Gangs Of London has returned to screens with a funfair bloodbath that sees characters reduced to pulp in the season three premiere.

Known for chaotic and gruesome scenes, the popular Sky Atlantic drama aired the first episode of the new season on Thursday evening and lived up to its reputation as the goriest show on telly.

Picking up several months after the events of season two, the third instalment of the BAFTA-winning Gangs Of London delves right back into London’s criminal underworld. 

Directed by Kim Hong Sun, it sees the return of Sope Dirisu as Elliot Carter, Joe Cole as Sean Wallace, and Michelle Fairley in the role of Marian Wallace.

The first episode of the eight-part series followed Elliot after his drug shipment was spiked, leading to the deaths of hundreds of people and jeopardising his criminal enterprise.

However, the instalment had a particularly ghastly moment that was sure to shock viewers as the gangster’s quest to find the mystery saboteur develops. 

Gangs Of London has returned to screens with a funfair bloodbath that sees characters reduced to pulp in the season three premiere

Known for chaotic and gruesome scenes, the popular Sky Atlantic drama aired the first episode of the new season on Thursday evening and lived up to its reputation as the goriest show on telly

Elliot finds his first lead in the form of CCTV footage, tracking a masked figure who makes light work of his henchman, and later learns of a stop he made at a funfair on the edge of the city.

Upon arrival he is greeted by Richard Dormer (Conelius Quinn), who isn’t exactly pleased to see him – and after failing to gain any ground during negotiations, the two factions end up in an explosive fight.

The stomach-churning deaths that follow see one man have his skull crushed by a giant mallet in a mirror-filled funhouse.

Most shocking of all though, is the brutal dispatching of a man by a funfair attraction, which reduces him to pulp with a giant metal pod after his opponent hurls him into its path.

In terms of scale, the series three premiere features the highest kill count of all – with HUNDREDS killed as a result of the poisoned cocaine, including Luan Dushaj’s (Orli Shuka) teenage daughter.

Fans were unsurprisingly taken aback by the gore and rushed to social media to share their verdicts on the new season. 

Other returning cast members of the critically acclaimed series include Lucian Msamati back as Ed Dumani, Brian Vernel as Billy Wallace and Narges Rashidi as Lale. 

Also returning to the action thriller are Pippa Bennett-Warner as Shannon Dumani, Asif Raza Mir as Asif Afidi, Orli Shuka and Eri Shuka as Luan and Mirlinda Dushaj, Jahz Armando as Saba, and Fady Elsayed as Faz.

The first episode of the eight-part series followed Elliot after his drug shipment was spiked, leading to the deaths of hundreds of people and jeopardising his criminal enterprise

However, the instalment had a particularly ghastly moment that was sure to shock viewers as the gangster’s quest to find the mystery saboteur develops

New players include Andrew Koji, Richard Dormer, and T’Nia Miller with guest stars Phil Daniels, Ruth Sheen, and Mat Fraser join also joining this season.

Gangs Of London first debuted in 2020 and was followed by the second series in 2022. The series boats an impressive 86% Rotten Tomatoes score.

The drama has previously been dubbed as British TV’s ‘most violent’ show, with some fans claiming it’s ‘better than Peaky Blinders’.

The first season made headlines for its stratospheric levels of violence as its nine episodes featured 113 deaths – 96 people sH๏τ (mostly fatally), 30 stabbings and seven people strangled.

It drew in 2.23 million viewers for its first episode, the channel’s second biggest original drama launch, behind the 2019 hit Chernobyl.

Opening as intended to go on, the first one-and-a-half-hour show saw characters punched 26 times, kicked seven times, while four are sH๏τ and three are tortured.

The first two seasons were also added to Netflix last year and fans were overjoyed, calling it the ‘best gangster series ever’.

Series three will see the return of Sope Dirisu as Elliot Carter, Joe Cole as Sean Wallace, and Michelle Fairley in the role of Marian Wallace

Lucian Msamati is back as Ed Dumani, Brian Vernel as Billy Wallace and Narges Rashidi as Lale

The trailer sets up the scene of what to expect with a voiceover explaining: ‘Last night 600 people died and it wasn’t an accident. It was an attack’

Many took to social media to share their excitement and one posted on X: ‘Gangs Of London is better than Blacklist. It’s the sickest, most interesting, highly intriguing show on Netflix. I can’t get over it!!! The director is sick!’;

‘Highly recommend @gangsoflondon – the best gangster series ever! The special effects are mind-blowing! Huge shoutout to the writers, director, and FX team for pushing boundaries. If you love gangsters storytelling, this series is a must-watch!’

‘Whoa. Gangs of London makes Peaky Blinders look like Boy Scouts.’  

‘I love that Gangs of London is pretty much exactly what you’d expect from a tv show directed by the guy who did The Raid, in the best possible way. Turns out the missing ingredient for UK tv drama was insanely hyperviolent action scenes.’

Gangs Of London airs Thursdays on Sky Atlantic in the UK and is available to stream on NOW.