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Legends
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Legends
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Summary
Ordinary men and women are recruited to turn the tide on illegal drug smuggling in the early 1990s Britain in a gripping six-part drama inspired by an untold true story. The Thatcher government is losing the war with the drugs gangs and Her Majesty's Customs and Excise needs to think outside the box to turn the tide. Bureaucrat Blake (Douglas Hodge) agrees to an outlandish idea: a top-secret training programme for normal Customs employees to go undercover and infiltrate Britain's most dangerous drug cartels. They will be given only basic training to build new identities - their so-called legends - incorporating some of their real lives to help them retain facts and figures. Working under the leadership of Don (Steve Coogan), nervous recruits Bailey (Aml Ameen), Carter (Tom Hughes), Erin (Jasmine Blackborow), Guy (Tom Burke) and Kate (Hayley Squires) prepare to take the starring roles in one of the most remarkable criminal investigations conducted.
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Review
Jack Seale
It’s not hard to work out how Neil Forsyth’s new thriller got commissioned. Forsyth wrote The Gold, the BBC’s excellent drama based on the 1983 Brink’s-Mat robbery. So, said Netflix: got any more true stories about seedy organised crime from around the same time that you can draw on to repeat the trick?
Forsyth has delivered with a dramatisation of an outlandish scheme UK Customs officials came up with in 1990, amid political pressure to stop heroin imports: they sent ambitious customs officers with no experience of field work under cover to infiltrate trafficking gangs.
Steve Coogan is in his element as Don, a damaged but still driven veteran of clandestine stings who trains up a crack unit of officers to live in Liverpool and London, on rough estates and in the Turkish immigrant community respectively. As they embark on a mission that could end in violent death if the slightest error is made, Forsyth’s skill for paring narrative down to just the fun parts makes Legends irresistible: every scene is tense, funny or both at once, and the sense of Thatcher’s Britain as a place defined by grubby, brutal dysfunction is intoxicating.
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7.8/10
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Season 1
News & features about Legends
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Where was Legends filmed?
Like The Gold before it, Neil Forsyth's new series travels the globe across its six episodes.
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Will there be a Legends season 2 on Netflix?
Neil Forsyth's previous series, The Gold, was a story told in two parts. Will the same be true for Legends?
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Volleyball Legends codes: Full list of codes for October 2026
Fly high!
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Legends soundtrack: All songs featured in the Netflix drama
The drama features a soundtrack full of '90s hits, from the likes of The Stone Roses and Depeche Mode.
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Game4Ricky line-up 2026: Confirmed football legends and celebs
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Rayman Legends Retold preview: A very silly yet charming platformer
But WHERE are the Rabbids?
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Clover Legends codes (October 2026): Full list and how to redeem
Luckier than a four-leaf clover!
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Ocarina of Time you got yourself a Switch 2, more like.
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Rayman Legends Retold release date, pre-order and latest news
Ubisoft's reimagining of the beloved platformer has a confirmed launch date.
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Legends true story: Are the characters based on real people in Netflix drama?
The six-part drama is now available to stream in full on Netflix.
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Turns out the game on all the YouTube ads is actually pretty good!
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The Inbetweeners legends confirmed for brand-new 4-part comedy series
Joe Thomas and James Buckley hit the road to figure out midlife for Channel 4.
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Legends ending explained: Did the team take down Carter?
Where did we leave Don, Guy and the rest of the team?
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Coronation Street and EastEnders legends confirmed for the dinnerladies UK tour alongside Les Dennis
Dolly and Jean have been cast!
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Sons of Anarchy cast to reunite for new show Legends - but with a very meta twist
The new series comes from the original show's star, Charlie Hunnam.
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Pokémon Legends Z-A multiplayer: How does it work?
Battle and trade all over again.
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Steve Coogan's Netflix hit Legends finally gets future confirmed by streaming giant
Neil Forsyth's undercover customs thriller returns, with a new story pushing deeper into the 1990s.
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Legends cast: Steve Coogan, Tom Burke and Hayley Squires star
The new Netflix drama comes from The Gold creator Neil Forsyth.
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Game4Hope line-up 2026: Confirmed Everton, Liverpool, Rest of the World legends and celebs
The teams are littered with famous faces...
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Katy Manning and Sir Derek Jacobi have both played iconic Doctor Who characters.
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Classic Doctor Who legends set to reunite for exciting new project
Doctor Who legends are set to reunite for Sophie Aldred's exciting new sci-fi project.
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Gavin & Stacey legends join cast of BBC festive animation this Christmas
The next Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler adaptation has been announced.
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Bergerac season 3 confirms casting of Doctor Who and Only Fools and Horses legends
Damien Molony will be back to lead the cast as cop Jim Bergerac.
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Emmerdale legends talk heartbreaking end of Jimmy and Nicola - and what's next for Sadie King scheme
Actors Nick Miles and Nicola Wheeler spoke at the National Television Awards 2026.
See more about Legends
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