House of Guinness immediately invites two comparisons: Succession and Peaky Blinders. There’s family intrigue, romance, and political scheming, and the series quickly establishes itself as more than just a historical portrait. James Norton shines in another magnetic antagonist role, while Anthony Boyle and Louis Partridge play the ambitious Guinness brothers with a mix of ambition and vulnerability, balancing the pomp of inheritance with the crushing weight of responsibilities they never asked for — all against the chaos of a story inspired by real events.

It’s May 1868, and the series opens not with quiet mourning but with chaos: the funeral of Benjamin Guinness, the patriarch who turned the brewery into an empire, is about to take place — but Dublin isn’t exactly in mourning. On one side stand the Temperance movement protesters, ready to denounce everything the Guinness name represents. On the other hand, the Fenians, Irish nationalists who see Benjamin as a symbol of Protestant power allied with British rule. For them, there will be no peaceful burial for a man whose machine helped keep the Irish under Britain’s thumb.

Enter Sean Rafferty (James Norton), the family’s fixer, who wastes no time ordering the brewery workers to grab clubs and defend their boss’s coffin — a brutal and effective introduction to his character.

Inside the house, another kind of drama is unfolding. Benjamin’s four children prepare for the funeral. Arthur (Anthony Boyle), the eldest, is sharp-tongued and already focused on taking his father’s Parliamentary seat. Edward (Louis Partridge), the younger brother, prefers working on the brewery floor and resents the idea that Arthur will inherit control of the business. Anne (Emily Fairn) tries to hold the family together, but her continued connection to Rafferty — and the memory of having gone “too far” with him — reveals that the Guinness unity is mostly for show. Meanwhile, Benjamin Jr. (Fionn O’Shea) is still sleeping off his hangover, even on the day of his father’s burial.

The siblings’ dynamic is fascinating and instantly recalls Succession — but set in Victorian Dublin: privileged heirs, each with their own ambitions, flaws, and secrets, trying to keep up appearances while the empire trembles. The scene in which Edward proposes buying the brewery from Arthur in exchange for a share of the profits — freeing Arthur to focus on politics — is loaded with tension and foreshadows future clashes.

Outside, Dublin is about to erupt. After a street fight, Rafferty ensures that Benjamin’s body makes it to St. Patrick’s Cathedral — which Benjamin himself had restored — for a solemn ceremony. But House of Guinness doesn’t linger too long on grief: soon we see Fenian leader Patrick Cochrane (Seamus O’Hara) plotting how to exploit the power vacuum, while his sister Ellen (Niamh McCormack) prefers a subtler approach — exploiting the Guinness family’s secrets. And secrets abound. Anne continues to meet Rafferty in dark alleys, under the suspicious gaze of the ever-watchful family servant John Potter.

Meanwhile, Benjamin Jr. is sinking deeper into trouble: gambling debts to the dangerous Bonnie Champion (David Wilmot) and a self-destructive drinking habit. Lady Christine (Jessica Reynolds) offers to marry him and pay off his debts, but Benjamin’s haunting reply — “I am the madness” — is one of the episode’s most striking moments.

The episode ends in fire — literally. The Fenians set the Guinness cooperage ablaze in one of the most visually stunning sequences of the hour, with Rafferty and Bonnie working side by side to put out the flames. Inside the family home, Arthur and Edward reflect on what comes next: “Tomorrow everything becomes real,” Arthur says, aware that politics and business now rest on his shoulders. But nothing feels resolved — if anything, the future seems more explosive than ever.

Steven Knight repeats the Peaky Blinders formula, but swaps Birmingham’s gangs for Dublin’s aristocracy — and it works. House of Guinness is dense, demanding close attention as new characters appear in nearly every scene, mixing family drama with political intrigue and a richly detailed historical setting. But this density is what makes the premiere so promising. There’s something irresistible about watching the Guinness family falter, their enemies plot, and Dublin burn — all underscored by a modern, punk-spirited soundtrack featuring Fontaines D.C., Kneecap, and Flogging Molly.

If Peaky Blinders was about forging an empire, House of Guinness is about keeping one standing — and the emotional price that takes on those who inherit it. A dark, gripping premiere that sets the stage for what could easily become the next obsession for fans of historical drama.