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07 Jan 2026
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07 Jan 2026
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A steamy six-part drama about a secret fling between two hockey rivals is to air in the UK after it became a streaming hit in the US and Canada.
Heated Rivalry, which has been adapted from a book series by Rachel Reid, has been praised by viewers for its portrayal of gay romance.
Here is what you need to know about the show:
What is the premise?
The HBO series follows rival hockey players Shane Hollander, played by Hudson Williams, and Ilya Rozanov, played by Connor Storrie, as they begin a secret romance.
The drama takes place over eight years as the pair chase glory on the ice while navigating complicated romantic feelings in their private lives.
There are a lot of explicit scenes in the series and Williams told US LGBT+ magazine Them that sex has “a huge place in storytelling” when “handled the right way”.
Storrie is from the US but has a Russian accent for the series and told the magazine he would be in the accent every day on set “until we called cut on the last shot”.
Who are the cast members?
Canadian actor Williams, 24, who has starred in a number of TV series, and US actor Storrie, 25, who has credits in Joker: Folie a Deux and April X, play the main characters.
The drama also stars Canadian actors Francois Arnaud, Robbie Graham-Kuntz, Ksenia Daniela Kharlamova and Sophie Nelisse, as well as US stars Christina Chang and Dylan Walsh.
What book was the series based on?
The show is based on Game Changers, a series of books about hockey and queer romance, written by Reid.
Her book, Heated Rivalry, is an enemies-to-lovers story that follows pro hockey star Shane Hollander, captain of the Montreal Voyageurs, as he embarks on a fling with Boston Bears captain Ilya Rozanov.
When does the series come to the UK?
Heated Rivalry will arrive on Sky and streaming service Now on January 10 in the UK and Ireland.
The series was originally created for Canadian streaming service Crave.
It was recently announced that the show will return for a second season.
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