Tommy, Arthur and John, move over – there are some new criminal siblings in town, and they’re every bit as troublesome. While there’s no denying the notoriety of the Shelby brothers – their flat caps and violent reign over Birmingham dominated the cultural conversation for six series of Peaky Blinders (and its subsequent spinoffs) – but it’s about time they had some new competition in the streaming sphere.
Bad Bridgets is the unmissable new crime thriller, telling the story of raucous Irish sisters who will rival the greatest as the next Peaky Blinders. Inspired by real-life research, the drama will follow the duo, played by Emilia Jones and Alison Oliver, who emigrate to New York in the 19th century and get pulled into a wild criminal underworld, made up of women who drink, fight, steal and even kill.
With the drama coming soon to Netflix, here’s everything you need to know about Bad Bridgets, including the plot, cast and how to watch it.
What is Bad Bridgets about?
Introducing the unruly Irish sisters, played by Emilia Jones and Alison Oliver, who make the treacherous journey across the Atlantic for a new life in New York in the 19th century. Upon their arrival, they fall in with a gaggle of chaotic women, the so-called ‘Bridgets’ – who are wreaking mayhem across the city.
But, how did the sisters escape poverty and their abusive father in Ireland? A mystery letter offered them an out… We don’t have all the details yet, but the feature film is based on the real-life research of history professors Elaine Farrell and Leanne McCormick, who studied Irish emigrant women arriving on Atlantic shores.
They shared their findings in the non-fiction book Bad Bridget: Crime, Mayhem And The Lives of Irish Emigrant Women, which later inspired a podcast. The book follows the lives of Irish emigrant women across Toronto, New York and Boston in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Some of the women took the phrase ‘paint the town red’ to new levels – with Irish women frequently outnumbering Irish men in prisons at the time.
What to read next
As we mentioned, the drama will rival Peaky Blinders’ Birmingham ganglands, with so many evocative details in the book telling the stories of sex workers, thieves, kidnappers and killers. We can’t wait to see what writer/director Rich Peppiatt and his star-studded cast, including Colin Farrell, Steve Coogan and Charlie Heaton have in store.
Who’s in the cast of Bad Bridgets?
The cast of Bad Bridgets includes:
- Emilia Jones (CODA, The Running Man)
- Alison Oliver (Wuthering Heights, Conversations With Friends)
- Colin Farrell (The Banshees Of Inisherin, In Bruges)
- Steve Coogan (Philomena, Legends)
- Charlie Heaton (Stranger Things, Industry, Peaky Blinders)
- Domhnall Gleeson (Ex Machina, Echo Valley)
- Himesh Patel (Yesterday, The Odyssey)
- Niamh Algar (The Iris Affair, Mary & George)
- Simone Kirby (Kneecap, His Dark Materials)
How can I watch Bad Bridgets?
With filming starting later this year in Northern Ireland and Ireland, Netflix hasn’t yet revealed the release date for Bad Bridgets. As soon as we have a confirmed date, we’ll share it here.
What other crime thrillers can I watch now?
If you’re on the lookout for another crime thriller, we’d recommend Love & Death, which is based on a shocking true crime story. The series introduces us to the church-going Texan housewife, Candy Montgomery (Elizabeth Olsen), who starts a tumultuous affair to try to combat her suburban ennui – only, it lands her in handcuffs. You can watch Love & Death now on ITVX. If you’re in the mood for a British crime drama, we’d point you towards the series From Darkness, which first aired in 2015, where we meet Claire Church (Anne-Marie Duff), a former police officer who’s moved to a remote Scottish island to start a new life. Then, a chilling discovery on her former Manchester patch forces her to confront the past she’s tried so hard to flee from. You can watch From Darkness now on U.
