House Of Guinness: 11 Behind-The-Scenes Secrets About How The Netflix Show Was Made

House Of Guinness has become a huge hit for NetflixWe can’t get enough of Netflix’s salacious period drama House Of Guinness, which has been described by some critics as Succession meets Peaky Blinders – with a bit of The Crown thrown in, too. The eight-part series is set in Dublin in the late 1800s, and follows the famous brewing Guinness family after the death of its patriarch.If you’ve been loving House Of Guinness as much as the rest of the world, you’re definitely going to want to check out these behind-the-scenes facts about how the show came to be…A real-life descendant of the Guinness family partly created House Of GuinnessAlthough Steven Knight is credited as the creator of House Of Guinness, the idea initially came from writer Ivanna Lowell, an actual descendant of the Guinness family.Ivanna has revealed she was first inspired to write a TV show treatment about her family history when she caught an episode of Downton Abbey.“Our family history was a lot juicier and more interesting than this – plus it was all true,” she told the BBC.Ivanna’s initial treatment for the show was a bit different from the version that ended up on TV, though. For one thing, her version would have started by addressing the mythological and unproven tale of Arthur Guinness creating the famous stout after accidentally burning some hops.Anthony Boyle in character as Arthur GuinnessAfter speaking with Ivana, Steven Knight was inspired by the Guinness family story to helm the show that would become House Of Guinness.“Meeting her was the best bit of research imaginable because you didn’t just get the stories, you got the [family] confidence, and the spirit and the slight madness,” he said. “I was hooked.”Steven went on to play around with timelines and characters, jumping further back in the timeline to Benjamin’s death, although the basis of Ivanna’s idea is still there in the finished show.No, House Of Guinness was not really filmed in DublinHouse Of Guinness may be set in 19th-century Dublin and New York, but no scenes were actually filmed in either location.The on-screen Guinness brewery scenes were shot around Liverpool’s Stanley Docks, with Cosmopolitian noting that film crews were also spotted filming at the city’s St George’s Hall and Liverpool Town Hall.Stockport’s Underbanks area also doubled as Dublin, as the Georgian architecture closely mimics the look of the Irish capital in the 19th century.The scenes set in New York, where Byron Hedges went to spread the Guinness lore, are actually in Manchester’s edgy Northern Quarter. The back streets of Tarriff Street, Paton Street, Dale Street and Back Piccadilly were used to help portray the American city.Bangor’s Penryhn Castle doubled in the drama as the Guinness family home, Ashford Estate. For indoor shots, the show recreated the interior of Dublin’s Iveagh House inside Manchester-based film studios.Director Tom Shankland explained to Reach why Liverpool and Greater Manchester were used to double for Dublin.“It’s a working brewery and museum – not really the same brewery as it was,” he said. “There are some lovely iconic buildings in Dublin, Iveagh House is an iconic location, but we couldn’t realistically have filmed on St. Stephen’s Green. So, it became quite clear that we just weren’t going to get the 1868 Dublin we wanted.”Despite being set primarily between New York and Dublin, neither city was actually used as a filming location in House Of GuinnessJames Norton and Danielle Galligan had an unusual method of helping them build chemistry before they started shootingThe tension between Danielle Galligan’s Olivia and James Norton’s Rafferty sizzles throughout House Of Guinness, and the actor told Digital Spy how the duo broke the rules to achieve their racy on-screen chemistry.He told the outlet that the night before their first scene together, the pair jumped into the lake behind the hotel they were staying in – and went for an off-limits swim. “We weren’t meant to jump in… The hotel reception was like ‘you don’t swim in that lake. No one ever swims in that lake’, and Danny and I were like, ‘fuck it, we’re gonna do it’,” he revealed. “We just sort of traipsed off down the hill.”James cites this moment as one of the reasons the pair have such amazing on-screen chemistry. “The next day, when you’ve been through something even as small as that, you look each other in the eye and you just know each other,” The King & Conqueror star explained.Danielle Galligan and James Norton as seen in House Of GuinnessAnthony Boyle had a lot on his mind before shooting that nude scene in episode 3Fans were shocked when Anthony Boyle, who plays Arthur Guinness on the Netflix drama, got out of a bath totally naked in the third episode – and he has admitted that Netflix’s large viewership was on his mind before that scene was shot.“When I did that, I was sat in that bath and I was like, ‘Oh wait, it’s gonna be like millions of people,’” he told Town & Country.The Irish actor had methods in place of staying in the moment on set, but even then, it was almost impossible not to think about the show’s reach during filming.“My focus is usually on the other person, less so than what I’m experiencing, but on the day that you’re getting naked, you’re like, “Oh god, I hope my fucking granny doesn’t see this!” Moments like that happen!” he said to the outlet.Anthony Boyle has admitted he was feeling rather nervous before his House Of Guinness full-frontal sceneThis detail of Sean Rafferty’s costume adds layers to his characterJames Norton has opened up about a clever little detail that some people may not have noticed about his character’s costume in House Of Guinness.Speaking at a Q&A following a screening of the series, the Bafta nominee praised costume designer Edward K. Gibbon for putting so much thought into Sean Rafferty’s outfits.“Edward found out one of my buckles was a remnant from a military medal and he sewed the ribbon into my inner pocket,” James explained.You can see him brushing this piece of material every time he reaches for a cigarette (which, if you have seen this show, is quite a lot).James Norton as Sean Rafferty in House Of Guinness“It was a nod to the fact that Rafferty had this military background, it just gives you a sense of how thorough the detail was in the show,” the actor added.James Norton was responsible for another interesting detail about his characterJames’ little silver hoop earring, which he wears to play hunky foreman Sean Rafferty in House Of Guinness, has been a talking point among fans.He told Tudum that this little detail was a “James choice”, rather than something House Of Guinness’ creative team came up with, and he loves how much fans are enjoying it like it.