Netflix has added great crime drama show from Succession and Trainspotting makers

Stephen Porzio

Boasting major talent both on-screen and off, the series is well-worth seeking out.

Netflix has just added Babylon, the excellent if slightly forgotten black comedy/crime drama series from Danny Boyle (28 Days Later, Trainspotting) and Jesse Armstrong (Peep Show, Succession).

Co-created by the pair alongside Robert Jones (The Usual Suspects) and Sam Bain (Peep Show), the show is set in London and follows several characters working at various levels of the Metropolitan Police Service.

The plot synopsis reads:

“Commissioner Richard Miller (James Nesbitt, Suspect) believes London’s police force needs to revamp its public image, and he thinks he has recruited the right person for a very tricky job: American Liz Garvey (Brit Marling, The OA).

“A veteran of new media known for groundbreaking work at Instagram, Garvey’s task of revolutionising the force’s PR department begins with a radical new policy of integrity and transparency.

“But changing London’s law-enforcement culture proves tougher than imagined, particularly when Finn (Bertie Carvel, The Sister), the bitterly sardonic communications deputy, is determined to ignore orders and continue schmoozing with the press over boozy lunches. When violence erupts across the capital, Liz’s vision faces its greatest test.”

Also detailing the lives of officers in different divisions of the police service, Babylon boasts a large ensemble cast including Oscar-winner Daniel Kaluuya (Judas and the Black Messiah), as well as Adam Deacon (Kidulthood), Andrew Brooke (Phone Shop), Jonny Sweet (Wicked Little Letters), Nick Blood (Agents of Shield), Nicola Walker (Unforgotten) and Paterson Joseph (Peep Show).

Its feature length pilot directed by Boyle premiered in 2014 on Channel 4, before being followed up with six 45-minute episodes a year later.

The series was praised upon release for its razor-sharp blending of a serious and often exciting cop drama with a genuinely laugh-out-loud comedy satire.

Despite being well-liked, the show never returned for a second season – with Armstrong in 2015 citing the difficulty of getting its ensemble cast back together as the reason.

You can read a sample of some of the glowing reviews for Babylon right here:

AV Club: “Babylon is so sharp and so timely that it’s almost impossible to separate the show from current headlines.”

IndieWire: “A layered analysis of a failing system, and – true to its satirical inception – no one is let off the hook.”

Los Angeles Times: “Fortunately, the essential absurdities of the high-pressure workplace and bureaucratic lunacy keep the narrative universal, with writers Sam Bain and Jesse Armstrong wielding both rapier wit and sheer goofiness.”

Observer: “It’s like The Wire meets In the Loop meets The IT Crowd.”

Vulture: “The cop drama Babylon is as purely pleasurable as a show can be while still being serious.”

All seven episodes of Babylon are streaming on Netflix in Ireland and the UK right now.

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