Steven Knight has a thing for historical dramas, made evident by his penchant for churning out multiple shows set in older eras within the last decade. After taking on the world of Birmingham street gangs in the immensely popular 'Peaky Blinders', the East India Company in 'Taboo', and bare-knuckle boxing in 'A Thousand Blows', Knight is exploring the world of brewery business in 1860s Dublin.
The show, titled 'House of Guinness', revolves around the titular family with enough drama to make them a subject fit for long-form storytelling. Netflix has announced a premiere date of September 25.
In an official statement to Netflix, Knight said 'House of Guinness' tells the "extraordinary story of a family who happens to be the inheritors of the biggest brewery in the world. They’re young and are given the task of taking on this incredibly successful brand. The first priority is: Don’t screw it up. And the second priority is to make Guinness even bigger.”
The eight-episode series is directed by Tom Shankland ("House of Cards", "The Leftovers") and Mounia Akl ("Boiling Point", "The Responder")
As per the makers, the story's inspiration comes from the real world, the Guinness family, "one of Europe’s most famous and enduring dynasties," hinting at an experience like 'Succession' but with a retro flavour.
The official logline: "Set in 19th-century Dublin and New York, the story begins immediately after the death of Sir Benjamin Guinness, the man responsible for the extraordinary success of the Guinness brewery, and the far-reaching impact of his will on the fate of his four adult children, Arthur, Edward, Anne, and Ben, as well as on a group of Dublin characters who work and interact with the phenomenon that is Guinness."
The cast features Anthony Boyle, Louis Partridge, Emily Fairn, Fionn O’Shea, James Norton, Niamh McCormack, Seamus O’Hara, and Michael McElhatton, among others.