MI-5 (2002– )
"Spooks" (original title)

The missions of MI-5, the UK's domestic intelligence organization.

Creator:

David Wolstencroft

Stars:

Peter Firth, Hugh Simon, Miranda Raison

7 wins & 35 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Peter Firth	...	Harry Pearce (53 episodes, 2005-2011)
Hugh Simon	...	Malcolm Wynn-Jones (38 episodes, 2005-2010)
Miranda Raison	...	Jo Portman (36 episodes, 2005-2009)
Hermione Norris	...	Ros Myers (33 episodes, 2006-2009)
Nicola Walker	...	Ruth Evershed (32 episodes, 2005-2011)
Rupert Penry-Jones	...	Adam Carter (28 episodes, 2005-2008)
Richard Armitage	...	Lucas North (24 episodes, 2008-2010)

Storyline

The missions of MI-5, the UK's domestic intelligence organization.

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Plot Keywords:

profanity | london england | female agent | fbi counterpart | surveillance | 

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Taglines:

They search for the truth. Their lives are a lie.

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Details

Official Sites:

BBC website

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 July 2003 (USA)

Also Known As:

MI-5

Filming Locations:

Freemason's Hall, Great Queen Street, Covent Garden, London, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Kudos Film and Television, British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min 60 min (64 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The lamp shades hanging from the ceiling of the Grid in season 1 are actually bins from Ikea turned upside down.

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Goofs

At numerous times throughout series 1 notably in "One Last Dance" and "Traitor's Gate" close-ups of intelligence files show that all the information is the same and all relates to Mary Kane's terminated pregnancy from episode 1 "Thou Shalt Not Kill".

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Quotes

Jools Siviter: Lively on this side of the river, isn't it?

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Crazy Credits

The show does not have any end credits, ending each episode with a trailer for the next episode and only showing a BBC production information screen. It does not list any cast/crew.

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Connections

Referenced in Be Kind Rewind (2008)

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Soundtracks

"Spooks"
Written by Jennie Muskett
Published by BBC Music/Bucks Music Ltd

User Reviews

Intelligent work on intelligence work

I've seen these on A&E in America and from the first I was hooked. The pressure cooker atmosphere and the modern day dot-com look puts this show about "counter intelligence" on another level than today's so called spy shows.

It's not the eye-candy of Alias and frankly its better than the flat delivery of the now canned Agency or Threat Matrix (both of which strive to be too PC in their "diverseness").

The writing is very well layered. It pulls the viewer in, and there's enough original material that many times you can't "skip ahead" to the fourth act in your mind. Meaning, you haven't figured out the end by the second break.

MI-5, or Spooks, puts enough plot twists in for any true fan of the genre. Well worth the time and effort to watch. Too bad American network television can't produce a show of this caliber.

(11/17/05 comment) Also, I was so intrigued by the UK version of Spooks, that I got into downloading the shows via the Internet, and I have to say it's an even better experience. I wish A&E would run the entire episode and not a chopped up version. The editing has to do with advert breaks more than content. If you only see this on A&E then I would suggest downloading it or renting/buying the DVD sets.