The Diamond Heist

Guy Ritchie's The Money Heist is a gripping and fascinating documentary about the real-life attempted robbery of £300 million in diamonds from the Millennium Dome in 2000.

True crime stories are often more entertaining than fiction, and this is no exception. They likely would have gotten away with it, had the police not been watching and waiting.

I watched all three episodes in one go - the pacing felt just right, and the story is well told, featuring interviews with Flying Squad detectives, De Beers (the diamond's owners), and some of the criminals involved.

I disagree with the reviews claiming the documentary glamorises crime - the substantial prison sentences handed out to the unsuccessful robbers were anything but glamorous.

People have always been interested in real crimes - Dick Turpin, the Great Train Robbery, Brinks-Mat, etc. Books and TV programmes get made about them, and they often end up entertaining, which is to be expected from a documentary series about one of the most audacious robbery attempts ever.

That one of the robbers, Lee Wenham - who is heavily featured in the programme - happens to be quite likeable is neither here nor there. Likeable rogues exist, but that doesn't mean they don't go to jail.

There are also plenty of interviews with the victorious police who foiled the plot, so it's not as if Ritchie is bastardising history.