Why you should be watching Taboo

“It is hell opened up” – just one of the chilling one-liners to come out of Twitter from the new collaboration between British blockbuster actor Tom Hardy and screenwriter Steven Knight. It’s been nearly four years since their critically-acclaimed film Locke, in which Hardy plays a troubled family man racing to be present for the birth of his newborn son. In this BBC and FX-produced miniseries, the tables are turned, with Hardy putting on the boots of James K. Delaney, a long-missing adventurer returning to London to bury his deceased father – and wrench control of his inheritance away from a merciless East India Company with grand global ambitions. As key players struggle with wills, deeds, and property legislation, this is both an uncanny supernatural tale and a quaint record of 19th century legal history.

You could accuse Taboo of primarily being a vehicle for its high-profile lead, and Hardy is certainly the gruff, hulking heart of this shadowy fable. With the show’s future looking bright, however, and a rumoured three-season run already planned ahead, here’s why you should jump in before you get left behind.

American broadcaster FX has been gunning for a period drama for a while now, and their excitement about procuring Taboo is evident. The devil’s in the details, and you’ll find lovingly-crafted period costumes and an equally well-made story in the murky streets of Regency London, depicted as a refined British city battling its darker demons.

Whether orating to a terrorised city in The Dark Knight Rises, or mutely driving his flaming way through Mad Max: Fury Road, Hardy has a proven knack for understated intimidation. Watch him strike more terror into his enemies’ hearts with a grunt than most could manage with a bludgeon.

The roster of supporting actors includes the award-laden Jonathan Pryce, CBE, Sherlock’s Mark Gatiss, and Charlie Chaplin’s granddaughter, Oona Chaplin. Tom Hardy may be the show’s frontman, but the stars shining in the background make his unnerving performance look all the darker.

Pitched by Tom Hardy with his author and comedy-writer father, Edward “Chips” Hardy, the London-based tale is informed as much by their family’s bedtime stories as showrunner Steven Knight’s time writing for Peaky Blinders. Gritty violence, cockney slang, and taut family relations are ensured; just don’t expect to sleep soundly afterwards.

With hints of voodoo, cannibalism, and poison-laden betrayal, Jack K. Delaney has reason enough to be angry and some imaginative ways to vent it. No matter the moody setting – hiding around the dark corners of Taboo’s Jack-the-Ripper aesthetic is a ripping good yarn.

As we know from last year’s Stranger Things, a show’s title sequence can be as important for establishing atmosphere as any design choice along the way. Keep your eyes peeled for slight variations in each episode’s eerie, twinkling credits: who knows what clues may lie there?

Watch Taboo on BBC1, Saturdays at 9.15pm, or Tuesdays on FX. Episode 1 is currently available to stream on BBC iPlayer.