Drunken auditions, Dyson airwraps, and IV drips: Tom Brittney talks taking on Manhattan’s underworld in his new crime drama The Westies
(South) Westies (London)
If there’s one thing the world has been missing recently (apart from peace), it's a good ol' mob story. Whilst we await the return of MobLand, MGM+ has been filling the void, bringing a brand new series, Westies, to our screens.
Set in 1980s Hell's Kitchen, The Westies follows a ruthless Irish-American gang fighting for control amid a massive construction boom. Though vastly outnumbered by the Italian Mafia, the Westies secure a share of the profits but face deadly internal power struggles and increasing FBI pressure. Starring J.K Simmons, Titus Welliver, and Tom Brittney, to name a few, the crime drama brings all the memories of The Godfather that audiences have been mourning since 1990, with the flair and watchability of Peaky Blinders – or, anything written by Steven Knight for that matter.
Star of The Westies, former vicar from hit series Grantchester, and the almost-new-Superman Tom Brittney joined us for a pint in Mr Fogg’s Hat Tavern in Soho, talking fan-casting, his worst auditions, and the drunken commando-style crawling on a pub floor which led to his first director gig.
Shortlist: Cheers! Thanks for coming down
Tom Brittney: Cheers.
SL: I think that might be the earliest I’ve ever spilt beer down myself
TB: I think that was my fault – I smashed it
SL: First up, we’ve got famous families, because your new show The Westies is based on a real-life crime gang. We’ve had House of Guinness based on the Guinness family, you’ve got A Thousand Blows, where the Forty Elephants were a real all-female crime gang. If you could make a show about a real-life person or family, who do you think would make a good series?
TB: Dyson. James Dyson – the vacuum man.
SL: Is that the title for it?
TB: Yes. I just wanna know how he made such good vacuums, and then went off to do not vacuums
SL: He’s got to be a girl dad if he’s producing hair care tools like that
TB: Well, in the show (which we’ve now written), we will explore this and how he gets the vacuum and one day puts it on the back of his daughter’s head to make a ponytail. And I will play Dyson.
SL: Next up, we’ve got an alternative career, because you once said acting was the only option for you growing up. Now you’ve been in the industry for a while, are there any other areas that you like dabbling in?
TB: There are other bits I’d do – funnily enough I went into directing when I was doing the show Granchester I got very drunk with the producers one night and went “ohh just let me direct” and they were going to say yes, but I went “look I’ll show you how I’ll shoot it” and drunkenly went through the scene, on the floor with a pretend camera. But they said yes.
If I wasn’t going to be in front of the camera, I wanted to be behind it. I just love the world of film and TV. I started my own production company, so I’ve been producing through that, doing something for ITV with Jonathan Pryce at the moment.
Honest answer If it wasn’t film and TV, it would be photography. Specifically, war photography. Briefly after drama school, I remember looking up EasyJet flights to Afghanistan, just to see if I could bring my camera, thinking they'd let me in.
SL: As soon as Brits hear there’s a show about something Irish, they think about Guinness. Do you have any London pubs you love to go to for a Guinness?
TB: I think most people would say The Devonshire, that’s the thing, right? And I think it is the best pint of Guinness in London. I need to go to more places and test out the Guinness everywhere.
SL: Did you listen to any Irish music or TV shows to get you into the Irish mood whilst filming?
TB: I did. I had a Spotify playlist of Irish music which ranged from Kneecap to Drop Kick Murphy’s, who do our theme tune for the show. When we were on set, we had this pub set called the 596, which was actually a real place the Westies went and planned their violence. Every scene we filmed there was a traditional Irish band playing, which was so special, it really brought that special cultural touch to it.
SL: Have you ever had a really bad audition?
TB: I’ve had some really bad ones. There was a part I auditioned for that I really liked, and my agents called me up and told me it was a fake role, and instead I was getting on a flight to the States and needed to know 15 pages straight from the plane to the audition. I was so jet-lagged I forgot all of my own lines, forgot my own lines, and it was with a really big actress who I was a big fan of, and I just leaned in and went “I’m so sorry I have no idea what I’m doing”. My agents rang me as I was walking out and went yeah they don’t want you, so I flew straight back.
SL: I can’t believe you got catfished at work. Where’s your BBC Documentary exposing the industry?
TB: I’m obviously producing one, it's my next project.
SL: The cast of The Westies is amazing; you’re working with J.K Simmons!
TB: I’ve worked with some incredible people, but I was pinching myself. I was with him yesterday thinking, “I’m sitting next to J.K Simmons, and he’s my best friend now”.
SL: Does he know that?
TB Yeah, he does, he’s definitely said it… Everyone was feeling the fear on day one on set, you’re working with an Oscar winner, but he was so great at making everyone feel calm and at ease.
SL: The Westies is one of those shows where, because it’s a tense crime drama, I need to watch a palate cleanser episode of Friends or a sitcom to calm me down afterwards. When you’re filming a show like that, do you need to do the same? Is there anything you do in between takes that feels like the antithesis of intense drama?
TB: Funnily enough, we did, my co-star Sarah Bolger – she really knows how to pamper, so we went for facials and went to get those IV drips almost every weekend. You know the ones that Rihanna gets? Another one of my best friends… I’m not even sure what’s in them, but we would sit there for three hours just gossiping. It was either that or going out drinking
SL: Very method acting then
TB: We were staying in character.
SL: Aside from The Westies, you’ve been over Twitter fan-casting for a few roles – a lot of people want to see you play Batman. A lot of people wanted to see you as Superman it came down to you and David Corenswet
TB: It did; it’s insane it got that close, but David Corenswet is perfect for that role – if you typed into AI “Give me Superman” it would have just shown you a picture of David, so I was not hard done by at all.
SL: If you could fan-cast yourself in anything, what would you cast yourself in?
TB: Superman… (kidding). I think of all the superheroes, I think Batman would be very fun, it’s always been one of my favourites. Aside from the superhero world…
SL: You’d make a decent Bond
TB: Look, I didn’t say it… [silently agreeing]. I’d love to play a pirate – method acting, I could just drink rum and be on the sea.
The Westies will premiere on 12th July 2026 exclusively on MGM+ in UK
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