--- title: "The Gold: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/tv/the-gold/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/tv/the-gold" critics_score: 72 critics_reviews: 8 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." --- # The Gold (2023): what the critics said Critics' score 72 from 8 reviews: 6 positive, 2 mixed, 0 negative. Most critics find The Gold a smart, entertaining crime drama, with praise clustering around its ensemble cast and the business of moving stolen gold after the robbery. The performances earn approval even from less persuaded reviewers; The Guardian singles out Jack Lowden as Kenneth Noye, alongside the production design. Several reviews admire the scope beyond the heist, tracing criminal enterprise into legitimate businesses and domestic lives, with class and wealth giving the story weight. The reservations concern both storytelling and the treatment of the criminals. The i Paper finds the handling of class and gender too heavily signposted, while The Telegraph questions the drama’s admiration for its villains and reluctance to confront darker truths. The AV Club is markedly less persuaded than most critics, finding the writing stilted and the pacing erratic. The spread is appreciable: plotting that many find absorbing strikes the strongest dissenter as confusing and dull. ## Evening Standard Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 6 February 2023. The Gold is a truly smart British crime drama with a classic feel, a knockout cast and razor-sharp writing that achieves a smarter, more classic tone than typical British crime stories. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/tvfilm/the-gold-bbc-one-review-dominic-cooper-jack-lowden-hugh-bonneville-b1057897.html) ## Radio Times — James Hibbs Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 12 February 2023. The critic praises its originality, thematic depth on class and wealth, sprawling scope, and focus on domestic lives, calling it an ambitious evolution of the crime drama that is gripping throughout, though not perfect for everyone. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/drama/the-gold-bbc-comment/) ## The Independent Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 12 February 2023. The series is pure primetime fun that bubbles with vigour, delivering smart British crime drama. [Read the review](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/reviews/the-gold-review-bbc-brinks-mat-b2279854.html) ## Vulture Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 4 January 2024. The series delivers prime genre pleasures of criminals, detectives, and their vivid underworld universe. It focuses effectively on the criminal enterprise built around fencing the stolen gold after a propulsive heist opening. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/article/the-gold-bbc-paramount-series-review.html) ## The Guardian Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 12 February 2023. The series is a diverting and hugely entertaining retelling of the Brink’s-Mat robbery and its aftermath. The production design and ensemble cast, especially Jack Lowden as Kenneth Noye, provide the main pleasures. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2023/feb/12/the-gold-review-a-24-carat-drama-about-one-of-the-uks-most-shocking-robberies) ## The i Paper — Rachael Sigee Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 12 February 2023. The critic finds it a measured and well-executed drama that takes its time exploring the roots of the crime through the criminal underworld and legitimate businesses. It avoids Guy Ritchie traps but has some heavy sign-posting on class and gender. [Read the review](https://inews.co.uk/culture/television/the-gold-bbc-one-review-the-remarkable-story-of-the-brinks-mat-robbery-a-heist-that-went-too-well-2142414) ## The Telegraph Rating 3/5. 12 February 2023. The stylish, well-told drama is superbly acted but undermined by its admiration for the villains and failure to confront darker truths about the crime. [Read the review](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2023/02/12/gold-bbc-one-review-sparkling-brinks-mat-drama-made-grubby-falling/) ## The AV Club — Saloni Gajjar Rating C-. 12 September 2023. The series fails to shine due to stilted storytelling, weak writing, erratic pacing, and disjointed execution that makes the fascinating true story boring and hard to follow. Standout performances from the ensemble cast provide the only real highlights amid the chaos. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/the-gold-review-tv-paramount-plus-british-true-crime-1850818066) ## The Times — Carol Midgley Rating ★★★★☆. 19 February 2023. It is a rollicking good drama, ingeniously written, with outstanding performances from Jack Lowden and Hugh Bonneville. The complex plotting around the gold laundering stands out. [Read the review](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/tv-radio/article/the-gold-review-a-rollicking-good-drama-ingeniously-written-202jjcfnb) ## Paste — Shane Ryan Rating 9.0. 18 September 2023. The critic calls the series an excellent, relentlessly watchable heist thriller that does justice to its unbelievable true story while crafting an intricately plotted and highly entertaining drama. The strong ensemble cast and the show's keen understanding of pace and character are singled out for praise. [Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/tv/paramount-plus/the-gold-review) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/tv/the-gold.md