Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1979)

The BBC’s seven-part spy drama, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1979), is an adaptation of John le Carré’s novel of the same name. Directed by John Irvin and produced by Jonathan Powell, the series follows George Smiley, a retired deputy from the British Secret Intelligence Service. Smiley was forced into retirement after a failed mission in Czechoslovakia known as Operation Testify. The operation, orchestrated by the head of the Circus (the British Secret Intelligence Service), resulted in the capture and torture of veteran agent Jim Prideaux. Control, as the head is only known, was replaced by his rival Percy Alleline following this disgraceful incident. While Control was fixated on finding a Soviet mole within their organization, others disagreed and blamed his supposed incompetence for any leaks or failures at the Circus headquarters located in London’s Cambridge Circus.

On the contrary, Alleline and his team at the Circus strongly believe they have a mole, codenamed Merlin, operating for them within Moscow Centre – their KGB headquarters. This individual has been providing secrets through an operation known as Witchcraft. Witchcraft’s success in producing valuable information has impressed those in both British and American intelligence communities, who view Alleline and his team as a refreshing alternative to Control. Over a year has passed since Testify and the subsequent restructuring of the Circus, when Ricki Tarr – a British agent who had gone missing in Lisbon – resurfaces in England with new evidence supporting Control’s theory of a mole within the organization. During one of his routine assignments, Tarr was approached by Irina – a lower-ranking Soviet agent – who claimed to know the identity of the mole and wished to defect in exchange for permission to do so.