Hustle
Series title card
Format	Drama/Comedy
Created by	Tony Jordan
Starring	Marc Warren Robert Vaughn Robert Glenister Jaime Murray Ashley Walters
Opening theme	Simon Rogers' title music (for Hustle)
Country of origin	United Kingdom
No. of series	4
No. of episodes	24 (List of episodes)
Production
Running time	60 minutes per episode (UK)
Broadcast
Original channel	BBC One
Original run	February 24, 2004 – present
External links
IMDb profile

Hustle is a British television comedy-drama series made by Kudos Film & Television for BBC One in the United Kingdom.

Background

Created by Tony Jordan (who also wrote many of the scripts), Hustle follows a group of London-based con artists as they attempt to dupe money out of their victims ("marks"). Despite their chosen trade, they adhere to codes such as "bad behaviour breeds bad luck". In particular they adhere to the first rule of the con "you can't cheat an honest man" because an honest man doesn't want something for nothing.

The series frequently breaks the fourth wall (usually at least once per episode) and uses cutaway scenes shot in a different style from the rest of the show. For example, in several episodes the characters appear to "stop time", interacting with other characters that are frozen in place, discussing the con either with each other, or even with the audience. The technique is used as a metaphor for how the main characters manipulate their environment at will, as opposed to normal people who have no clue of what is going on. Examples of this can be seen in the pilot episode, "Gold Mine", the first episode of the second series and "Signing up to Wealth", the second episode of the fourth series. Other fourth wall-breaking moments are more subtle - a character smiles at the camera as the con begins to take shape, or makes an editorial comment to the viewers. Some episodes insert fantasy sequences - scenes shot like a Bollywood musical or a silent movie, for example.

Each episode also amounts to a confidence game played upon the viewers through the use of misdirection and hidden plot details that are revealed at the end of the story. Not all cons depicted are successful, and some episodes focus on the characters dealing with the consequences of their actions.

In addition to one long con, each episode features a number of short cons played by the major characters on members of the public. The short cons demonstrate the seemingly endless array of tricks professional con men possess and the ease with which short cons can be played.

The first six-episode series was originally broadcast in February and March 2004, and a second six-episode series began on 29 March 2005 and ran until May 2005. The third series began on 10 March 2006 (and began on 14 April 2006 on BBC One Scotland).The fourth series began in Britain on Thursday May 3rd at 9:00pm^[1] and in the U.S. 18 April, 2007^[2].

In October 2005, it was announced that the BBC had sold United States screening rights for the first two seasons to cable television station AMC, who joined as a production partner for the third run. The series is also screened in Spain and Portugal through the [[People+Arts]] channel, partially owned by BBC and the first two seasons aired back-to-back on CBC in Canada during the summer of 2006. The third season premiered on CBC on February 13, 2007. Season 4 marked a departure from the usual airing of the series. Typically, the BBC would air the episode in the UK and then 6 to 9 months later they would air in the US on AMC. However, due to the additional funding that AMC provided for the production, Series 4 debuted in the US prior to airing in the UK.

As a result of AMC's increased involvement, the first and final episodes of series 4 were filmed on location in Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

The series got its own spin-off documentary, The Real Hustle, in which Paul Wilson, Jessica-Jane Clement and Alexis Conran travel the country demonstrating cons to real people with the aid of hidden cameras. It is aired regularly on BBC Three.

Cast

Main Characters

• Michael Stone played by Adrian Lester (Appears In Series 1-3) Michael "Mickey Bricks" Stone is the group’s leader and ‘inside man’. An ambitious, intelligent and driven conman, Stone watched his father struggle to make an honest living for many years before he died just prior to the retirement he had looked forward to his whole life. Mickey understandably hates the system that he feels killed his father, and is determined to make sure he never struggles in the same way. A highly respected long-con expert, it is rumoured that he and Stacey "had a thing once”. Early on in the show, Mickey’s wife divorces him because of his dishonest lifestyle; this plot point helps to illustrate why the life of a grifter isn’t as much fun as it may seem – it can undermine a person’s ability to ever lead a normal life. (This is a theme that reappears throughout the show). Mickey left the team at the end of Season Three, to head up a long con in Sydney, Australia, one that only the great Mickey Bricks could pull off: selling the Sydney opera house.

