Sean Bean Just Topped Ned Stark With His Best TV Role Yet

Fifteen years ago, Sean Bean knelt at the Sept of Baelor in Game of Thrones — and the television world hasn’t quite stopped talking about it since. Ned Stark became one of the most iconic characters in prestige TV history, and Bean’s portrayal helped launch what became a global phenomenon. But a new BBC One crime drama is now making a serious case that Bean has finally surpassed even that legendary role.

The show is This City Is Ours, an eight-episode series that aired on BBC One in 2025. Bean stars as Ronnie Phelan, a notorious crime boss based in Liverpool. Early response has been strong enough that the series has already been renewed for a second season — a notable achievement for a new drama in an increasingly crowded television landscape.

For fans of Sean Bean, or anyone who remembers the grip that Game of Thrones had on audiences when it premiered back in 2011, this is a story worth paying attention to.

What This City Is Ours Is Actually About

This City Is Ours is a BBC One crime drama set in Liverpool, with Sean Bean playing Ronnie Phelan — a figure described as a notorious crime boss who, at a certain point in the story, decides to make a significant change in his life and criminal career. The eight-episode format gives the series room to develop its characters and world in ways that shorter limited series often cannot.

The Liverpool setting is significant. British crime dramas rooted in specific cities — think Line of Duty, Happy Valley, or Peaky Blinders — have a strong track record of connecting with audiences precisely because the sense of place becomes as important as the plot itself. Liverpool, with its distinct culture and identity, gives This City Is Ours a texture that sets it apart from generic crime procedurals.

The renewal for a second season signals that the BBC sees real long-term potential in the show, which is not something the network commits to lightly with new properties.

Sean Bean’s Career: From Ned Stark to Ronnie Phelan

Sean Bean has had one of the more remarkable careers in British acting — and also one of the more unusual reputations. He became something of a cultural meme for playing characters who don’t survive to the end of their stories, a pattern that spans films and television across decades.

But Game of Thrones was different. His portrayal of Ned Stark in the first season of HBO’s fantasy epic wasn’t just memorable — it was foundational. Ned Stark was the moral anchor of a story that was about to pull that anchor out from under its audience entirely. Bean played him with a weight and seriousness that made the character’s fate genuinely shocking, even for viewers who had read the books.

That was 2011. In the fifteen years since, Bean has remained consistently active in both film and television, but the argument that he has now found a role that rivals or surpasses Ned Stark is a bold one — and apparently, This City Is Ours is making that case convincingly.

Key Facts About the Show at a Glance

Why the Comparison to Game of Thrones Actually Matters

Comparisons to Game of Thrones are thrown around casually in entertainment coverage, often as shorthand for “big and expensive.” But the comparison being drawn here is more specific and more interesting than that.

The argument isn’t that This City Is Ours is similar to Game of Thrones in scale or genre. It’s that Ronnie Phelan may be the single best character Sean Bean has ever played on television — better, even, than the role that made him a household name globally. That’s a meaningful claim about an actor’s craft and about what a particular role allows him to do.

Crime dramas, especially those built around morally complex central figures, give actors the kind of material that awards voters and critics tend to respond to. A crime boss who decides to change the direction of his life is inherently a character full of contradiction — and contradiction is where great performances live.

The fact that the BBC has already committed to a second season suggests the network agrees there is something genuinely worth sustaining here, not just a one-off prestige experiment.

What Comes Next for the Series

With a second season already confirmed, This City Is Ours is positioned to grow its audience and deepen its storytelling. Season one’s eight episodes will have established the world, the characters, and the central tensions — season two will have the benefit of an audience that already knows and cares about what’s at stake.

For Sean Bean, it represents a genuinely exciting chapter. At a stage in a career where many actors settle into supporting roles or franchise cameos, he appears to have found a project that puts him front and center in exactly the kind of complex, character-driven drama that British television does better than almost anyone else in the world.

Whether This City Is Ours ultimately earns a place alongside the great British crime dramas of the past two decades remains to be seen — but the early signs are hard to ignore.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is This City Is Ours?
It is an eight-episode BBC One crime drama set in Liverpool, starring Sean Bean as a notorious crime boss named Ronnie Phelan. It aired in 2025.

Has This City Is Ours been renewed?
Yes. The show has already been renewed for a second season following the success of its first run on BBC One.

Who does Sean Bean play in the show?
Sean Bean plays Ronnie Phelan, described as a notorious crime boss in Liverpool who decides to make a significant change in his life.

How does this role compare to Sean Bean’s role in Game of Thrones?
Some critics and commentators argue that Ronnie Phelan may be the best television role of Bean’s career, surpassing even his iconic portrayal of Ned Stark in Game of Thrones back in 2011.

Where is This City Is Ours set?
The series is set in Liverpool, England, with the city’s distinct identity playing a significant role in the atmosphere of the show.

How many episodes does the first season have?
The first season consists of eight episodes, giving the series substantial room to develop its characters and storylines.