House Of Guinness: Netflix's Epic Explores Ireland's Beer Dynasty

Netflix’s eight-episode drama House Of Guinness arrives Sept. 25 on Netflix, tracing the Guinness family’s rise to power in the late 19th century amid social upheaval, political conflict and scandal.

From creator Steven Knight, the series follows four Guinness siblings after their father dies in 1868, sharing a fortune built on Arthur Guinness's porter while expanding estates across Dublin, Mayo and Wicklow, including Ashford Castle. The story blends family feud with the lives of workers at the brewery and a push to shape policy and philanthropy.

James Norton plays Rafferty, the brewery foreman whose charm masks a calculating edge, while Dervla Kirwan portrays Aunt Agnes, who acts as matriarch and fights to protect the family name as the heirs indulge in affairs and excess. Olivia Hedges, Arthur's arranged wife, is played by Danielle Galligan; she seeks love and autonomy within a marriage meant to shore up finances. The couple's tangled choices intersect with Arthur's hidden sexuality, hinted at through scenes set in London's Molly Houses. In one sequence, Arthur is forced to flee as police close in on a secret liaison, a reminder that his orientation could ruin him in 19th-century Ireland. The cast also includes Anthony Boyle as Arthur and Emily Fairn as Anne, the sister who challenges conventional duties with a desire for agency.

Knight notes that the Guinnesses flirted with political ideas, rubbing shoulders with artists, drinkers and those who pushed reform. He describes the family as very wealthy and naturally wild, never conforming, a dynamic that drives both ambition and self-destruction. 'Throughout the family history, the Guinnesses have flirted with all kinds of political ideas, hanging out with artists, drunks and drug-takers,' Knight says. 'They were very wealthy, they aspired to be part of the aristocracy, but there’s just something in that family that meant it was never going to happen – they were naturally wild and they were never going to conform.'

To help shape the look, producers rebuilt the Guinness world outside Dublin: Iveagh House, the family home, was recreated at a Manchester studio after the real Iveagh House became the Irish Foreign Office; the brewery itself was rebuilt in Liverpool's Stanley Dock to resemble 1860s Dublin. On any given day, as many as 400 supporting artists, plus horses, coal furnaces and steam machines, filled the set, with the air thick with the scents of beer and horse manure. James Norton notes that the brewery, though historic, would have felt like a fully modern operation of its day, a blending of old-world grit and cutting-edge production.

Norton says the attention to detail helps the actors. He recalls a costume touch for Rafferty: a real 19th-century medal stitched into the coat pocket so the actor could feel it when reaching for a cigarette. 'That kind of internal detail makes scenes feel lived-in,' he says.

Ivana Lowell, a relative who first pitched the project, says the idea grew from family stories. Lowell, who provided access to Guinness family anecdotes, describes the show as balancing scandal with philanthropy, noting that the drama doesn’t pretend to be a documentary but aims to capture the spirit of the era. 'This isn't a documentary. We had to give it some oomph,' she says.

Knight has described the Guinness clan as figures who flirted with politics and art while enjoying parties and controversy. The series foregrounds that mix of power, sex and desire, with Kirwan calling the show riotous and sexy and Norton stressing that it explores the messy, knotty parts of life. 'It’s about power, sex and desire – the messy, knotty parts of life,' Norton says.

House Of Guinness streams from Sept. 25 on Netflix, delivering a fictionalized—but grounded in history—portrait of a family that built a global brand while courting scandal and upheaval.