The essential episodes of Spooks
Watch these 25 in order and you've got Spooks — each pick states its reason.
- 01
Tom is informed of 20 bombs that have gone astray in Liverpool. Minutes later a car bomb kills a family-planning doctor and their daughter. Can the team find the remaining 19 bombs before they go off?
- 02
Race riots are becoming a national problem; MI5 are sure that businessman Robert Osbourne is responsible. Tom recruits MI5 secretary, Helen, to befriend Osbourne's wife and recruit her as a source.
- 03
While at the Turkish Embassy, Zoe is caught up in a siege by the Kurdish Liberation Army. Led by Leyla Ahmed, the rebels demand Kurdish prisoners be released from Turkey in return for hostages.
- 04
A car bomb kills the Northern Ireland Secretary and his two daughters. Soon after a British army base is attacked. Bosnian war criminal, Miroslav Gradic, is spotted flying into the UK and the team soon realise that this could be the start of a revenge campaign.
- 05
An MI5 agent is identified and tortured inside a Birmingham mosque. Before the agent's health deteriorates, he tells Tom that boys inside the mosque are being trained to become suicide bombers.
- 06
MI5's central computer is being hacked and the number one candidate is school teacher, Gordon Blaney. Zoe goes undercover to get near to him, however she begins to doubt that he is the man they want.
- 07
The team is busy at work when an alarm goes off. Everyone groans - it's an EERIE (Extreme Emergency Response Initiative Exercise). They must act exactly as if there's a national emergency - in this case, germ warfare in Central London. As the exercise goes ahead, information dries up, power and phone lines go down, victims try to break into Thames House - and suddenly Harry gets sick. The team tries to stay calm, but doubts start to set in. Is this actually for real?
- 08
When the President of the United States makes an unscheduled trip to the UK, it's a huge and complex operation. MI5 must work with the CIA and the President's security team to ensure his safety throughout, but this becomes a battle for power and as each new threat comes in, it has to be dealt with. Tom and Christine are thrown together and there is very obviously more to their relationship than just work, but there's also the small matter of a President who's about to land in the UK.
- 09
The French Intelligence Service wants to work in partnership with MI5 to catch an arms expert whom they suspect of trying to sell Eurofighter technology to the highest bidder. The British government, however, wants MI5 to acquire it for themselves. An operation of European unity turns into one of lies and mistrust. This raises the question of how they access the technology - it seems a 14-year-old thief is their only option.
- 10
In Miami, Florida, a known assassin is asked to come out of retirement for one last task - to kill an Englishman. The only thing is, he has to do it dead. Back in England, Tom and Christine are enjoying their new relationship and share secrets. Christine pillow talks to Tom, telling him about the CIA's clandestine operation to 'desensitise' this assassin on English soil. But, no matter what, he must not tell Harry. Tom knows he cannot let this one be - a British life is at risk. He gets the team on the case but when every avenue they explore leads them to a dead end, Danny and Zoe begin to doubt the reason for Tom's actions and the whole operation. Has Tom set this whole thing up as a way out? Has he gone bad?
- 11
Tom Quinn has disappeared after shooting his boss. He is also accused of assassinating the Chief of Defence Staff. The Joint Intelligence Committee Chairman opens a punitive investigation of MI5.
- 12
Danny and the team must uncover the truth behind an assassination attempt on a famous novelist. Was he the real target? And who is the enemy?
- 13
A scientist is rumoured to be negotiating with terrorists who want to buy his potentially deadly research. Intending to frighten him off, Danny and Zoe track him onto a North Sea ferry. But things are worse than they feared and they must take more drastic action.
- 14
Zoe is caught up in the deadly fallout of an abortive mission and must stand trial for conspiracy to murder. Can an MI5 officer be culpable for the death of an undercover police officer, killed by a member of a Turkish gun-running gang?
- 15
MI5 are alarmed when they discover a group is hacking into computer systems across the country. Ruth investigates the possibility that Islamic terrorists might be behind the threat.
- 16
Suspicions are aroused when a known mercenary, recently linked to a new player on the arms smuggling circuit, is seen visiting an old Soviet arms dump. MI5 pull him in for questioning.
- 17
Danny and Fiona investigate a house they suspect is being used by North African terrorists. While the agents are installing a listening device, a gang of terrorists take them hostage.
- 18
As the hunt for the bomb maker intensifies, Adam races to save the life of one of his team. But with another bomb set to devastate London, he is forced to risk the life of an innocent young girl to avert disaster.
- 19
The team are pushed to the limit as the country is plunged into chaos by a series of terrorist attacks.
- 20
The highly-contagious plague-like virus unleashed by the Tehran blast is on the streets of London and a wounded, infected Zaf has been captured, possibly alreadykilled. As the team races against time to stop the virus spreading, they corral and infect top international spies in a bid to discover a vaccine.
- 21
An Al Qaeda cell kidnap a soldier and demand that Remembrance Sunday be cancelled as it is an affront to all dead Muslim soldiers.
- 22
Lucas's past comes back to haunt him when his former torturer Darshavin turns up with intelligence about a bomb in London.
- 23
Beth and Dimitri go undercover when the US president visits London to chair top secret peace talks between Israel and Palestine.
- 24
Ghosts from the past come back to haunt MI5 chief Harry Pearce, prompting a shocking revelation about his time as a spy during the Cold War.
- 25
Harry is handed over to the CIA, ready for deportation to the US, but events are thrown into turmoil when the team receive detailed knowledge of an attack on the UK.
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