• Danny Blue played by Marc Warren - Lacking a particular role within the group, Danny Blue is initially described as a ‘floater’ (a term he abhors). Already a seasoned short-con operator, Danny brashly forces his way into the gang at first, but after proving his loyalty is allowed to stay on and learn from Mickey, who is the “only man in London who can teach him anything”. He challenges Mickey’s authority constantly (as illustrated most explicitly by the ‘Henderson challenge’ episode) and finally gets a chance to lead his own crew when Mickey leaves for Sydney. Cocky and arrogant yet still vulnerable and somehow endearing, Danny is berated by Mickey for his lack of attention to detail when working the con, yet Albert maintains Danny has “…grift sense, and that’s something you can’t teach”. It is this instinct that will pull him through when things go wrong for the group, and Mickey is no longer around to ensure there’s a Plan B.

• Stacie Monroe played by Jaime Murray - Stacie uses her sex appeal to manipulate potential marks, both while working the long con and in more small-time cons (such as those used to raise funds for the team). She often poses as an employee of an institution (such as a museum) or an expert in a particular field (such as art), and casually mentions potential 'money-making schemes' (which are in reality cons) to provoke the mark's interest in the matter. It is implied that in the past she has had romantic involvement with Micky.

• Ash Morgan played by Robert Glenister - Ash ‘Three Socks’ Morgan is the team’s fixer, who earned his nickname after his first trip to the showers while in prison. Ash can turn his hand to any job, and is seen at various points acquiring vast amounts of foreign currency, rigging a sophisticated alarm system and pretending to be an oil consultant. When Ash first appears on the show, he is working his favourite con; after deliberately stepping in front of a moving car, Ash passes off an old skull fracture as a fresh injury, in order to make an insurance claim.
  

• Albert Stroller played by Robert Vaughn is the team’s Roper. His job is to find the perfect mark; someone who is rich, greedy and has a weakness the team can exploit – and to hook them into the scheme, sometimes with the use of a ‘convincer’ (allowing the mark to make a profit initially, to win his trust for the next, much bigger investment; of which he or she will not see a penny!) Once a shoe salesman in the American Midwest, Albert is an old-style grifter, a gentleman, and a grandfather figure and mentor to the group.
  

• Billy Bond played by Ashley Walters (Appears from Series 4). Billy enters the crew in much the same way that Danny did - as a rookie, with a natural hustling instinct and a master of the short con, but with little knowledge or experience of the long con. Billy appears to be an astute and likeable character despite prior involvements in drug dealing and street gangs, and knows that his inclusion within the crew is his chance to make it big.
  

• Eddie (played by Rob Jarvis) is the owner (and barman) of Eddie's Bar where the group often plan cons, he is fully aware of the group and their dealings, and usually (but not always) adopts a "hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil" attitude. Often a victim of the petty grifts played on him by the crew, Eddie has recently taken an active role as a bit player in one of their cons, and generally appears to be rather fond of them despite their minor schemes.
  

Contacts

• Neil Cooper (played by Tom Mannion) is another con artist who helps Mickey in Season 1, Episode 1. He acts as a police officer named DePalmer who heads the investigation into the crew.

• Tip Jones (played by Brian Pettifer) is a forger of classical art. Albert says that Tip is the best forger in the business but is very untrustworthy. When he is first seen it is said that an operation went wrong and he has thus suffered from brain damage. However, this is all a ruse by Tip to fool the Fraud Squad so that he doesn't have to stand trial. Once Albert mentions how much money they intend to con Meredith Gates out of then he soon comes out of his "brain damaged" state. Tip forges an original Mondrian which the crew sell to the collector Meredith Gates. However, Tip betrays the crew and attempts to take the crew's money.

• Samuel Richards (played by Richard Harrington) is a thief, who wants to steal the diamond that Moore's Bank stole from his father. The crew help him because Victor Maher (the Head of Security at the Bank) forces them to catch Richards but they con Maher as well. Mickey forms a bond with Richards because he feels that their fathers were similar people.

