TV preview: McMafia

James Norton stars in a new eight-part series set in the international world of organised crime.
By The Newsroom
Published 30th Dec 2017, 04:30 BST
CRIME AND EMBELLISHMENT: From left to right, Aleksey Serebryakov (Dimitri), James Norton (Alex), Maria Shukshina (Oksana), Faye Marsay (Katya) and Juliet Rylance (Rebecca) in McMafia.CRIME AND EMBELLISHMENT: From left to right, Aleksey Serebryakov (Dimitri), James Norton (Alex), Maria Shukshina (Oksana), Faye Marsay (Katya) and Juliet Rylance (Rebecca) in McMafia.
CRIME AND EMBELLISHMENT: From left to right, Aleksey Serebryakov (Dimitri), James Norton (Alex), Maria Shukshina (Oksana), Faye Marsay (Katya) and Juliet Rylance (Rebecca) in McMafia.

Created by Hossein Amini and James Watkins, McMafia is inspired by the bestselling non-fiction book by Misha Glenny.

Featuring a distinguished international cast, it tells the story of Alex Godman (Norton), an English-raised son of Russian exiles with a mafia history, who has spent his life trying to escape the shadow of that criminal past.

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As he starts building his own legitimate business and forging a life with his girlfriend Rebecca (Juliet Rylance), his family’s past murderously returns to threaten them and Alex is forced to confront his values to protect those he loves.

Amini said: “McMafia is the story of our contemporary globalised world and the criminal underworlds that compete and thrive just beneath its surface. It is a truly international show, spanning dozens of countries.”

Additional cast include, Faye Marsay (Love Nina, Game of Thrones) and renowned Russian actor Aleksey Serebryakov (The Method, Leviathan) as Dimitri, Alex’s father.

McMafia, BBC1, New Year’s Day, 9pm