"It’ll blow the doors off”: Inside The Crown team's "epic" new BBC crime drama This City is Ours

Every so often, a crime drama comes along that’s impossible to ignore and the BBC’s This City is Ours is currently that drama. From the producers of The Crown, executive producer Andy Harries of Left Bank Pictures, has teased that “it’s going to blow the doors off” – and we think he’s probably right.

The BBC One series is officially arriving on our screens this Sunday (23rd March) and sees Sean Bean step into the shoes of ruthless gang leader Ronnie Phelan, whose impending retirement sets off a series of catastrophic events. His longtime colleague, Michael (James Nelson-Joyce), also starts to dream of a life outside crime, but it seems Ronnie’s son has other ambitions - and he'll stop at nothing in pursuit of them.

Before you sink your teeth into the series, these are the inside details you need to know...

What is This City is Ours about?

The eight-part drama takes us inside the world of a powerful crime family based in Liverpool. Sean Bean is family patriarch and gang leader Ronnie Phelan, who runs his criminal enterprise with his wife, Elaine (Julie Graham).

When we meet them, the pair are considering retirement – and Michael (James Nelson-Joyce), a man who's been involved in organised crime for all of his adult life and works for Ronnie, begins to imagine another life, too. After all, he’s fallen in love with Diana Williams (Hannah Onslow) and for once, he can see beyond the day-to-day. How lovely a life away from danger and inside the law would be…

Only, this is a TV drama and so it's not quite that simple. It seems Ronnie’s son, Jamie (Jack McMullen) wants to inherit their kingdom and that there’s no longer a place for Michael at the table. According to the official synopsis, “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.”

James Nelson-Joyce, who plays Michael, has described it as "a compelling story of crime, loyalty and above all, love," while executive producer Andy Harries of Left Bank Pictures, says writer and creator Stephen Butchard has conjured up a "sharp, fast-paced and brilliantly observed" series.

Lindsay Salt, Director of BBC Drama says, "This City is Ours is character-driven crime drama that demands to be seen. Stephen Butchard’s vibrant and propulsive scripts offer a new take on the genre, mixing power politics with the brutality of gang life. It’s drama at its most tense!"

You can watch the trailer here:

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Who's starring in This City is Ours?

The cast of This City is Ours includes:

• Sean Bean (Marriage, Time) as gang leader Ronnie Phelan
• James Nelson-Joyce (Bird, A Thousand Blows) as Ronnie’s friend Michael
• Hannah Onslow (Empire of Light, This is Going to Hurt) as Diana Williams
• Jack McMullen (Hijack, Ford V Ferrari) as Ronnie’s son, Jamie Phelan
• Julie Graham (Shetland, Time) as Elaine, head of the Phelan family
• 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
• Stephen Walters (Slow Horses, Anne) as Davy Crawford

How can I watch This City is Ours?

It's almost here! This City is Ours will air on BBC One and iPlayer on Sunday 23rd March.