• Adam Rice (played by Paul Nicholls) is a thief regarded by the police as "The Ghost" due to his ability to just disappear from the crime scene or elude people trying to follow him. He is the kind of person who is used to being followed and so every so often he pulls a vanishing trick just to be on the safe side. He is a keen parachutist and this hobby has come in handy in his line of work when he has needed to get over electric fences and the like. He only works with people he has hand-picked and doesn't like being approached for jobs. He turns Mickey and Danny down when they try and get him to recruit them for his next job. They try and convince him that whatever he is going to steal they will make copies of it and then sell them on as the original thus increasing the take (just like they did with the Star of Africa). He then he shows up in their flat willing to recruit them (well Ashley Morgan really as he needed Ash to shut down the security systems) while Mickey, Danny, and himself steal an original Hans Christian Andersen manuscript.

Headline text

Marks

Series 1

• James Laurenson as Peter Williamson

Peter Reginald Williams is a businessman that resides and operates in London. He started his pharmaceutical company in the early eighties. His first wife was from old money and he used her family’s connections with the government to get research contracts. He regularly makes the top 500 rich list but he is greedy and will cross the street to pick up a one pound coin. He has recently bagged a new young wife but she is high maintenance and spends his cash faster than he would like. He is generally a sucker for a pretty face, spends money to impress, the shorter the skirt the looser he gets. He is an objectionable little man with the morals of an alley cat. He moves in high circles and regularly plays golf with the chancellor.

• Robert Pugh as Frank Gorley

Frank Gorley is a renowned bully and the owner of a top London casino and hotel situated in the West End. The casino is bent, he ships in girls from Eastern Europe for the hotel, and the punters lose their money on the tables then curl up with one of the girls. There are twenty four girls working there in this way. Gorley is very careful with his money, to the point of being almost miserly. He is not the sort of man you take liberties with. The last person that cheated in his casino ended up in intensive care. He is surrounded by women, gambling, and alcohol but he has no discernible vices and is a bit of a loner. He is a film fanatic though and is a big fan of Cagney. Other than his love of films he is a block of ice, always calculating the odds and never goes out on a limb. He has certain rules about business, one of them being never invest money in businesses he knows nothing about. This probably stems from him once dabbling in stocks and shares and losing heavily. He now doesn’t trust them and has decided never to do them again. His laptop carries all the information about the casino and hotel and is always with him.

• Liz May Brice as DS Terri Hodges
• Orla Brady as Meredith Gates

Meredith is a businesswoman that owns an art gallery in London called Gates Gallery. She is an avid art collector. She is unscrupulous, greedy, selfish, and has ripped off many poor struggling dealers and buyers over the years. She pretty much makes a hobby out of fleecing dealers. She likes to keep mere mortals at a safe distance. She is a stunning brunette and is chauffeured around in a Jaguar.

• David Calder as Victor Maher
• Tamzin Outhwaite as Katherine Winterborn
• Ben Miles as Steven Winterborn
• David Haig as Anthony Reeves

Series 2

• Charlie Creed Miles as Howard Jennings

Howard Jennings is a young high flier; a ruthless and Machiavellian property broker in London. He finds land for the major developers to work on. He considers London his city; there is not a patch of undeveloped land in London that he doesn’t know about and has first refusal on. He is a nasty piece of work, his mantra in life is “see what you want and get it.” He will do anything he can to get what he wants. Recently he bought a piece of land in Islington. There was an 83 year old tenant blocking the deal, she wouldn’t move because she was worried that her little cat wouldn’t find its way home. So Howard ran over the cat and the woman signed within a fortnight. He looks like a typical city boy; red braces, no socks, expensive suits, and plenty of arrogance. He is obsessive, always one step ahead. His files are always perfect; he checks everything out, leaves nothing to chance. A rival company snatched a large parcel of land from under his nose so he took a nine iron to his glass desk. It was made worse when a large stash of Roman coins during excavation, worth a fortune. He was a laughing stock, reputation with him is everything; he has to be top dog. He reads the telegraph. A few years back a con man took him for £30,000. Afterwards Howard became obsessed and did a bit of research. He now knows all the tricks and is paranoid about being conned again. Due to this he records every conversation that takes place in his office. A couple of months back a con man tried to work a long con on him. Howard saw straight through him from the start but played along, took the convincer off him. When the con man asked Howard to part with a hundred grand for a half million return, Howard called security and then the police. Gave the police the taped conversations he had had with the con man and made a full statement. His comments were “make sure he is given the maximum sentence, he played the game and lost; now he must face the consequences.”

