---
title: "Brassic"
year: 2019
kind: "series"
canonical: "https://film.one/tv/brassic"
fi1m_id: "brassic"
imdb_id: "tt9174582"
tmdb_id: 92621
wikidata_id: "Q67123867"
fi1m_score: 76
critics_reviews: 3
published: "2026-10-07T20:14:09.704198+00:00"
updated: "2026-10-07T20:14:17.573605+00:00"
region: "US"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Brassic (2019)

Created by Danny Brocklehurst, Joe Gilgun · 43m · MPA TV-MA · Comedy, Drama, Crime

## Identity

Brassic

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/tv/brassic
- **Type:** Series
- **Fi1m ID:** brassic
- **IMDb ID:** tt9174582
- **TMDB ID:** 92621
- **Wikidata ID:** Q67123867
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9174582/, https://www.themoviedb.org/tv/92621, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q67123867

**Fi1m score: 76** · Critics: 3 of 6 reviews so far

*In a sentence:* Six idiots, a job that goes wrong by lunchtime, and a man who cannot get out of bed; funnier and kinder than that sounds

> Joe Gilgun and Danny Brocklehurst’s northern caper comedy is filthy, loud and much warmer than it looks, with Gilgun’s Vinnie giving it a centre most sitcoms never find. The plots are nonsense and by the later series the formula shows, but the company is good.

## Synopsis

A small northern town. Vinnie O’Neill (Joe Gilgun) leads a gang of petty thieves who have known each other since school: Cardi (Tom Hanson), Ash (Aaron Heffernan), Tommo (Ryan Sampson) and JJ (Parth Thakerar). His best friend Dylan (Damien Molony) wants out, and so does Dylan’s girlfriend Erin (Michelle Keegan), who has had enough of the place. One more job is supposed to pay for the move, and it goes wrong before the day is out. Local crime boss Terence McCann (Ramon Tikaram) takes an interest, Vinnie’s GP Dr Chris Coxley (Dominic West) keeps writing him prescriptions, and Ash’s mother Carol (Bronagh Gallagher) keeps the lot of them fed.

## Review

*Brassic* is a comedy about a gang of thieves in a northern town who are not very good at thieving and have no intention of stopping. Danny Brocklehurst created it with Joe Gilgun, who plays the leader, Vinnie, and the series has been built around him from the first episode. The idea is simple: send the lads out on a job, let it go wrong, and watch them cover for each other. Underneath that, quietly, is a programme about a man whose illness puts him on the floor for days and the people who have decided to keep him alive.

We like it. It is good rather than great, and we would send anyone who enjoys a rude, fast, loyal sort of comedy to the first series without hesitation. The later ones are more of the same, and whether that is a complaint depends on how much you wanted more of the same.

Gilgun is the reason it works. Vinnie is a talker, all hands and teeth and swearing, and for the first twenty minutes we assumed we were watching a turn. Then there is a scene in the first episode where he cannot get up, and the noise stops, and Gilgun lets his face go slack in a way that is not acting-sad but simply empty. We were caught off guard by it, and it is the thing that kept us watching when the jobs wore thin. The series knows when to let him be funny and when to let him be ill, and it never asks for pity on his behalf.

The gang around him is well cast and well drawn. Tom Hanson’s Cardi is a large, gentle man with a lavatory in his garden and no idea why that is odd. Ryan Sampson plays Tommo, who runs a sex club above a shop and talks about it the way other men talk about a pigeon loft. Parth Thakerar’s JJ is the one with a trade and a conscience, and Aaron Heffernan’s Ash is the one with a mother, Carol, whom Bronagh Gallagher plays as a woman who has fed every one of these boys since they were small and does not expect to be thanked. Dominic West turns up as Dr Chris Coxley, Vinnie’s GP, a man of expensive habits and no professional boundaries, and he is plainly enjoying himself.

John Collins’s production design gets the place right: the pub with the sticky carpet, the lock-up, Vinnie’s home, which is barely a building, with a mattress on the floor. Nothing in it looks dressed. Tim Morrish’s music is cheap and cheerful in the right way, a bit of brass over the chases, and it stays out of the way of the talking. Richard Stoddard, George Kane and a long list of other directors keep the episodes moving at the same clip; at 43 minutes nothing is allowed to sit, which is a strength in a caper and a weakness whenever a scene deserves longer.

The weaknesses are real. The plots are farce, and not always the clever kind: somebody steals something, somebody with a gun wants it, the lads run. By the third series we could predict the beats of an episode from the first scene. Michelle Keegan’s Erin is written as the sensible one who wants to leave, and in the early run that means she spends a good deal of time standing in doorways telling Dylan to grow up. She is better than that, and the series eventually notices, but it takes its time. Damien Molony’s Dylan, the one who wants out, is the least interesting man in the gang because he is the only one with a plan, and plans are not funny. The violence is cartoon violence, which suits the tone and occasionally jars with the illness the series takes seriously.

Set against *Shameless*, the obvious comparison, this is a smaller and softer thing. Nobody here is as monstrous as Frank Gallagher, and nobody is meant to be. What it has instead is a gang who genuinely like each other, and the sense that if any one of them went under the rest would notice. Seven series in, since 22 August 2019, that is still what we come back for.

Start at the beginning and stop when the jobs start to look familiar. For some viewers that will be series three. For others it will be never, and we would not argue with them.

