The Gold: BBC One release date, trailer, and cast of Brink’s Mat drama with Hugh Bonneville and Dominic Cooper

The Gold, a new and highly-anticipated true crime drama, is coming to BBC One on Sunday 12 February. It’ll also be available to watch on BBC iPlayer as part of a boxset.

The series, which stars Hugh Bonneville and Dominic Cooper amongst others, dramatises the story of the 1983 Brink’s Mat Robbery – the biggest robbery in world history.

Here’s everything you need to know about The Gold ahead of its BBC One release this February.

What is it about?

On the 26 November 1983, six armed men broke into the Brink’s-Mat security depot near London’s Heathrow Airport, and inadvertently stumbled across gold bullion worth £26m – making it the biggest robbery in world history.

The official synopsis from BBC One explains that “what started as an unremarkable armed robbery became a seminal event in British criminal history, significant not only for the scale of the theft - at the time the biggest in global history - but for its wider legacy.”

“The disposal of the bullion caused the birth of large-scale international money laundering, provided the dirty money that helped fuel the London Docklands property boom, united blue and white collar criminals and left controversy and murder in its wake.”

Who stars in The Gold?

Hugh Bonneville plays Brian Boyce, head of Scotland Yard’s task force investigating the Brink’s-Mat gold bullion robbery. Bonneville is best known for playing Lord Grantham in Downton Abbey, but you might also recognise him from Paddington, Viceroy’s House, and W1A.

Dominic Cooper plays Edwyn Cooper, a corrupt solicitor who helps launder the stolen gold. Cooper is probably best known for his role in the Mamma Mia films, but you’ll also know him from the espionage dramas Spy City and Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond, as well as comic book adaptations Preacher and Agent Carter.

Jack Lowden plays Kenneth Noye, the fence who takes the lead in redistributing the stolen gold. You’ll know Lowden from leading the Apple TV+ spy drama Slow Horses, but you might also recognise him from the Siegfried Sassoon biopic Benediction.

Charlotte Spencer plays Nikki Jennings, an investigating officer on the Scotland Yard task force (and invented for the show, rather than inspired by a real person). You might recognise Spencer from films like The Duke and Misbehaviour, and from television performances in Ted Lasso, Us, and The Living and the Dead.

They’re joined by Tom Cullen (Becoming Elizabeth, Black Mirror), Emun Elliott (Guilt, Old), Sean Harris (Southcliffe, Mission: Impossible), Ellora Torchia (Ali and Ava, Midsommar), Stefanie Martini (Prime Suspect, The Last Kingdom), Ruth Bradley (Ted Lasso, Guilt), and Peter Davison (All Creatures Great and Small, Doctor Who).

Who writes and directs?

The Gold was written and developed by Neil Forsyth, a Scottish writer probably best known for creating the Mark Bonnar drama Guilt. You might also know him from his Bob Servant novels, or his Morecambe & Wise film Eric, Ernie, and Me.

The lead director on The Gold was Aneil Karia, who recently won an Oscar for his short film The Long Goodbye, with additional episodes helmed by Doctor Who and Misfits director Lawrence Gough.

Is there a trailer?

Yes, there is! You can watch it right here.

When and how can I watch it?

The Gold will begin at 9pm on Sunday 12 February, taking over the evening slot vacated by Happy Valley after its series finale. You’ll also be able to watch the full series as a boxset on BBC iPlayer immediately. You can find BBC iPlayer right here.

Internationally, The Gold will be available exclusively on Paramount+ later in the year. You can sign up for Paramount+ here (though it won’t offer The Gold in the UK).

How many episodes are there?

The Gold is a six-part drama, with each episode around an hour long.

Has the Brink’s Mat robbery been dramatised before?

Yes, it has! As you’d expect, the robbery has loomed large in the popular imagination, so it’s been adapted for screen a few times before – particularly notable examples include last year’s Channel 4 comedy The Curse, and the 1992 Sean Bean film Fool’s Gold.

Why should I watch it?

It’s a big true crime drama, starring a fantastic ensemble cast, telling the story of one of the biggest robberies in history. We discussed The Gold - and why you should watch it - in more depth in our latest Screen Babble podcast, which you can listen to here.