The Game (British TV series)
A 1972 London MI5 team investigates a Soviet plot called Operation Glass.
The Game is a six-episode British television series, a Cold War spy thriller set in London during 1972. It was created by Toby Whithouse, who co-wrote it with Sarah Dollard and Debbie O'Malley, and originally aired on BBC America in 2014. In July 2015, Whithouse announced on Twitter that no second series would be produced.
The story follows Joe Lambe (Tom Hughes), a young MI5 operative in 1972 London. The previous year, Joe fell in love with Yulia (Zana Marjanović), a Soviet contact, and attempted to defect to the USSR to be with her. He was arrested, and Yulia was killed by an unknown KGB enforcer. Joe's MI5 superior, known as "Daddy" (Brian Cox), covers for him, claiming the attempted defection was a sanctioned undercover operation that went wrong.
MI5 is contacted by Soviet professor Arkady Malinov (Marcel Iureș), a KGB sleeper agent who claims to have been activated for "Operation Glass," a secret plan of major importance. He says he wants to defect, though Joe doubts his stated motive of wanting to become a capitalist. Joe is used as a go-between to communicate with other sleeper agents. Daddy assembles a team to investigate, including Joe; ambitious civil servant Bobby Waterhouse (Paul Ritter); field analyst Sarah Montag (Victoria Hamilton); her husband Alan (Jonathan Aris), a bugging expert; Daddy's secretary Wendy (Chloe Pirrie); and Special Branch detective Jim Fenchurch (Shaun Dooley). The team remains uncertain whether Arkady is a trustworthy informant or a double agent.
Early leads suggest the worst: a Soviet sleeper agent has been trying to learn the contents of the letters of last resort, which instruct British nuclear submarines on whether to launch missiles after a nuclear attack. They then investigate Kate Wilkinson (Rachael Stirling), an MI6 officer having an affair with a U.S. Air Force officer at RAF Lakenheath, where the Americans secretly store nuclear weapons. Plans for a nuclear device are found in her possession, and the team suspects the Soviets intend to detonate an American nuclear weapon in Britain and blame it on an accident. However, Joe finds evidence Wilkinson was framed, Alan realizes the plans are largely faked, and the team concludes Operation Glass was an elaborate Soviet feint.
Joe learns the enforcer who killed Yulia is codenamed "Odin" (Russian for "one"), an operative who eliminates traitors in the West. Joe had e
- Genre
- Cold War spy thriller
- Setting
- London, 1972
- Number of episodes
- 6
- Creator
- Toby Whithouse
- Original network
- BBC America
- First broadcast
- 2014
- Second series
- None (confirmed July 2015)
Lore & Background
The story follows Joe Lambe, a young MI5 operative in 1972 London. The previous year, Joe had fallen in love with Yulia, one of his Soviet contacts, and tried to defect to the Soviet Union to be with her. He was arrested and Yulia was shot by a KGB enforcer. Joe's MI5 superior, codenamed 'Daddy', covers for him, insisting the attempted defection was a sanctioned undercover operation gone wrong. MI5 is contacted by Soviet university professor Arkady Malinov, who reveals he is a KGB sleeper agent activated to take part in 'Operation Glass', a secret plan of game-changing importance, but he wants to defect. Joe is convinced by everything Arkady tells them except for the reason he wants to defect, that he wants to be a capitalist. Daddy assembles a team including Joe; the ambitious civil servant Bobby Waterhouse; field agent and analyst Sarah Montag; her husband Alan, a bugging expert; Daddy's secretary Wendy; and Special Branch detective Jim Fenchurch. As the team investigates Operation Glass, they remain in the dark as to what it is or even whether Arkady is a trustworthy informant or a double agent.
Reader's Guide
The Game is a six-part British Cold War spy thriller that aired on BBC America in 2014. Created by Toby Whithouse, it explores themes of betrayal, double agents, and Soviet infiltration of the British government. The series features a complex plot involving a Soviet sleeper agent, a mole within MI5 codenamed 'Phoenix', and a KGB assassin named Odin. The story culminates in a planned assassination of the Prime Minister and a silent coup d'etat orchestrated by the Deputy Prime Minister, who is revealed to be the operator of the real Operation Glass. The series was not renewed for a second series, as confirmed by Whithouse in July 2015. Its significance lies in its intricate Cold War narrative and the moral ambiguities faced by its characters, particularly the question of trust and loyalty within intelligence agencies.
Did You Know?
- The series was created by Toby Whithouse and written by Whithouse, Sarah Dollard, and Debbie O'Malley.
- The KGB assassin is codenamed 'Odin', the Russian word for one.
- The mole inside MI5 is codenamed 'Phoenix'.
- The Deputy Prime Minister is revealed to be the operator of the real Operation Glass, a silent coup d'etat.
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