BBC show to get second series after shock twist ending to debut season
IT was the surprise hit of the spring schedules, and now BBC1 crime thriller The Gold is set to get another series.
Fans will be shocked when the finale airs this Sunday as it delivers a huge twist that paves the way for a sequel.
And I can confirm there are firm plans to make a follow-up looking at all the crooks involved in the £26million Brink’s-Mat gold heist of 1983.
A TV insider said: “This will be music to the ears of fans, some of whom have already seen all the episodes on iPlayer.
“Although every channel and streamer likes to revisit true crime stories, The Gold is one which seems to have captured people’s imagination.
“Not only is it a nostalgia trip filled with Eighties cars, clothes and music, it provides a more in-depth look at the background of the criminals involved. Now they’re going to explore even more characters involved in the original crime.”
Viewers have already seen Kenneth Noye, played by Jack Lowden, and John “Goldfinger” Palmer — actor Tom Cullen — desperately trying to evade getting caught by cops led by Detective Chief Superintendent Brian Boyce (Hugh Bonneville).
The second series is likely to explore the life of Charlie Wilson, one of the Great Train Robbers who was involved in laundering huge chunks of cash made from the sale of the gold.
He even used cocaine kingpin Pablo Escobar’s multi-billion drug network in Colombia to “clean” the cash — but in the end a deal went wrong and he lost £3million.
Wilson was shot dead in 1990 by a mystery gunman at his home in Marbella.
The drama will also revisit the crimes of Noye and Palmer which continue long after the mid to late-Eighties period of the first series is set.
I reckon there’s enough for the BBC to make another two more series of The Gold — especially if they are as brilliant as the current one.
Claude’s top Tom foolery
CLAUDE Littner proves he’s not so serious by mocking Tom Allen from The Apprentice spin-off show.
Lord Sugar’s faithful assistant began Thursday night’s episode of BBC2’s You’re Fired reading the opening link, pretending to be the comedian.
It wasn’t a tough task for the show’s make-up team, given both men have a smooth head.
But Claude did a fine job of impersonating host Tom, with the help of a fake beard.
The executive returns to The Apprentice this week after a break due to health reasons.
He grills the final five about their business plans, alongside fellow assistant Karren Brady and other trusted advisers.
The candidates will be hoping to make it through to next week’s final.
Tune in to You’re Fired at 10pm tonight after the main show from 9pm on BBC1.