The new historical drama House of Guinness was released on September 25, and has already risen to Number 1 on the Netflix series streaming charts in Ireland.
Despite mixed reviews regarding the historical inaccuracies and lack of nuance in the show’s depiction of post-famine 19th-century Ireland, the incredible cast and intense drama have kept viewers hooked nonetheless.
Beginning with the death of the Guinness patriarch, we follow four Guinness children as they navigate the inherited Anglo-Irish empire, with scandal brewing at every turn.
As for the show’s queer storyline, Anthony Boyle’s portrayal of Arthur Guinness does not disappoint. Boyle, who won the Rising Star Award at this year’s IFTAs, is not new to historical drama, having played Brendan Hughes in the TV adaptation of Say Nothing.
In House of Guinness, Arthur enters a lavender marriage with Lady Olivia, daughter of the Earl of Bantry. “Arthur and Olivia, the poly king and queen of Dublin,” Boyle joked in an interview with Town & Country Magazine.
Lady Oliva is played by Dublin’s Danielle Galligan, known for her iconic role as the fiery bisexual Nina Zenik in Shadow and Bone.
Given the historical context, there is intense blackmail and bribery in the series from those who discover Arthur Guinness’ sexuality. But there is also plenty of sex. Anthony Boyle notes that the team wanted to show that the character of Arthur “didn’t feel shame about his own sexuality, it’s that the world was wrong”.
While there is no specific historical evidence pointing to Arthur Guinness’ queerness, journalist Joe Joyce wrote that the figure was “probably gay” in his 2009 book about the Guinness family. Due to intense criminalisation and retrospective erasure, lots of queer histories from this time have been lost or removed, making it hard to pinpoint stories such as this one.
Overall, House of Guinness and its passionately queer Arthur Guinness storyline offer a dramatised glimpse into life for the gay artistocrat in 19th-century Ireland.
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