'They are extreme versions of us': Sean Bean on 'Original Gangsters'
Discover the truth behind history’s most notorious outlaws as Sean Bean investigates Al Capone, the Krays, and more in Original Gangsters.
When you hear the name Sean Bean, what do you think of? Perhaps Boromir in The Lord of the Rings, Ned Stark in Game of Thrones, or Richard Sharpe leading his men through the Napoleonic Wars?
Over the years, Bean has brought all these characters to life with legendary on-screen performances. But now, as part of a new Sky HISTORY series, he’s turning his attention to a very different kind of history. It’s one written not by kings and generals, but by outlaws.
In Original Gangsters with Sean Bean, the acclaimed actor steps into the shadows of the criminal underworld to explore the lives of some of history’s most infamous figures – from Al Capone and the Peaky Blinders to Harlem’s Stephanie St. Clair, and Britain’s own Billy Hill and the Kray twins.
'I’ve always been fascinated by complex characters in history,' he explains. 'And they don’t get any more complex than the gangsters in this series.'
Original Gangsters with Sean Bean starts Tuesday 4 November 9pm on Sky HISTORY and HISTORY Play.
A new take on infamy
Original Gangsters fuses cinematic re-enactments, expert interviews and cutting-edge analysis to separate myth from reality. Across four episodes, Bean leads viewers into the murky world of real-life criminal empires. Not to glorify them, but to understand them.
The series shines a light on the people behind the legends: how they lived, ruled and ultimately fell. 'The whole series really does a lot of myth busting,' Bean says. 'It’s an aspect of the show I feel an audience will enjoy. It’s almost as though we know these gangsters in some strange way by the end of each show.'
Audiences have long been fascinated by gangsters, from The Godfather to Goodfellas, from television’s Shelby clan to Chicago’s prohibition-era mobsters. For Bean, that fascination speaks to something deeper.
'I think we are all fascinated as they are extreme versions of us,' he reflects.
Highlights from the series include a detailed look at Al Capone’s dual identity as ruthless mobster and devoted family man. Meanwhile, fans of the smash hit BBC drama will savour an episode that features the Peaky Blinders’ transformation from street thugs into Britain’s first organised criminal network.
Throughout every episode, Bean and his team of historians, criminologists and psychologists reveal the contradictions that made these figures larger than life, and yet deeply human.
The gentleman gangster and the time bomb
Among the many underworld figures Bean encounters, one stands out in particular. 'Billy Hill is really fascinating,' he says. 'He was incredibly powerful but also understated. Not many people know his name. While the Kray twins were very unstable and violent, Billy Hill was just quietly running London and amassing a fortune.'
Hill’s empire stretched across the capital’s post-war gambling dens and protection rackets, but unlike his volatile successors, he operated with a kind of cold efficiency. 'He is the closest thing we had to a godfather back then,' Bean explains. 'The Big Edge, the card con, was also an ingenious scam. They made an absolute fortune fleecing rich gamblers in London. The 18th Earl of Derby lost over £1.7 million in today’s money in one night!'
The contrast with Ronnie Kray couldn’t be starker. 'I think Ronnie Kray was a particularly fearsome character,' added Bean. 'That combination of paranoia and instability, coupled with his unpredictability and volatility is frightening. It’s said he could turn on you for no reason, and one of the people interviewed who knew him said, "Ronnie was like a walking time bomb that could blow up at any time!"'
Beyond the myth
What emerges across the series is a more nuanced view of crime, morality, and power. The gangsters of Original Gangsters aren’t painted in black and white. They exist in the messy grey areas of history.
'There’s always two sides to every story,' Bean notes. 'The truth is much more nuanced.'
From Stephanie St. Clair’s rise as Harlem’s 'Queen of the Numbers' – a woman who defied both the Mob and systemic racism – to the real Peaky Blinders who ruled Birmingham’s streets long before fiction made them famous, the series balances brutality with intelligence, charisma with chaos.
Even the notion of a "successful" gangster is challenged. 'Lots of things can make a gangster, as the series shows,' Bean says. 'I'm not sure I would say anyone is ever truly a "successful" gangster.'
The fall from power
Every episode of Original Gangsters is, ultimately, a cautionary tale. Behind the glamour of tailored suits and fast cars lies a universal pattern – power that corrupts, ego that destroys and men who come to believe their own myth.
It’s a view that Bean agrees with. 'They can easily become untethered from reality and take on a God complex – feel they’re untouchable. In most cases they are responsible for their own downfall, due to being drunk on power, paranoia and their hubris.'
It’s a theme that echoes through every story, from Capone’s empire to the Krays’ downfall, revealing not only the anatomy of organised crime, but the psychology of ambition itself.
A legacy worth understanding
At its core, Original Gangsters is about more than crime – it’s about understanding. 'What actually made them become criminals?' Bean asks. 'Was there one watershed moment? Or lots of tipping points?'
The result is a series that doesn’t glorify its subjects but humanises them – exposing the frailties, motives and moral compromises that turned ordinary people into legends.
With expert insight, cinematic reconstruction, and Bean’s gravitas as a storyteller, Original Gangsters reclaims these figures from folklore and examines them as products of their time.
It’s gripping, surprising and deeply human. It’s a journey into the psychology of power and the dark mirror it holds up to us all.
Watch Original Gangsters on Sky HISTORY
Want to learn more about Al Capone? Curious about the truth behind the real Peaky Blinders? Or what made Harlem’s queenpin Stephanie St. Clair and London’s Gentleman Gangster Billy Hill tick?
Don’t miss Original Gangsters with Sean Bean, airing exclusively on Sky HISTORY and HISTORY Play from Tuesday 4 November at 9pm.
To hear the latest on more upcoming series, sign up to the Sky HISTORY newsletter today. From The Last Burma Star to A Ship Through Time, there’s plenty more fascinating history just waiting to be discovered.
