House of Guinness slammed for getting ‘it all wrong’
Netflix show House of Guinness has been slammed for getting “it all wrong” by a descendant of the Guinnesses.
House of Guinness has been slammed for getting “it all wrong”.
The series, which launched on Thursday (25.09.25) on Netflix, stars James Norton, Anthony Boyle and Louis Partridge as part of the brewing clan the Guinnesses, but a real-life descendant of the family has now accused it of being filled with inaccuracies and stereotypes.
Writing in The Times, author Molly Guinness, a direct descendant of the brewing family, said she felt “righteous fury” watching the show and hit out at a gay storyline in the show.
She wrote: “I grew more and more indignant… my great-great grandfather Edward and his brother Arthur (were turned) into knaves and fools.”
Molly said the portrayal of Sir Benjamin implied he was cruel to his children, but in reality he was a “loving father”.
She added Arthur’s “gay exploits” had been “invented”, while Anne and Edward’s love stories were “inappropriate”.
She said: “All the characters come straight from a bingo card of modern clichés around rich people.”Created by Steven Knight, the period drama is set in 19th-century Dublin and New York and opens with the death of patriarch Sir Benjamin Guinness.
Its narrative follows his heirs – Arthur, Edward, Anne and Ben – as they navigate family rivalries and political turmoil.
Netflix presents it as “inspired by true stories”, but reviewers have also taken issue with its historical liberties.
And reviewers in the Irish press have also been critical.
In the Irish Star, one writer said James Norton’s accent as Sean Rafferty was “more Darby O’Gill than 1800s Dublin”, adding: “Five episodes in, there’s one thing that keeps pulling me away from the action – James Norton’s accent.”
In The Irish Times, Ed Power wrote Steven Knight’s “understanding of Ireland under colonialism is rudimentary”, lamenting the series was filmed in Liverpool rather than Ireland.
He said the show was a “wildly unfaithful retelling” and likened Norton’s character to a “steampunk Mr Tayto”.
Ann Marie Hourihane, writing in the Irish Independent, called the production “boring and predictable”, though she praised Jack Gleeson’s performance as Byron Hughes.
The Irish Examiner described the drama as “all pour, no pint”, with reviewer Pat Fitzpatrick concluding: “Opulent and dramatic… all the boxes are ticked. Except the one marked entertainment.”
The show also features a contemporary soundtrack including music from Fontaines D.C. and Kneecap. Despite the backlash, House of Guinness has received strong reviews in the UK.
Roland White of the Daily Mail gave it four stars, calling it a “fast-moving opener”.
Jack Seale in The Guardian awarded five stars, saying it had “smarts, heart and serious sex appeal”, while James Jackson in The Times described it as a “rip-roaring saga” with echoes of Downton Abbey and Succession.