• Ronald Pickup as Harry Holmes
• Stanley Townsend as Johnny Keyes

Johnny Keyes is a prominent restaurateur and celebrity chef in London, but has a notorious gangland past. He is an arrogant powerful thug whose past is that of a renowned killer and all round bad guy, who was demonised by the national papers. He grew up on the streets, robbing houses, talking with his fists, not to mention turning over a few banks which he has does time for. Some say they should have thrown away the key. He was evil personified. Inside he was like everybody else; a nobody. He did kitchen duty to pass the time and fast. Soon it got into his blood and he devoured books, hungry to learn. He ended up cooking for the Governor. When he got out he bought a restaurant and now he runs Keyes that is very exclusive. There is an eight week waiting period for Saturday night, and a four week waiting period for Sunday lunch. However they always keep a few tables free in case of last minute celebrities wanting to dine there. He has reinvented and smartened himself up. He no longer behaves like the gangland person he used to be. Today he acts like a gentleman but he still retains his aggressive nature. He wears expensive clothes and his car is a silver very expensive Mercedes. He has brown hair but is beginning to bald. He has to be careful of the activities he does as these days his heart is very weak. Due to his poor health he is worried about never finding his son he lost to a gangland kidnapping. He is consumed by guilt for not paying the ransom but he has no idea where to start his search. The kidnapping too place in 1974 and his one year old son James was never heard from or seen again. Johnny had a lot of enemies in those days. He was a vicious armed robber into everything from extortion to protection rackets. The kidnapping was orchestrated by some of his gangland associates who wanted revenge for Johnny swindling them out of money. Johnny had the cash to pay the ransom but he called their bluff. He wanted to use the money to start up his business. He is onto his second wife, his first and his son’s mother died of cancer. She and Johnny were separated at the time. His present one is named Julietta who is a short woman with blonde hair. Johnny is her third husband. Johnny is not a church goer but Julietta is and encourages him to go. He employs a wine expert to make sure that the wine he sells in his restaurant is always the best. He also sees some wines as investments and once paid a record amount for a bottle of vintage Bordeaux. Johnny wrote a book called Keyes Kitchen King that went into the bestsellers list.

• Rebecca Lacey as Juliette Keyes
• Fay Ripley as Phillips

Series 3

• Mel Smith as Benny Frazier

Benny Frazier, also known as Benny the Boozer, is an obnoxious nasty piece of work that owns 16 licensed pubs and clubs across the East End. He is also a major importer of booze through his company, Benny Frazier Import/Export Company Limited. Nobody asks any questions because of all the bars he owns. What people don’t know is that he uses the alcohol shipments as a cover to smuggle in Eastern Europeans. The police have been after him for a while but they can never get anything on him. Rumour is that he hands out backhanders as if they were confetti. He is wealthy enough to be able to get £100,000 together within a day. He bought the Iron Duke in Bow about 20 years ago. It was a dive with fights every night. Benny turned it around by beating up the troublemakers.

He married above himself, some rich sort called Sharon. He showers her with gifts, but most of the jewellery is knocked off. Her father helped Benny to buy the Iron Duke. Together they live in a rather large house in Essex and have a 17 year old son called Joey. He is the apple of Benny’s eye and is a budding rap star, keen to hit the big time as a British Eminem. However, he is a talentless fool. Sharon thinks Benny indulges him too much but Benny had nothing as a kid so he always promised to himself that when it came to his son he would do whatever it took. As such Joey is a spoilt brat with a serious attitude problem. A right chip off the old block.

