Sean Bean teams up with Shetland star on gripping crime drama
Sean Bean is lending his talents to a new BBC crime drama. Following his critically acclaimed stints in Time and Marriage, the actor fronts This City is Ours – an eight-part series set and shot in Liverpool.
Directed by BAFTA award-winner, Saul Dibb (The Sixth Commandment), Sean, 65, will inhabit the role of notorious gang leader, Ronnie Phelan. Brimming with talent, the Lord of The Rings alum is joined by a star-studded cast, which also includes Sheltand's Julie Graham, Strike's James Nelson-Joyce and This is Going to Hurt's Hannah Onslow.
According to the synopsis: "This City is Ours is the story of Michael (James Nelson-Joyce), a man who for all of his adult life has been involved in organised crime, working for his friend and the gang leader Ronnie (Sean Bean). When Ronnie begins to hint at retirement, Michael too begins to imagine another life. Because, for the first time in his life, Michael is in love. For the first time in his life, he sees beyond the day-to-day, he sees a future: something to win and something to lose - Diana (Hannah Onslow).
"This City is Ours is the story of Michael and Diana's love affair, set against the disintegration of Michael's crime gang. For years, together with Ronnie, Michael has successfully been bringing cocaine into the City and beyond, directly from Columbia; but when a shipment goes missing, he knows their Kingdom is under attack.
"This City is Ours explores what happens when Ronnie's son Jamie (Jack McMullen) decides he wants to inherit their kingdom and that there is no longer a place for Michael at the table. Both Michael and Jamie have bold ideas to modernise the gang and they will battle for control of it. But Michael's biggest battle will be to save the woman he loves and the child he has always wanted."
Read more
Happy Valley stars team up for new ITV thriller inspired by real-life – and it looks incredible
Silent Witness viewers give verdict on new cast members
Out There viewers issue same demand after watching Martin Clunes' new thriller
Ultimately, This City is Ours is "about family, and love destroyed and corrupted by ambition, pride and greed," according to the BBC.
Rounding out the cast, fans can also expect to see Laura Aikman (Archie, Gavin & Stacey) as Rachel Duffy, Kevin Harvey (Treason, Time) as Bobby Duffy, Saoirse-Monica Jackson (Derry Girls, Upgraded) as Cheryl Crawford, Mike Noble (Shardlake, The Long Shadow) as Banksey, Bobby Schofield (SAS Rogue Heroes, The Suspect) as Bonehead, Darci Shaw (Judy, A Thousand Blows) as Melissa Sullivan, and Stephen Walters (Slow Horses, Anne) as Davy Crawford.
Currently, a release date is yet to be determined, however, the show is expected to land on BBC One and BBC iPlayer in spring.
