No./3 NEXT IN THE SERIES
You fell in love with that incredible new TV show. And then it ended! Don’t despair — Boyd Hilton recommends the sibling shows to watch next
IF YOU LOVED... SLOW HORSES TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY (BRITBOX)
Gary Oldman embodied the classy, dignified espionage operative George Smiley — the polar opposite of his sweary, farty Jackson Lamb character in Slow Horses — when he played him in Tomas Alfredson’s beautifully made 2011 film of John le Carré’s classic novel. But before that, there was this extraordinary seven-part BBC drama adaptation in 1979, with Alec Guinness in exquisitely poised, enigmatic form as Smiley, tasked with finding a Russian mole in the upper echelons of the British Secret Service. It’s slow, steady and talky — but also spellbinding. The 1982 sequel Smiley’s People is also superb.
DAMNED (STARZPLAY/PRIME VIDEO)
Will Smith, the writer of Slow Horses (also an accomplished stand-up, actor and novelist), specialises in wryly funny workplace comedies in which said workplace is a state institution riven with politics and ambition. From his work on The Thick Of It and Veep to sci-fi sitcom Avenue 5, Smith is a master at making these precincts of power feel totally real. He also co-wrote sharply funny Channel 4 sitcom Damned, with Morwenna Banks and Jo Brand, set in the unglamorous world of social work, and featuring a great ensemble cast including Alan Davies, Kevin Eldon and Isy Suttie.
LONDON SPY (PRIME VIDEO/ APPLE STORE)
Also occupying the murkier end of the TV spy-drama genre, this five-parter written and created by Tom Rob Smith (The Assassination Of Gianni Versace) stars Ben
Whishaw as hedonistic Londoner Danny, who falls in lust with the shy, mysterious Alex (Edward Holcroft) before he suddenly disappears. Turns out he worked for the Secret Intelligence Service, and naive Danny embarks on an obsessive quest to find out what happened to the potential love of his life. Made for BBC Two in 2015, it fuses beguiling romance with mesmerising mystery.
BATES MOTEL (SKY ON DEMAND)
In a cast which includes Gary Oldman, Kristin Scott Thomas and Jack Lowden, it’s remarkable how often Olivia Cooke steals scenes in Slow Horses. Cooke is only 28 but already has a decade of major performances on her CV, and will soon be seen in Game Of Thrones prequel House Of The Dragon. Perhaps her meatiest role so far is Emma Decody, best friend of Freddie Highmore’s Norman Bates in Bates Motel — a potentially thankless role which Cooke brings powerfully to life. SLOW HORSES IS ON APPLE TV+ NOW