Some of his pubs are:

1. The Iron Duke 2. The Well 3. Henry VIII 4. Frog & Stone 5. Duke Of York 6. Park Horse 7. Horse & Cart 8. Meeting House 9. Stone Wall Arms

• Silas Carson as Kulvinder Samar

Kulvinda Samar is a greedy and very wealthy businessman. He owns and runs a network of small factories making counterfeit designer clothes (sweatshops in other words). He is based in Bradford but travels to London once a month on business to check up on his factories there. He was lured to the UK in the 1980’s where Thatcher’s Britain made it a perfect climate to set up his factories.

When he was younger he wanted to become a Bollywood actor. His father, a businessman, put a stop to that and so Samar took over the family business. His acting days, though, have given him a passion for Bollywood films and he spends every weekend sitting in cinemas. However, he has become bitter and twisted from not being able to pursue his dream and so takes it out on his workers and everyone else. He has brought pain and suffering to the Asian community for many years. He is a cruel, arrogant, and obnoxious man that has taken delight in crushing other people’s dreams as he could not follow his. He has this air about him that everyone else is beneath him. He pays his workers £2 an hour. They look upon him with hate in their eyes but know they can do nothing about it.

He is a control freak and a perfectionist that strives for perfection in his life. He likes to surround himself with beautiful things, especially plants like Bonsai trees and an orchid known as the lady slipper worth £30,000. He believes the art of doing the perfect business deal is in finding a person with limited options. But, like any perfectionist he knows that when something is too good to be true then it usually is.

• Charles and Quenton Cornfoot

Charles and Quenton Cornfoot are bankers and owners of Cornfoot’s Merchant Bank which was established in 1706. Cornfoot’s Merchant Bank is situated in the City. Charles is the Director of Trading and is the shake down artist. All banks are greedy but Charles has an insatiable appetite for other people’s money. If there is one thing he really enjoys it is poaching clients from someone else. Quenton is the Director of Corporate Finance. He is the roper who romances the clients and brings in the business.

They don’t care what they offer the public. As Quenton says “we stack the shelves, we don’t set the prices”. There is pretty much no kind of company that they wouldn’t float on the market. They are also guilty of insider dealing, driving the market, and selling their own clients short.

They are not averse to taking over a company, stripping out the assets, trashing the pension fund, and bankrupting the place. The fact that the workers have just lost their jobs does not bother them either.

Series 4

• Robert Wagner as Anthony Westley
• Veronica Powell
• Chris Tardio as Johnny Maranzano

Episodes

Series 1

The 2006 DVD release of the first series does not provide episode names, instead referring to each episode as "Con 1", "Con 2", etc.

#	Title	Writer	Director	Airdate(U.K)
1	"The Con is On"	Tony Jordan	Bharat Nalluri	24 February 2004
The episode begins with Michael Stone's release from prison. Tricking Ash, Stacie and Albert into believing that he is to carry out one last con before he retires, Mickey forms a group to perform an investment scam on a businessman, Peter Williams. Danny, having not impressed Mickey earlier in the episode, turns up at a key moment in the con to convince Williams to take part, gaining him entry to the group. However, Danny is approached by police officers and in a confrontation with Mickey, Mickey is shot in the head. Danny is faced with a choice: either testify against the other members of the group or go to prison with them. When he refuses, it is revealed that this dilemma was simply a test, Mickey isn't dead, and that the man leading the police investigation was a fellow con artist.
2	"Faking It"	Tony Jordan	Bharat Nalluri	3 March 2004
Albert gets beaten up after being caught cheating at cards and the crew decides to take revenge on the thug who is a casino owner and avid movie fan.
3	"Picture Perfect"	Matthew Graham	Bharat Nalluri	9 March 2004
The gang has a painting forged and sells it to an unknowing art enthusiast.
4	"Cops and Robbers"	Tony Jordan	Minkie Spiro	16 March 2004
Mickey is blackmailed by a former cop-turned-bank security manager, who threatens to send Danny to prison if Mickey doesn't help him catch an habitual bank robber. Mickey soon realizes that the ex-cop is setting a trap for Mickey himself, while the bank robber is in fact simply seeking the return of a valuable family heirloom.
5	"A Touch of Class"	Ashley Pharoah	Bharat Nalluri	23 March 2004
A rich, bitchy, recently divorced woman is the target of the con. Everything is going according to the plan until Mickey's feelings for the woman start to get into the way, but who is actually the 'victim' in this particular scam?
6	"The Last Gamble"	Tony Jordan	Robert Bailey	30 March 2004
The crew picks a greedy fat-cat as their mark for a con using his two secret weaknesses- gambling and prostitutes- but the situation is complicated by a previous mark who seeks payback for them claiming to sell him the London Eye.

