Top Boy
Encyclopedia
Top Boy is a British television drama series, which was first broadcast on Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...

. The four episodes were broadcast over consecutive nights, from 31 October to 3 November 2011. Set on the fictional Summerhouse housing estate
Housing estate
A housing estate is a group of buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country. Accordingly, a housing estate is usually built by a single contractor, with only a few styles of house or building design, so they tend to be uniform in appearance...

 in Hackney
London Borough of Hackney
The London Borough of Hackney is a London borough of North/North East London, and forms part of inner London. The local authority is Hackney London Borough Council....

, North London
North London
North London is the northern part of London, England. It is an imprecise description and the area it covers is defined differently for a range of purposes. Common to these definitions is that it includes districts located north of the River Thames and is used in comparison with South...

, the series follows the lives of a group of criminals involved in drug dealing
Illegal drug trade
The illegal drug trade is a global black market, dedicated to cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of those substances which are subject to drug prohibition laws. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs by drug prohibition laws.A UN report said the...

 and street gangs. A second series has been commissioned by Channel 4.

Series one

Ep# |Directed by Kane Robinson
Kano (rapper)
Kane Brett Robinson , better known as Kano and also known as Kane O, is an English rapper and actor. His grandparents came to England as immigrants from Jamaica. He was formerly a key member of east London’s N.A.S.T.Y...

 – Sully
  • Malcolm Kamulete – Ra'Nell
  • Kierston Wareing
    Kierston Wareing
    Kierston Wareing is an English actress. She starred in Ken Loach's film It's a Free World... as Angie. She has also played in Andrea Arnold's Fish Tank and Martina Cole's The Take. She has been nominated for one BAFTA award and two British Independent Film Awards...

     – Heather
  • Geoff Bell
    Geoff Bell (actor)
    Geoff Bell is an English actor.-Career:He has appeared in many films, mostly as a cameo appearance or as a supporting role.He has appeared in Girl with a Pearl Earring, Stardust, The Long Firm, Making Waves, The Business and RocknRolla.One of his most well-known films is Green Street, where he...

     – Bobby Raikes
  • Sharon Duncan Brewster
    Sharon Duncan Brewster
    Sharon Duncan-Brewster, more commonly known as Sharon Duncan Brewster, is a Black British actress...

     – Lisa
  • Nicholas Pinnock
    Nicholas Pinnock
    Nicholas Andre Pinnock is a British theatre, television, film actor and screenwriter.- Early life and education :Pinnock was born in Balham, South London, growing up with his family in Hartley, Kent. He is the youngest of three children. His older brother and sister are both secondary school...

     – Leon
  • Giacomo Mancini – Gem
  • Shone Romulus – Dris
  • Sean Sagar – Tareek
  • Letitia Wright – Chantelle
  • George Wood
    George Wood (actor)
    George Wood is an English actor, best known for his role of Ollie in the TV series I Dream.- Bio :Wood speaks French and Italian...

     – Andre
  • Olivia Musangi – Precious
  • Cyrus Desir – Lee Greene
  • Elarica Gallacher
    Elarica Gallacher
    Elarica Gallacher, born 21 August 1989 in London is a British model and actress, with a mother of African origin and an English father. She is best known for the role of the waitress in the bar of the London Underground in the film Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. She also participated in...

     – Sophie
  • Juliet Oldfield – Camilla
  • Vavien Russell – Micheal
  • Tayo 'Scorcher' Jarrett
    Scorcher (rapper)
    Scorcher is a rapper and producer from North London.-Biography:Scorcher is a grime MC and producer from Enfield, North London. He began his career in Cold Blooded where he became known for his 'shank' bars, and would regularly attend pirate radio and work his way up through the North London grime...

     – Kamale
  • Chiefer Appiah – Ninja
  • Benedict Wong
    Benedict Wong
    Benedict Wong is an English actor and comedian.Wong was born in Manchester and attended school in Salford. His first role was in a 1993 BBC Radio play called Kai Mei Sauce, written by Kevin Wong. He appeared alongside Sean Lock in the situation comedy 15 Storeys High, and as Dr. Franklin Fu in the...

     – Vincent
  • Pooky Quesnel
    Pooky Quesnel
    Joanna Quesnel, known professionally as Pooky Quesnel, is an English actress, screenwriter and singer.-Background:Quesnel was raised in Eccles, Lancashire, along with her six siblings. She read English at Oxford University before spending a year at drama school...

     – Dr. Jenny Northam
  • Nurse Kerry – Rachel Warren
  • Yolanda Vazquez
    Yolanda Vazquez
    Yolanda Vazquez is a film, television and theatre actress best known for appearing in the film The Air Up There. More recently, she had a cameo in the well-received British indie science fiction thriller, Children of Men...

     – Yolanda
  • Jourdelle Bennett
    Jourdelle Bennett
    Jourdelle Bennett is a young entrepreneur. At 14 Bennett invested in a farming project in Jamaica.He appeared on the TV show Jamies Dream School. He is a Client of Cooks Marketing-A top Social Media Marketing Company for Start-Up and Small Businesses run by the hugely succesful, extremely talented...

