The Gold ending explained: Was the £26 million in gold bullion recovered?
The Gold tells a twisting, turning web of a story - but just what happens at the end?
BBC crime drama The Gold explores what happened after the Brink's-Mat robbery in 1983 - how the gold was disposed of, turned into profit and the money laundered.
It's a twisting, turning series, with each individual player fulfilling a separate job and forming part of a whole, a whole that only Brian Boyce and his team are trying to see.
But with all episodes now on BBC iPlayer, just what happens to those involved at the end of the series, and is the £26 million in gold bullion recovered?
Read on for everything you need to know about the ending of The Gold.
*Warning - contains full spoilers for all six episodes of The Gold*
What happened to those found handling the gold?
As we see in the final episode as Noye walks to the dock to be sentenced, those who were caught and convicted were given the following sentences:
- Micky McAvoy - 25 years for armed robbery
- Brian Robinson - 25 years for armed robbery
- Brian Reader - 9 years for conspiracy to handle stolen bullion
- Garth Chappell - 10 years for conspiracy to handle stolen bullion
- Matteo Constantino - 1 year suspended for conspiracy to evade VAT
- Jeannie Savage - 5 years for conspiracy to handle stolen bullion
- Gordon Parry - 10 years for conspiracy to handle stolen bullion
Meanwhile, Noye himself is sentenced to 14 years for conspiracy to dishonestly handle the stolen gold and fraudulently conspiring to avoid VAT payments on the gold. Meanwhile, John Parry goes back to Tenerife having been acquitted.
Was the £26 million in gold bullion recovered?
Although the police managed to track down many of the individuals involved with stealing and subsequently shifting the gold and laundering the profits, most of the bullion was never recovered.
Near the end of the series, Nicki Jennings and Tony Brightwell realise that while Cooper had said he had finished laundering the profits from the gold, he had only been working with £13 million - meaning there was £13 million worth of gold unaccounted for.
Boyce visit Noye in his cell after he has been convicted but before he has been sentenced, and tells him to play his "one card" and reveal where the other half of the gold is. Noye says he will be "remembered" for what he did, making "one and a half ton of gold" vanish into thin air.
He continues: "And having you lot run around like clowns. All that chasing, all that digging - for something that was never there. Yeah... yeah, I'll be remembered for that."
What happened to Brian Boyce and his team?
At the end of the series, Jennings and Brightwell tell Boyce that the gold must have been "split right at the beginning". Only two of the robbers were ever convicted, suggesting the others could have got away with the other half.
One of the other robbers is then seen sunning himself and laughing while hiding out abroad.
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The trio then say they will start back at the beginning, looking into the "six blokes in a van", suggesting they will continue looking until they know just what happened to the missing half of the gold.
You can read more about what happened to some of the real-life figures in the gold after the timeline of the series is complete right here.
All episodes of The Gold are available to stream on BBC iPlayer now.
The Gold: The Real Story Behind Brink’s-Mat: Britain’s Biggest Heist by Neil Forsyth and Thomas Turner is available to pre-order now.
Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to see what's on tonight.
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Authors
James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.