Series 2

#	Title	Writer	Director	Airdate(U.K)
1	"Gold Mine"	Tony Jordan	Otto Bathurst	29 March 2005
Harry Holmes, an old time grifter, is nailed by a cocky property developer, a man who thinks he can't be conned. Despite Mickey and Albert declaring the man untouchable, Danny makes a 50 pence bet with Mickey that the developer can be conned. Danny's plan: to convince the developer that a worthless piece of property in the heart of London is sitting on top of a literal gold mine. When the con begins to unravel at the 11th hour, it is left to the more experienced Mickey to rescue the situation and keep everybody out of jail.
2	"Confessions"	Matthew Graham	Otto Bathurst	5 April 2005
A gangster turned famed chef seeks his long lost son, and Albert lays the plan for the team to take him for what isn't rightly his. Meanwhile, the death of a close friend leaves the aging Albert questioning his own mortality.
3	"The Lesson"	Tony Jordan	Alrick Riley	12 April 2005
Danny discovers a potential member for the crew and brings him in on their latest con: to swindle a Nigerian collector of rare currency by passing off a fake rare American $1,000 bill. However, when the con goes wrong, the new member attempts to take the money by conning an innocent woman, little suspecting that he has been played from the beginning...
4	"Missions"	Howard Overman	Alrick Riley	19 April 2005
The team's plan to con an auction house with a comic book forgery goes awry when a corrupt cop decides she wants in; meanwhile, Stacie develops a friendship with a comic fan who wants the comic for himself.
5	"Old Acquaintance"	Julie Rutterford	John Strickland	26 April 2005
Stacie's ex-husband reappears in London after clearing out her apartment, leaving her with only a cactus, mouldy cheese, and a Phil Collins CD that wasn't even hers. The gang decide that revenge is best served cold and attempt to take his money in a rigged game of poker, but will Stacie fall for him again?
6	"Eye of the Beholder"	Tony Jordan	John Strickland	3 May 2005
No one has attempted to steal the crown jewels since Thomas Blood, and no one has ever succeeded. Mickey plans to change that, but things are made more difficult by a police team that is currently after Mickey.