     – Bar Scene
  • Arnold Oceng – Femi
  • Sway DaSafo
    Sway DaSafo
    Derek Andrew Safo is a Ghanaian British musician who uses the stage names Sway DaSafo or Sway. He is signed to Akon's Konvict Muzik record label and he is also a producer, establishing DCypha Productions.-Childhood:...

     – Ross Rosten
  • Marsha Miller – Pat
  • Anthony Welsh – Shaun
  • Richie Campbell – Chris
  • Cornell John – Wendell
  • Tutick Oppong – Dombosco
  • Clare-Hope Ashitey – Taylor
  • Camilla Marie Beeput
    Camilla (singer)
    "Camilla" or Camilla Marie is an English singer and actress. Born in Westminster and raised in Brent, both in North London, Camilla became known for participating in the first season of the BBC reality television series Fame Academy in 2002, before ultimately being eliminated...

     – Natalie
  • Lynette Clarke – Susan Campbell
  • David Hayman
    David Hayman
    David Hayman is a Scottish film and television actor and director, best known for his role as DCS Mike Walker in ITV drama Trial and Retribution. He also a prominent supporter of the SNP's call for Scottish independence....

     – Joe
  • Olivia John Baptiste – Natasha
  • Giggs – Himself

  • Reception

    Upon completion of the series, Top Boy received overwhelmingly positive feedback from critics. The drama premiered with a solid 1.1 million viewers and managed to maintain its audience share over the course of its four night run. Tom Sutcliffe
    Tom Sutcliffe (broadcaster)
    Thomas Sutcliffe is a British journalist and arts broadcaster.Sutcliffe studied English at Emmanuel College, Cambridge...

    , writing in The Independent
    The Independent
    The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...

    , said: "The drama involved virtually no preaching at all, but a sense of morality was everywhere, as bad conscience flickered in the face of the toughest characters and grief hit the culpable and the blameless alike. Best of all, it always found a little time for something other than plot, whether it was banter on stairwells or the melancholy beauty of the city at night. Seriously good television." Ed Cumming of The Daily Telegraph
    The Daily Telegraph
    The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...

    said: "These are minor quibbles. On the whole this was a well-made, convincing drama, with an excellent ensemble cast. Ashley Walters, once of rap group So Solid Crew
    So Solid Crew
    So Solid Crew is an electronic and urban musical collective from South London, England, whose hits include "Oh No " and "21 Seconds", the latter reaching number one in the UK Singles Chart in August 2001. Another hit, "They Don't Know", reached number three in November 2001 and "Haters" got to...

     and with real-life arrests for firearms crimes, knows the world he is portraying. The two boys, Ra'Nell and Gem, did a good job of balancing adolescent aggression with naïve vulnerability. When Ra'Nell left a message on his mentally ill mother’s phone, you knew it was half from a sense of responsibility towards her and half because he just wanted his mum. I wonder if he’ll still need her by the end of Thursday night." He also noted similarities between Top Boy and the American television drama series The Wire
    The WIRE
    the WIRE is the student-run College radio station at the University of Oklahoma, broadcasting in a freeform format. The WIRE serves the University of Oklahoma and surrounding communities, and is staffed by student DJs. The WIRE broadcasts at 1710 kHz AM in Norman, Oklahoma...

    .

    Additional information

    • The advert used the instrumental
      Instrumental
      An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments....

       of Ghostpoet
      Ghostpoet
      Ghostpoet is a British singer and producer.In June 2010, Ghostpoet released his first EP The Sound Of Strangers on Brownswood Recordings and was later featured in The Guardian’s “New Band Of The Day”....

      's song "Finished I Ain't"

    See also

    • Black British
      Black British
      Black British is a term used to describe British people of Black African descent, especially those of Afro-Caribbean background. The term has been used from the 1950s to refer to Black people from former British colonies in the West Indies and Africa, who are residents of the United Kingdom and...

    • Bullet Boy
      Bullet Boy
      Bullet Boy is a 2005 film directed by Saul Dibb, written by Saul Dibb and Catherine Johnson, and stars Ashley Walters. The film's original music was composed and performed by Robert Del Naja of Massive Attack, who released it as an album...

    • Kidulthood
      Kidulthood
      Kidulthood is a 2006 British drama film about the life of several teenagers in Ladbroke Grove and Latimer Road area of inner west London. It was directed by Menhaj Huda and written by Noel Clarke, who also stars in the film and directed the sequel, Adulthood...


    • West 10 LDN
      West 10 LDN
      West 10 LDN is a BBC drama starring Ashley Madekwe, Noel Clarke, and Ashley Walters. It is set in the fictional Greenside council housing estate in West London....

    • Adulthood
      Adulthood (film)
      Adulthood is a 2008 British drama film. It was directed and written by Noel Clarke, who also stars as the protagonist, Sam Peel...

    • Shank
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