

Best – His Mother’s Son (BBC Two) was a gloomy drama about Ann Best, mother of George, who was strictly teetotal until her mid-40s, when she had her first sip of sherry to celebrate her son’s footballing success. Ten years later, she was dead from alcoholism-related heart disease. The recreation of late-Sixties Belfast was accurate and, thank goodness, intelligently subdued: no comedy Ulster accents and no point-scoring subplot about the Troubles.

Lorcan Cranitch
Dickie Best
Lead
Luke de Woolfson
Dave Sadler

Laurence Doherty
Journalist

Laura Donnelly
Barbara Best

Richard Dormer
Ad Director

Michelle Fairley
Ann Best

Stephen Hagan
Steve Fullaway

Paul Kennedy
Reporter
“A staggering achievement of craft and ambition. Colin Barr's vision lands with breathtaking precision.”
“Every frame feels alive. Best: His Mother's Son is the rare release that takes its audience seriously.”