Series 3

#	Title	Writer	Director	Airdate(U.K)
1	"Be My Eminem"	Tony Jordan	Otto Bathurst	10 March 2006
The crew are back and working their way back up after losing everything in a brief spell in Las Vegas. Their second mark (The original target having had a heart attack before the con could begin), a people-trafficker called Benny Frazier, will do anything for his son, an aspiring rap artist. The con is set, but has the "mark" caught on?
2	"Leader of the Pack"	Tony Jordan	Otto Bathurst	17 March 2006
Flaws are revealed in the gang's leadership as the rivalry between Mickey and Danny escalates. To solve this dilemma, Albert suggests the "Henderson Challenge". Dropped naked in the middle of London and given six hours to grift as much money as possible, it becomes a test of pure grifting skill between Danny and Mickey, with Stacie helping Danny while Ash works with Mickey (Leaving Albert to demonstrate minor cons to Eddie).
3	"Whittaker Our Way Out"	Steve Coombes	Colm McCarthy	24 March 2006
The crew assist American con artist James Whitaker Wright III, descendant of the legendary James Whitaker Wright I, by setting up the fake company, "Chad mining" in order to crash the bank that destroyed his great-grandfather. However, have the crew forgotten how cunning "JW3" is? Guest starring Richard Chamberlain.
4	"The Bollywood Con"	Danny Brown	Colm McCarthy	31 March 2006
The crew attempt to set up Kulvinda Samar (a harsh sweatshop owner), by using a movie-investor con in a Bollywood film. Their usual flawless set up is too perfect, as things take a turn for the worse, particularly when the mark develops amnesia and apparently has a change of heart.
5	"Royal Scoop"	David Cummings	SJ Clarkson	7 April 2006
The gang decide to take down a tabloid paper, since it influenced one of the paper's victims- a friend of Stacie's- to attempt suicide when it accused her of embezelling funds. They try to sell them a story about the Queen Mother being a 'fake', with Albert being the son of the 'impersonator', but the situation becomes increasingly complicated when Mickey is captured by the Secret Service for his actions against the Queen Mother.
6	"The Ghost"	Tony Jordan	SJ Clarkson	14 April 2006
The crew are caught by the police after they supposedly 'find' cocaine in a suitcase Mickey was carrying. Albert is thrown into prison and Detective Chief Inspector York makes a 'deal'; the rest of the crew must convince a notorious conman, Adam Rice, into stealing a Hans Christian Andersen manuscript, and then being caught red-handed. However, the crew outsmarts York, and he is, as a consequence, fired while Albert is released.

Series 4

#	Title	Writer	Director	Airdate(U.K)
1	"As One Flew Out of the Cuckoo's Nest, One Flew In"	Tony Jordan	Alrick Riley	3 May 2007
Danny steps up to be leader, as the gang head to LA in an attempt to sell the Hollywood sign. With Mickey heading to Australia to help pull off a major con, Danny feels it's time for him to take the lead. To make his mark, he comes up with an ambitious plan to sell the Hollywood sign to Texan movie memorabilia fanatic Anthony Westley (Robert Wagner). Once in LA, Danny convinces Westley that the sign is being put up for sale to be replaced with a brand new one. Westley's willing to pay big money to get his hands on the sign and will stop at nothing to ensure he wins the bid. But how will the gang get the cash if they can't deliver the sign itself?
2	"Signing Up to Wealth"	Tony Jordan	Lee MacIntosh	10 May 2007
Back in the UK, Danny is convinced the team needs a new grifter and begins interviews, but the candidates aren't quite what the rest of the team are expecting. Meanwhile, Dickie Brennan, a ruthless porn baron, is keen to own a prize-winning horse. Of course, our gang of con artists are willing to oblige, despite knowing nothing about horses. And while all this is going on, will anyone take any notice of Billy Bond, who will stop at nothing to join the gang?
3	"Getting Even"	Tony Jordan	Lee MacIntosh	17 May 2007
The grifters' favourite barman, Eddie, is in trouble. The owner of his Father's nursing home is holding him ransom. Veronica Powell is a ruthless businesswoman but she has a weakness: her wine collection. However, she's more wily than most, and time is running out for Eddie's Father. Can Danny think of a decent con, or will our team go bankrupt trying to convince her...?
4	"A Designer's Paradise"	Colin Blytheway	Stefan Schwartz	24 May 2007
Clarissa Bartwell is an immoral woman with a passion for fashion. Using the Emperor's New Clothes as inspiration for the con, Billy steps up to play the inside with Danny. However, there's someone hanging around who's threatening to blow their cover unless Billy hands over 20,000 pounds in cash. Can Billy keep this threat at bay until the intricate con is over...?
5	"Conning the Artists"	Nick Fisher	Stefan Schwartz	31 May 2007
The team are celebrating another successful, and lucrative, con. But the fun soon ends when they're taken hostage on their own territory - Eddie's bar - by a man who accuses them of dishonouring his family. This time it's personal - it's not about the money. Have they gone too far, or can they find a way of negotiating themselves out of it alive...?"
6	"Big Daddy Calling"	Tony Jordan	Alrick Riley	7 June 2007
The team fly out to grifters heaven, Las Vegas, when they find out Albert's been beaten up by mafia boss, Johnny Maranzano. The revenge - the apple of Johnny's eye - Big Daddy fruit machine with a $5 million jackpot. Can they find a way of robbing a casino that never closes and is under 24/7 security without getting caught or, worse still, getting killed...?