“Connell had the chain,” James said, referencing Paul Mescal’s character in Normal People. “Rafferty has the slutty little earring, which I am so down for.”James' character's earring in House Of Guinness has certainly captured fans' attentionThe former Happy Valley star had originally pierced his ear at 18 but decided to re-pierce it two years before filming on House Of Guinness began. “Since then, every time I sit with the costume and makeup departments, I’m like, ‘Do you want me to keep the earring? Or do you want me to get rid of it?’” he claimed.James was then delighted when House Of Guinness’ costume designer said yes to his idea and felt it spoke to the character.“It speaks to his individuality,” James added. “Rafferty does everything how he wants to do it. He’s a rule unto himself. So, yeah, it’s a little naughty. It’s a little sexy. It’s a little irreverent. But the earring is right in line with the man.” Sean Rafferty isn’t based on anyone from history – but he does represent something specificWhile House Of Guinness is based (albeit loosely) on fact, Sean Rafferty is an entirely fictional character created by Steven Knight.The brewery’s foreman and fixer spends as much time romancing the female characters as fixing the Guinness family’s issues, with Steven telling Tudum that Rafferty is intended to represent “how modern the story actually is”.Speaking to Forbes, Steven also revealed it was important to him that an experienced actor like James was cast in the role. Although the character is only a supporting role, Rafferty plays a huge part in numerous stories throughout the Netflix series. “We talked about who his character is and what he symbolises. And what he is, is where the Guinness family meets the world. He’s the enforcement, he’s the one that does the dark arts,” Steven said.House Of Guiness’ modern soundtrack also aims to highlight the punk attitude of the familyAnthony Boyle and Louis Partridge in House Of GuinnessDespite being set in the mid-1800s, House Of Guinness has a soundtrack full of songs by modern bands Kneecap, The Mary Wallopers and Fontaines DC alongside more traditional songs on the Netflix show’s soundtrack.The series’ composer, Ilan Eshkeri, told Reach that the unusual soundtrack was explicitly chosen to create a specific atmosphere. “It’s this crazy mash-up of different things. I think it captures the punky, crazy attitude these guys had even though it’s the mid 1800s. It’s great when you do that stuff but there has to be a good reason for it and the reason is the Guinness kids were just wild and they were pushing the boundaries,” he explained.Steven Knight also told Radio 4 that putting the soundtrack together was “almost like cheating somehow”, as it served as “an instant way of getting an emotion in an audience that corresponds to the emotion you want them to feel anyway”.“It’s very raw, it’s loud and it’s rebellious and that’s what I wanted to have in the whole series,” he said. “Not least because these four descendants of Sir Benjamin they were early 20s when this happened so I think of my kids at that age and imagine this great big thing being put upon their shoulders, how would they react?”James Norton’s father appears as an extra on the showJames told Graham Norton during a recent appearance on his chat show that his dad appears in the background of House Of Guinness.The actor explained that his father regularly goes out of his way to appear on set so he can appear as an extra in his shows, and House Of Guinness is no different, with his dad appearing in the background of a bar fight scene. You can see him throw a bottle at his son’s character, Sean, during this scene.The English actors were understandably nervous about performing in Irish accents on setWhile the cast of House Of Guinness are mostly Irish, there are a few English actors in the mix, too.When promoting the show, these Brits have made no secret of their terror in attempting to sound authentically Irish on screen. “As an English person on this set, it was terrifying, as it’s mostly an Irish cast. Emily [Fairn] obviously had an amazing accent and Louis [Partridge]. The three of us were in the minority of non-Irish people,” James revealed during a Q&A.He continued: “The Irish are a proud lot, they have a very strong identity, and you know those actors who have fucked it up and they were crucified.”“So you are aware of the stakes, so we worked hard and we had a brilliant dialect coach who was there in my ear, reading out these very strange poems and bits of text,” James added.His co-star Louis, who plays Edward Guinness, also admitted his nervousness at learning the accent.Louis Partridge in character as Edward Guinness“It was a little bit daunting, being a little bit of a fish out of water,” Louis told Extra. “But it did help listening to a lot of Irish accents.”“Going out drinking with them was a good way to bond,” he then joked. “I’ve known a fair amount of Irish people in my time, but this was a real chance to get into the belly of the beast.”Sadly, Irish natives were seemingly less than impressed with the accents, with some viewers taking to social media to say the non-Irish members sounded like “fake leprechauns”. Anthony Boyle is not a fan of this one part of Arthur’s costumeYes, Anthony Boyle's moustache in House Of Guinness was realArthur Guinness has a very distinctive look in House Of Guinness, mostly due to his exaggerated moustache. Anthony Boyle, who plays Arthur, wasn’t a big fan of the look, especially when out of costume.“When I had that moustache when I was in normal people clothes, like an Adidas tracksuit, I just looked like an out of work magician,” Anthony told the Liverpool Echo.“Then you’ll have so many people looking at you going ‘You look fucking mental’. Like I was going to be playing the Pringles man in a biopic. It looks a bit mad, to be fair,” he added.Anthony has also revealed how long it took for him to grow that Pringles-can-worthy facial hair.“It took two-and-a-half months of pure concentration. Two-and-a-half months of just looking at myself in the mirror, looking at photos of Tom Selleck and other moustachioed men and it came out,” he explained to Reach.House Of Guinness is available to watch on Netflix nowREAD MORE:Thought The Stars Of House Of Guinness Looked Familiar? Here's Where You've Seen The Cast BeforeWe've Got Good News And Bad News For House Of Guinness Fans Hoping For A Season 2Guinness Family Descendant Shares How She Really Feels About New Netflix Drama

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