London Spy: Season 1

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 18 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 53 Ratings

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7.7

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7.7	Your Score
7.7	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 53 Ratings

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Season Details & Credits

BBC America | BBC Two | Season Premiere Date: January 21, 2016

Starring: Adrian Lester, David Hayman, Clarke Peters

Summary: Danny (Ben Whishaw), a warehouse worker falls in love with British spy Alex (Edward Holcroft), who ends up dead in suspicious circumstances, and draws Danny into the world of espionage in the drama created and written by Tom Rob Smith.

Creator: Tom Rob Smith

Genre(s): Drama, Suspense

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Season 1 Episodes

tbd
S1:E5. Episode 5
Air Date: February 18, 2016
tbd
S1:E4. Episode 4
Air Date: February 11, 2016
tbd
S1:E3. Episode 3
Air Date: February 4, 2016

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

Vicki Hyman

Jan 22, 2016

Muscular writing and powerful performances.... You can get sucked in by the spycraft, but this is also a parable about queerness, and a fascinating character piece for Whishaw. Read full review

Maureen Ryan

Jan 19, 2016

It’s elliptical and indirect at times--and sometimes a little too enigmatic--but its narrative drive is strengthened by a percolating anger at injustice, fear-mongering and prejudice. This haunting drama becomes more captivating over the course of its five installments, thanks in large part to sensational performances from Ben Whishaw, Jim Broadbent and Charlotte Rampling. Read full review

Robert Bianco

Jan 20, 2016

There are touches in Spy that seem rather needlessly gothic and unnecessarily grim, but they're more than redeemed by its sustained sense of place and by wonderful performances from Whishaw, Broadbent and, in smaller roles, Holcroft and Charlotte Rampling. And unlike so many modern projects, it seems to be exactly the length it should be, with pauses in the action there to draw us into the characters rather than just as padding. Read full review

TV Guide Magazine Matt Roush

Jan 14, 2016

Rob Smith's wildly original five-part London Spy is an emotional tour de force for rising star Ben Whishaw. [18-31 Jan 2016, p.15]

Matthew Gilbert

Jan 19, 2016

You may or may not struggle with the heightened, heated-up filmmaking in London Spy, which is filled with artful camera angles and non-linear time leaps, but you will likely fall under Whishaw’s spell. Read full review

Ken Tucker

Jan 21, 2016

London Spy proceeds at a languid pace that will either draw you in, entranced, or repel you with tedium. I was drawn in, yet not quite entranced, but the series gets both better (it always helps anything when Charlotte Rampling shows up) and more flawed as it proceeds. Read full review

David Wiegand

Jan 19, 2016

Whishaw may keep the human story from being swamped by bad writing and worse direction, but Rampling and Broadbent are doomed.... In the end, none of it makes a great deal of sense. Read full review

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User Score

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7.7

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User Reviews

nima1990

Jan 24, 2016

The show deserves a 10 because we've seen tons of stories like this on TV or cinema but all of them had a super straight macho guy. London Spy featured a gay protagonist and that;s where it shines without actually being a show about sexuality but a pure love between Danny and Alex. In thisThe show deserves a 10 because we've seen tons of stories like this on TV or cinema but all of them had a super straight macho guy. London Spy featured a gay protagonist and that;s where it shines without actually being a show about sexuality but a pure love between Danny and Alex. In this show unlike many other their gayness wasn't magnified and it was as trivial and normal as a straight romance and it's completely normal and nobody cares. We need more interesting action, thriller and mystery movies that feature gay protagonists like any other human being. Plus the writing was absolutely genius. I definitely want more. A season 2 is bound to happen. The cast is also amazing.… Expand

3 of 3 users found this helpful30

koothrappali

Jan 21, 2016

Melhor série do mundo!!!!!!!11! História super envolvente e original. Atuações ótimas e ainda tem o Ben pra ficar melhor. Suspense espião gay, o que poderíamos querer mais?

3 of 3 users found this helpful30

PoeticDumpling

Jan 24, 2016

Fantastic first episode. It felt like a mix of Hitchcock meets Tom Ford's cinematographic eye in The Single Man and a dash of Andrew Haigh ("Weekend"). I love how it started in a more romantic vein and then did a 180 by the end. Ben Whishaw is superb! Jim Broadbent is always excellent.Fantastic first episode. It felt like a mix of Hitchcock meets Tom Ford's cinematographic eye in The Single Man and a dash of Andrew Haigh ("Weekend"). I love how it started in a more romantic vein and then did a 180 by the end. Ben Whishaw is superb! Jim Broadbent is always excellent. It was a very different and sometimes strange concept. Excited to see where the next four episodes go,… Expand

3 of 3 users found this helpful30

IanSia

Mar 8, 2016

It is fascinating how this show plays with your feelings. It is indeed a 'relationship drama refracted through the prism of spy scenes'.
I don't know how to recover from it though.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Impressionismo

Mar 12, 2016

Atmosfere molto intime e cupe, trama che si sviluppa mantenendo lo spettatore in tensione e curioso del finale. Musiche top e attori in grado di interpretare i personaggi in maniera egregia.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

shellview

Jan 26, 2016

Very good thriller from the UK. Although the protagonist and others are gay, "London Spy" is not about being gay. It is about people who just happen to be gay That deserves an 8 by itself. No pandering nor agenda driven at all, bravo. I found the characters interesting and well drawn.Very good thriller from the UK. Although the protagonist and others are gay, "London Spy" is not about being gay. It is about people who just happen to be gay That deserves an 8 by itself. No pandering nor agenda driven at all, bravo. I found the characters interesting and well drawn. The story,so far, is exciting and very well written as is the dialogue. Too bad it is only a mini-series but the Brit's, unlike the US, know how to end a story and not drag it out ad infinitum.… Expand

3 of 3 users found this helpful30

tromperie

Jan 21, 2016

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Sadly, what at first appears as an intriguing story loses its way. By the final episodes the authors literally lost the plot and I lost the will to live. I wish I had locked myself in a box in an attic instead of watching this. A triumph of British style over substance.… Expand

2 of 8 users found this helpful26

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Seasons & Episodes

73

Series Overview
Season 1

73
- Season 1 Overview
  Air Date: January 21, 2016
- tbd
  S1:E5. Episode 5
  Air Date: February 18, 2016
- tbd
  S1:E4. Episode 4
  Air Date: February 11, 2016
- tbd
  S1:E3. Episode 3
  Air Date: February 4, 2016
- tbd
  S1:E2. Episode 2
  Air Date: January 28, 2016
- tbd
  S1:E1. Episode 1
  Air Date: January 21, 2016