Calling all fans of spy thrillers! Netflix has quietly dropped a four-part spy series, based on a bestselling novel and starring actors from Line of Duty, Adolescence and Mr Bates vs the Post Office.
Originally a BBC series, The Secret Agent features Toby Jones (Mr Bates vs the Post Office), Vicky McClure (Line of Duty) and Stephen Graham (Adolescence, A Thousand Blows), and is based on Joseph Conrad's classic novel of the same name.
While the show initially aired on BBC One in 2016, fans will be delighted to hear that Netflix quietly dropped it on its website, and is available to stream now.
Read on to find out more…
What is The Secret Agent about?
Based on Joseph Conrad's only book set in London, The Secret Agent follows Mr Anton Verloc (Toby Jones), a businessman who runs a sex shop in Soho, and his wife Winnie (Vicky McClure), who married him in order to provide for her brother and to escape her father.
The official synopsis reads: "Verloc (Toby Jones) runs a seedy shop in the heart of London’s Soho. Unknown to his loyal wife Winnie (Vicky McClure), Verloc is paid by the Russian embassy to spy on a dangerous anarchist cell.
© BBC"Summoned by the Russians, he is given a mission: orchestrate a bombing that can be blamed on the anarchists and provoke a political crackdown by the British.
"Verloc must source a bomb from The Professor (Ian Hart), but hide his actions from Winnie and Chief Inspector Heat (Stephen Graham) of Scotland Yard’s Special Crimes Division.
"Unable to persuade his anarchist ‘comrades’ to help, Verloc sets his sights on Winnie’s younger brother Stevie (Charlie Hamblett) as his accomplice."
Who stars in The Secret Agent?
Alongside Toby Jones and Vicky McClure, Adolescence star Stephen Graham stars as Chief Inspector Heat and Baby Reindeer's Tom Goodman-Hill is Assistant Commissioner Stone.
Other cast members include Ian Hart (Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, The Last Kingdom) as The Professor, David Dawson (The Last Kingdom, My Policeman) as Vladimir, Charlie Hamblett (Killing Eve, Ghosts) as Stevie, George Costigan (Happy Valley, Gentleman Jack) as Sir Ethelred and Penny Downie (Downton Abbey, The Crown) as Lady Blackwood.
Is The Secret Agent any good?
The Secret Agent received mixed to positive reception from critics, with many praising its strong performances.
Radio Times praised the show, hailing it as a "gripping period tale exploring urgent modern anxieties" while commending the performances of Toby Jones' Anton, Vicky McClure's Winnie and Charlie Hamblett's Stevie.
However, The Guardian criticised it for taking "liberties" with the novel, citing the attempt to liven it up as detrimental to the claustrophobic effects of the book.
Why not make up your own mind by binge-watching it this week?
The Secret Agent is available to watch on Netflix now.
