BBC's latest drama, The Gold is based on the true story of the Brink's-Mat Robbery that shocked the UK and changed British policing forever. 

The show has a star-packed cast, with actors Hugh Bonneville, Jack Lowden, Dominic Copper, Charlotte Spencer and Tom Cullend and more starring. 

The robbery saw six men in a van plan to rob the Brink's-Mat depot near London Heathrow Airport, with expectations to find a million pounds worth of foreign currency. 

But the group instead stumbled over a gold bullion worth £26 million, making it one of the biggest robberies in the world. 

The Brinks Mat Robbery: The real story that inspired The Gold

On November 26, 1981, six armed men from South London broke into the Brink’s-Mat warehouse near London Heathrow.

The group were led by Mickey McAdams and Brian Robinson who planned to find £3 million in cash.

However, the group were shocked to find a massive £26 million in gold bullion and diamonds instead.

Their plan to do a simple heist quickly became complicated as they were forced to liquidate the gold and diamonds before the police could catch them.

Over two hours, all the gold was loaded into a van as they made their escape at 8.15am, just 15 minutes later a guard raised the alarm.

Knowing that they were in over their head, the group had to find a way to dispose of o the gold so it couldn’t be tracked back to them.

One of the robbers recruited Kenneth Noye to dispose of the gold, leading them to smelt it with copper to disguise its purity.

However, an informant later told the police of Noye’s crime, seeing police officer DC John Fordham enter his garden at night, however, Noye shot him dead.

The Bolton News:

A trial over the shooting was held, and to many people’s surprise, Noye was found not guilty, but he was later convicted for his role in the Brink’s Mat robbery for 14 years in 1986.

Besides Noye, two others were jailed. Mickey McAvoy was sentenced to 25 years in 1984 and Anthony Black for six years.

What happened after the Brinks Mat Robbery?

The police worked hard to recover the gold but were unsuccessful, later finding that most of it had re-entered the gold market after being sold on by other criminals involved in the robbery.

Now, it's rumoured that if you’ve brought gold jewellery after 1996, you are likely wearing Brink’s Mat bullion.

When will BBC's The Gold air on TV?

The first episode aired on BBC One at 9pm on Sunday, February 12, with the remaining five episodes airing at the same time in the following weeks.