*Fi1m score 76, published 7 October 2026.*

## Straight answers

**Is Brassic worth watching?**

*Brassic* is worth watching for anyone who enjoys a rude, fast, loyal sort of comedy, and we scored it 76. Joe Gilgun's Vinnie gives it a centre most sitcoms never find, and the gang around him are well cast. The plots are farce and by the third series the formula shows, so start at the beginning and stop when the jobs look familiar.

**How long is Brassic, and what is it rated?**

*Brassic* has episodes of about 43m and is rated TV-MA by the MPA in the US. It is a comedy and drama series.

**Where can I watch Brassic in the US?**

*Brassic* is streaming on Amazon Prime Video, Peacock, Tubi and The Roku Channel in the US, and it is also available to buy from Amazon Prime Video. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How violent or frightening is Brassic, and is it suitable for children?**

*Brassic* carries a UK 15 certificate and is not for children. The swearing is constant, Tommo runs a sex club above a shop, and the violence is cartoon violence: guns, chases and jobs that go wrong rather than anything frightening. The one thing it takes seriously is Vinnie's illness, which puts him on the floor for days; that is sad rather than scary, and adults will find it the best thing in it.

**How does Brassic compare to Shameless?**

*Brassic* is a smaller and softer programme than [*Shameless*](https://film.one/tv/shameless), which is the Manchester estate comedy it plainly grew up watching. Nobody in Brassic is as monstrous as Frank Gallagher, and nobody is meant to be; what it offers instead is a gang who genuinely like each other. The earlier series is rougher, crueller and funnier; the later one is kinder and easier company, if you can forgive its nonsense plots.

**What should I watch after Brassic?**

After *Brassic*, try [*Shameless*](https://film.one/tv/shameless) (2004, Fi1m 75): The Manchester estate comedy this one grew up watching; rougher, crueller, funnier. Then [*This Is England '86*](https://film.one/tv/this-is-england-86) (2010, Fi1m 80): A gang of mates in a northern town, older, sadder and harder to shake.

### Reviews we read (3)

- **The Guardian**, Lucy Mangan (90/100, inferred): Lucy Mangan finds the series hilarious, warm and emotionally affecting, comparing its unruly capers to the best of Shameless. She praises the central gang’s performances and the show’s heart without sentimentality. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2019/aug/22/brassic-review-a-tale-of-northern-neer-do-wells-with-humour-and-heart-to-spare)
- **Evening Standard**, Susannah Butter (★★★★✩): Butter finds the returning comedy delightfully energetic and entertaining. She singles out the strong ensemble cast and the show’s silly, filthy humour for praise. [Read](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/tvfilm/brassic-series-two-review-a4435031.html)
- **The i Paper**, Barbara Speed (75/100, inferred): The review finds the third series energetic and funny, though its plots are largely farcical. It singles out the characters’ friendship and chemistry as the show’s real draw. [Read](https://inews.co.uk/culture/television/brassic-series-3-sky-max-review-michelle-keegan-joseph-gilgun-1236112)

## Details

- **Created by:** Danny Brocklehurst, Joe Gilgun
- **Creator:** Danny Brocklehurst, Joe Gilgun
- **Director:** Richard Stoddard, Saul Metzstein, Jon Wright, John Hardwick, Ruth Carney, George Kane, Richard Signy, Daniel O'Hara, Ben Gregor, Jordan Hogg, Leon Lopez, Melanie Oliver
- **Writer:** Danny Brocklehurst, Alex Ganley, Danielle Ward, Ava Pickett, Tom Melia
- **Music:** Tim Morrish
- **Production design:** John Collins
- **Cast:** Joe Gilgun as Vincent "Vinnie" O'Neill; Michelle Keegan as Erin Croft; Steve Evets as Jim; Damien Molony as Dylan Golding; Bronagh Gallagher as Carol Dennings; Tom Hanson as Leslie "Cardi" Titt; Aaron Heffernan as Ashley "Ash" Dennings; Joanna Higson as Mary "Sugar" Jones
- **Runtime:** 43m
- **Certificate (MPA):** TV-MA
- **Release (the US):** 22 August 2019
- **Genres:** Comedy, Drama, Crime
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s82i2CuESH4

## Where to watch in the US

- Amazon Prime Video: streaming
- Peacock: streaming, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: free
- Tubi: free, hd
- The Roku Channel: free, hd
- Peacock: free, hd
- The Roku Channel: add-on, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: add-on
- Amazon Prime Video: buy, sd

*Checked 2026-10-07.*

Also available in: AU, CA, GB, IE, NZ, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## If you liked this

- *Shameless* (2004), Fi1m 75: The Manchester estate comedy this one grew up watching; rougher, crueller, funnier. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/tv/shameless.md)
- *The Young Offenders* (2016): Two Cork idiots, a bike ride and a bale of cocaine; sweet-natured and daft.
- *This Is England '86* (2010), Fi1m 80: A gang of mates in a northern town, older, sadder and harder to shake. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/tv/this-is-england-86.md)
- *Trailer Park Boys* (2001): Canadian petty crooks who never learn; the same loyalty with worse haircuts.
- *Rita, Sue and Bob Too* (1987): Bradford, a bad idea, and jokes that still land; working-class comedy without apology.

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/tv/brassic