Power. Blood. Loyalty. There’s no clean way out. McMafia — the gripping eight-part crime drama — follows Alex Godman (James Norton), the picture-perfect English gentleman with a past he can never truly escape. Born into a family of Russian mafia exiles, Alex is determined to walk a different path—building a legitimate business, far from the shadows of organized crime. But when a sudden death shakes his world, everything changes. Responsibility. Pressure. Survival. Pulled back into a dangerous underworld he tried to leave behind, Alex must navigate a global web of crime to protect the people he loves. And with every step deeper… the line between who he is and what he’s becoming begins to disappear. Because in this world, loyalty has a price—and it’s always paid in blood. K2

Are you in the market for a hidden gem thriller that’s ready and waiting for you on  iPlayer? Enter McMafia, the gripping crime series starring that makes for the perfect binge-watch.

Originally airing in 2018, the eight-part series centres on James’s character Alex, the “perfect” English gentleman born into a family of Russian mafia exiles. Despite his past, Alex vows to build his own legitimate business. But when a sudden death thrusts new responsibility onto his shoulders, he becomes ensnared in the world of organised crime in order to protect his family.

The series proved a huge hit with viewers when it first aired, drawing in nearly 10 million viewers for its debut and becoming one of the BBC’s biggest drama launches that year. Much to fans’ disappointment, the show was ultimately cancelled after one season due to scheduling conflicts, the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.