With an all-star cast, a sizeable budget, and a promising plot line, it seemed that Knight had the perfect recipe to succeed. While the new BBC drama has been a commercial success, the series fails to measure up to the charisma of Knight’s previous works.
House of Guinness is not without its merits, offering promising performances from Dervla Kirwan and Anthony Boyle. Fionn O’Shea’s Benjamin is not featured nearly enough, virtually disappearing after the first two episodes, presumably to accommodate other projects.
His performance is compelling, but one still gets the sense that Knight simply transplanted the Arthur Shelby formula from one production to another, rather than developing a unique character.
Irish viewers are almost certain to cringe at the leprechaun portrayals of the Republican characters, not least because of the disjointed soundtrack, featuring the likes of Kneecap, along with various jigs that would make Michael Flatley proud.
The series does pick up as the eight-part story line tumbles along, providing more of that characteristic Knight charm, but the performances feel ever-so-slightly unconvincing, forced, and melodramatic.
This dilemma may well have been remedied by the inclusion of more Irish cast members, with James Norton, Louis Partridge, and Emily Fairn all being British, to name but a few.
Perhaps some authentic Irish input in the production room may have also steered the series away from the romanticised depiction we are offered.
It’s not quite “Far and Away” territory, but it’s certainly a far cry from the realism of Normal People or Florence Pugh’s “Wonder”, a post-famine film set around the same period.
It’s not bad per se, and the series boasts several strong points, with the cinematography and costuming making for a stylish, impressive piece.
Danielle Galligan steals the show as the lavender wife of Anthony Boyle’s Arthur. Arthur’s forbidden homosexuality is a topic of contention among the characters, and a welcomed, yet realistic twist to the monotony of an otherwise tired story.
The relationship between the two is undoubtedly one of the strongest aspects of the show, with Galligan’s feisty Lady Olivia sashaying her way through affairs and rumours of her husband’s true identity.
Although not quite the high point of Knight’s career, the series is well worth a watch. A second season is due to come out in March, and it will be interesting to see if Knight fixes some of his mistakes in the next instalment.
All in all, I’d give the series 3.5 stars.