HBO’s Industry shows finance is sexy again
HBO’s finance romp Industry didn’t make an impact in 2020. Is its 2026 rise a recession indicator? Matt Kenyon muses
Industry and the glamour of corporate life
Konrad Kay and Mickey Down’s sleeper hit series Industry has quietly morphed from a claustrophobic trading floor drama to an irreverent, mildly deviant ‘state of the nation’ romp around the City, Westminster and beyond. And what is the latter if not a mission statement of this newspaper?
Back in 2020, a muted debut season made for one of the weakest premieres in HBO’s history. But by season two, there was a 60 per cent uplift in viewership. And in 2026, it’s become a cultural touchstone. Perhaps, because it’s captured a new zeitgeist – in which corporate life, and a regular salary, is once again aspirational.
For the uninitiated – and if you are uninitiated, get initiated – the series lampoons the fads and bubbles that crop up in finance. ESG, Covid trends and dodgy fintechs are all up for grabs.
Series writers have even name-checked City AM, with a beleaguered energy founder played by Kit Harrington reaching for some of his closest press contacts to help save a disastrous listing on the London Stock Exchange. But having an IPO in the first place is, perhaps, one of the less realistic things about Industry.
The social, and particularly the political, satire gets a smidge heavy handed at times. The latest season opens with a succession of toe-curling, faux-’West Wing’ corridor walks packed with expositional dialogue about Labour’s online safety legislation.
But, look beyond the hard drugs, willies and sweary diatribes, and there is a pretty effective critique of a financial sector often gripped by passing trends and buffeted by international headwinds. The London office of Pierpoint, named after the P in JP Morgan, worries constantly about the shifting whims of New York HQ.
Enigmatic American financiers and founders crop up throughout the series, casually chucking cash in the grabbing hands of various London upstarts. Whilst, in a recent episode, ‘47’ himself is spotted in the distance across an unspecified Florida golf course.
Industry’s rise perhaps holds up a mirror to the last five years. In 2020, it felt a little too grubby. Now, we’ve all drifted a little closer to Industry’s vibe.
Is Clapham cool now?
This would have been unutterable a few years back, but I’m getting the creeping feeling that Clapham might be coming back into style – for all the wrong reasons.
Purely anecdotally, the demographics appear to have shifted towards a slightly older, trendier and less smiley sort. This is a reflection of grim economic times: That endless churn of 22-year-old grads into the South-West suburb is stuttering. It says something that Revs can’t survive this market. I would put an early bet that 10 to 15 years from now, Clapham could feel oddly like Hackney.
For God’s sake, can the NHS just hoard my data?
My first job in an office involved systematically destroying paperwork in a provincial hospital. This was the summer of 2018, and the public sector was whipped up into a gleeful frenzy over the exciting, decentralising possibilities of newly-enforced GDPR legislation.
Flash forward almost eight years, and I was hit with a jaw infection following complications from a surgery done not long after the introduction of said privacy laws. A&E, the GP, the emergency dentist and the follow-up emergency dentist all said the same thing: Let’s do some fresh X-Rays. Sometimes we reap what we sew.
Dumbphones don’t work – get a crap smartphone instead
After four years of loyal, dogged service, my phone wheezed its last breath last week. We’ve had a strained relationship, as I would accuse its vibrant screen of sapping away my best years. I’ve tried to wean myself off before, with a tough month reviewing the minimalist Light Phone iii last summer. But I started missing messages, emails, and events.
A smartphone is still mandatory, for e-tickets and Hinge and whatnot. In which case, why not buy a crap one? I found a refurbished 2022 iPhone SE online, for just under £100. When it came out, it was using year-old specs with an eight-year-old design. Now, it’s an oddly usable relic. I hate using it, so I rarely do. Perfection.
Euston revival?
The long-awaited HS2 tunnel between London Euston and Old Oak is finally shovel-ready.
The project has, of course, been an awful mess, so there have been mixed feelings. But, I hope we can all agree that this could finally improve London’s worst train station.
Could the development mean justice for Old Euston station? Built in 1837, it was torn down in favour of one of the most pebble-dashed brutalist buildings to come out of the Post-War period.
Matt Kenyon is City AM’s newsletter editor