Harry Palmer: The Ipcress File
Season 1 M-Net (*101) 22:30 Drama
Got the need for a spy thriller? New miniseries Harry Palmer: The Ipcress Files snuck onto the schedule without notice and is loosely based on the 1962 novel The Ipcress File by Len Deighton. It’s set during the Cold War as smuggler and British Army Corporal Harry Palmer (Joe Cole, John Shelby in period drama Peaky Blinders) receives a get-out-of-jail free card. “He’s approached by British Intelligence to find a missing professor. Harry has no choice but to take the job, which comes with lots of danger and mystery,” says the tough-guy actor.
Joe was a carpet salesman before joining the National Youth Theatre in London in 2008. “I couldn’t believe that they accepted me. I was stunned and my family supported me entirely with my dreams,” says the 33-year-old. His younger brother
Finn (26) played John
Shelby’s cousin Michael
Gray in Peaky Blinders, which was fun for Joe. “I got to smack him around a bit. We never fought as brothers at home, so I took my chance to get a slap in now and then,” says Joe with a laugh.
The actor does long-distance road cycling to stay fit. It’s also a form of meditation for him and he rode 1 600km in nine days in 2020, saying, “I zoned out for the last 400 and don’t remember a lot of the scenery. It’s quiet time for me and I can clear my mind.”
He’s also a photographer and uses his artwork for good causes. Since 2016, he’s hosted exhibitions and auctions, with the proceeds being donated to the Momentum Children’s Charity and Kingston Hospitals in Surrey.
Like gangster John, Joe has been arrested a few times. “It’s honest naughty fun, not real crime,” he says.