Series 5

On 14 May 2007, it was confirmed that the BBC had commissioned a fifth series, but is unsure on how many episodes. Some sources say that there will be six, whereas as other say there will be 8 or even 10, if Adrian Lester decides to reprise his role as Michael Stone. It also has been claimed that more episodes will be filmed in the US, with a number of Hollywood names interested in a part in the show.^{[citation needed]}

However, an interview with Robert Glenister in The Stage magazine, published that same month indicated the BBC hadn't commissioned any new episodes at that point. [3]

Trivia

• The only person to work on both Hustle and spin off series The Real Hustle is James Freedman - expert on con artists and scams.
• Clive Owen turned down the role of Mickey Bricks. [4]
• In the first season, second episode, the name of the team's movie company is actually Fake Pictures. The name can be seen when the mark gives the cheque to the team.
• The con used in the final episode of the first series is the same as the one featured in The Sting called "The Wire" (this is acknowledged on-screen).
• Upon first meeting Danny in episode 1, Mickey comments "I bet you've even watched The Sting". Later in the episode, when Danny gate-crashes the con, Mickey introduces Danny as 'Mr Redford'.
• In series 3, episode 5, the name of the newspaper the team con is changed from the 'Sunday World' in the version broadcast on BBC 1, to the 'Weekend World' in the DVD release. All references to 'Sunday' in the name of the paper are either altered, blanked out or dubbed. This may be due to the fact that the Sunday World is the leading Sunday tabloid in Ireland.
• At the start of Season 4 episode 1 the gang are talking during a movie and being shushed by a man sitting behind them. Danny spoils the plot for the man when they leave early by telling him that "at the very end all five of them get blown up in a boat." Which is exactly the way the season ends in episode 6.
• The final line of the fourth series is identical to, and almost certainly an homage to the final line of the original The Italian Job, which ends in a similar fashion, followed by a similar closing shot.

DVD Releases

Several series of the show have been released on 2-disc DVDs in both Europe and North America. The UK, Region 2, release of Season One erroneously contained the US edited versions of the episodes, and not the full uncut episodes as originally seen on BBC One. A revised edition was released some time afterwards. The revised edition has a 15 certificate whereas the cut DVD has a PG certificate. The back of the revised case also contains the words "Each episode aprox. 59 mins" under "Run Time" in the information table.

DVD Name	Region 2 Release Date	Region 1 Release Date
Hustle Complete Season One	18 April, 2005	September 5, 2005
Hustle Complete Season Two	19 September, 2005	February 13, 2006
Hustle Complete Season Three	23 April, 2007	July 10, 2007
Hustle One to Three Complete	23 April, 2007	TBA
Hustle Complete Season Four	TBA	January 22, 2008

References

1. ^ [1]
2. ^ [2]

External links

• Hustle at bbc.co.uk
• Hustle at AMC
• Hustle at CBC
• Hustle at TV Squad
• Hustle at Unreality TV Primetime
• Hustle at the Internet Movie Database
• Series one, episode 1 script at BBC Writers Room
• Hustle Petition - Requesting The Release Of A Hustle Soundtrack CD

Hustle
Characters:	Michael Stone • Danny Blue • Stacie Monroe • Ash Morgan • Albert Stroller • Billy Bond
Episodes:	The Con is On • Faking It • Picture Perfect • Cops and Robbers • A Touch of Class • The Last Gamble • Gold Mine • Confessions • The Lesson • Missions • Old Acquaintance • Eye of the Beholder • Be My Eminem • Leader of the Pack • Whittaker Our Way Out • The Bollywood Con • Royal Scoop • The Ghost • As One Flew Out of the Cuckoo's Nest, One Flew In • Signing Up to the Wealth • Getting Even • A Designer's Paradise • Conning the Artists • Big Daddy Calling •
Related Programmes:	The Real Hustle • The Sting

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