit of it. Even if Noye was made too cuddly and Jennings didn't exist.Very well scripted and acted. Loved Dominic Cooper and Tom Cullen( Goldfinger).
Amazing seeing policing done without guns, computers, even bugging equipment!

Yeah, I thought it was great. I enjoyed the portrayal of the women characters (and the total absence of sexual violence). I often get a bit irritated by the anachronism when tv writers introduce a 'strong Millennial woman' archetype (no senior women worked on this case IRL) but the woman detective character was wonderfully written and played.

I loved that there was no sex in it. I always like buddy movies.

I know Micky McAvoy was a violent gangster, but I still felt sorry that he got 25 years and none of the money. Astonishing that all the gold disappeared, even more astonishing that some was sold back to Johnson Matthey, the original owners.

I believe there is a S 2?

I loved that there was no sex in it. I always like buddy movies.

God yes, that was refreshing!

I'm almost always put off by moaning and groaning between the sheets because it seldom adds to the plot.

Agree , she was a great character even an invented one.
The Peter Davidson character was undoubtedly more realistic of the time, v senior yet appeared to be an ineffectual figurehead type.