This City is Ours is EXACTLY what we hoped it would be - and so much more - with a gasp-enducing twist at the end of episode 2 that killed off one of the main characters.

Full disclosure: We're still trying to lift our jaw off the floor. And the phrase "jaw-dropping" was absolutely designed for this sort of TV twist.

Because we weren't expecting it, it's precisely the sort of brave scriptwriting that elevates this crime drama into something extraordinary.

***Warning: spoilers from This City is Ours episode two ahead***

So why was the death of Sean Bean's character Ronnie Phelan so shocking during episode 2, and how is This City is Ours going to follow it?

Is Sean Bean's character Ronnie Phelan dead in This City is Ours?

On paper, This City is Ours looked epic. Like Kin, The Sopranos, and Animal Kingdom, the BBC One crime drama promised a plot centred on all the important stuff in life - including family, love, corruption, power, ambition, pride and greed.

But the big draw was definitely Sean Bean playing crime boss Ronnie Phelan. It's a role Sean seemed destined to play. And, from the minute he appeared on screen, he nailed it. Of course he did, he's Sean Bean! We could watch his rugged face all day.

However, just as we were getting used to the increasingly fraught dynamic between Ronnie and his right hand man Michael (James Nelson-Joyce), viewers were dealt a huge twist...

Michael, realising he was potentially being sidelined in favour of Ronnie's son Jamie, saw red. We mean literally. Deciding it was a dog eat dog situation, Michael grabbed a sharp kitchen knife and crept up on Ronnie while he lay drunkenly dozing on a sun lounger in his Spanish villa.

As we convinced ourselves he wouldn't go through with it, Michael slammed the knife into his boss' torso. The blood which subsequently spurted out of Ronnie's mouth most certainly told us he was dead. Now that was a mic drop moment by the scriptwriters. And a very bold move.

Who was killed off?

In fact, Ronnie's murder was the second in This City is Ours episode 2. Just minutes before, Ronnie had shot dead his former friend Davey Crawford.

If creator Stephen Butchard wasn't afraid to kill off the main character so early in the eight-part series, then frankly no one is safe here.

And that makes for a exceptional viewing experience. Most 'thrillers' aren't as thrilling as they hope to be. Would Trigger Point still draw as many viewers if Vicky McClure's character Lana Washington died? Probably not. Those watching know that, no matter who else falls, Lana will not.

Same for Suranne Jones' character Amy Silva in Vigil. If we know the main character is always going to be safe, it's often hard to build any tension...

What could happen next in This City is Ours?

After Ronnie's surprising death, a battle for his business will now take place. With Michael versus Jamie in a battle to take control - that is until someone works out that Michael killed Ronnie.

The kingpin's early demise now blows the plot wide open. How will it impact the dynamics of the family? Who will take over the business? And will Michael Kavanagh be found out?

Perhaps more importantly for Michael, how will his actions affect his relationship with Diana - who watched him murder Ronnie? Will she ever seen him in the same way again?

Of course, it also gives Julie Graham the chance to act her socks off as Ronnie's grieving wife Elaine. We sense a Lady MacBeth metamorphosis is about to happen.

This sort of unexpected twist keeps us viewers on our feet, by taking the rug out from under us and making it clear that no one is safe. Therefore anything can happen. It's a master stroke, which means we have to stay tuned. Well played Stephen Butchard!

How many times has Sean Bean died on screen?

Okay, so hardcore Sean Bean fans will already know that the actor is no stranger to dying on screen...

Some of his most famous on-screen deaths include Boromir in The Lord of the Rings, and Ned Stark in Game of Thrones.

In The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Boromir was shot to death by multiple orc arrows, while Ned Stark's demise in Game of Thrones was one of the most shocking in TV history. The main character again, he was beheaded by King Joffrey Baratheon in series 1.

In Oscar-nominated Irish film The Field, Sean's character Tadhg McCabe was even pushed off a cliff by a herd of cows! In the 1992 film Patriot Games, his character Sean Miller was impaled by an anchor, and in 1995's GoldenEye his Bond villain Alec Trevelyan was crushed to death by a satellite dish. Ouch.

Some sources say Sean Bean has died over 25 times on film and television over the course of his career. At one point, the actor reportedly started turning down some scripts if his character died!

Most shocking on-screen deaths on TV

This City is Ours isn't the first TV series to kill off a main character early on. And each time it remains memorable because it's unexpected. These are the top TV shows who have aced game-changing deaths...

• We've already mentioned Ned Stark in Game of Thrones, but who could forget the brutal murder of Lisa Faulkner's character Helen Flynn in Spooks? The BBC One spy drama shocked viewers in 2002 when the new MI5 recruit met a violent end by having her head plunged into a deep-fat fryer. You couldn't unsee it.
• Cold Feet also upset fans by killing off a fan favourite in a car accident in 2003. Helen Baxendale's character Rachel Bradley died in series 5. It's a TV moment that fans will never forget.
• Downton Abbey proved it wasn't all stiff upper lips and dangling pearls when it killed off Lady Mary Crawley's husband Matthew in 2012. His fatal car accident during the series 3 Christmas special - shortly after meeting his newborn son, George - was a massive shock to viewers.
• In Line of Duty, Jessica Raine's DC Georgia Trotman was killed off just minutes after being introduced. While viewers thought the famous actress would be a main character having just left Call the Midwife, she was unceremoniously thrown out of a hospital window in the first episode of series 2 in 2014.
• In The Walking Dead, the popular character Glenn Rhee was murdered by Negan (who bashed his head in with a barbed-wire-wrapped baseball bat). The 2016 death was a gut-punch for fans, and a turning point in the series.
• Unforgotten writer Chris Lang floored fans when he killed off Nicola Walker’s character DCI Cassie Stuart at the end of series 4 in 2021. Her fatal car accident had been kept totally under wraps. Of course, DI Sunil 'Sunny' Khan was devastated, as were the show's fans.
• Killing Eve fans threatened to riot when Villanelle was shot and killed during the series finale while protecting Eve, just moments after she and Eve had finally got together in 2022.
• Happy Valley fans were horrified in 2023 when antagonist Tommy Lee Royce set himself on fire rather than spend the rest of his life in jail. While surprising, it seemed a fitting end to an epic showdown with Sgt Catherine Cawood. And closed all speculation on possible future series.
• Aiden Gillen's troubled character Frank Kinsella killed his abusive father, Bren, before shooting himself at the end of Kin series 2 in 2023.

This City is Ours airs every Sunday for eight weeks from March 23, 2025, at 9pm. It's available to stream now on BBC iPlayer as a boxset.