The Game: BBC America Series Debuts November 5th

BBC America has announced that new series The Game will debut on November 5th, as part of “Dramaville.” There are six episodes of the British spy thriller.

Here’s the press release, along with a video preview:

“THE GAME” BEGINS NOVEMBER 5 AT 10:00PM AS PART OF BBC AMERICA’S “DRAMAVILLE”

In the secret world of espionage, the players are set and the fight to save Britain begins

A complex invisible war is being fought by skilled spies trained in the high stakes world of covert espionage. In 1972 London, tensions are at a terrifying peak as the world’s super powers plot against their enemies. The threat: a dangerous and deadly Soviet plot, designed to bring Britain to its knees, dubbed Operation Glass. This is where The Game begins – a stylish, character-driven spy drama that explores the lives and lies of the invisible soldiers fighting a secret war. When an MI5 agent is contacted by a defecting KGB officer about the plan to destroy the British establishment, MI5 leader, Daddy (Brian Cox, The Bourne Supremacy, An Adventure in Space and Time), assembles a secret committee to investigate the threat in a frantic race against time. Their mission: stop the plot, save Britain and in turn, the world. The Game, a suspenseful six-part, edge-of-your-seat thrill ride, created by Toby Whithouse (Being Human, Doctor Who), premieres Wednesday, November 5 at 10:00pm ET as part BBC AMERICA’s Dramaville.

With the game on and the players set, Secret Services on both sides of the Iron Curtain will exploit any weakness to further their aims. MI5 agent, Joe Lambe (Tom Hughes, Dancing on the Edge, Cemetery Junction), is one of the best Daddy has; a handsome, enigmatic agent who is an expert at undercover work, but haunted by the loss of his lover and his own betrayal against his country. When he is contacted by defecting KGB officer, Arkady Malinov (Marcel Lures, Pirates of the Caribbean, Foyles War), with details of the deadly scheme, his instincts tells him it’s very real. And while the threat to Britain is unclear, it is elaborate enough to cause the charismatic but paranoid Daddy to spring into action. With the Soviets waking sleeper agents across the UK, Daddy’s team must track them down, one by one, before they carry out their part in the great game. The players are agents – some better than others – trained in the art of persuasion, interrogation and new technology. Joining Joe is Bobby Waterhouse (Paul Ritter, Quantum of Solace, Friday Night Dinner), the career-climbing mummy’s boy with connections to Britain’s high-society, whose private life could ruin him; Sarah Montag (Victoria Hamilton, Lark Rise to Candleford, What Remains), an intelligent and tough agent whose rise in the male-dominated field of espionage makes her formidable; Alan Montag (Jonathan Aris, Sherlock, Bright Star), MI5’s socially awkward technology brain, and husband to Sarah; Wendy Straw (Chloe Pirrie, Misfits, Black Mirror), a mousy secretary seizing the opportunity to prove her worth and climb the ladder; and on loan to the committee, Jim Fenchurch (Shaun Dooley, The White Queen, Misfits), a no frills police liaison unimpressed by MI5, dispatched by Special Branch to aid in the investigation. Together, this hodge-podge team, whose success or lack thereof could change the course of espionage, must solve the mystery and neutralize the threat before it’s too late. And with an enemy who murders, tortures and uses brutal tactics to achieve their goals, the team will need to raise their game to the highest level.

A sexy, smart and explosive depiction of the Cold War, The Game takes viewers back to a time when the proliferation of espionage was at an all-time high. With relations between the Soviet Union and Britain fractured due to the former’s occupation of Eastern Europe, the series shines a light on how spying and covert operations further damaged the two nations’ relationship. The KGB, accused of countless crimes, dispatched spies all over Britain to embed themselves alongside her finest in order to infiltrate and later, carry out acts of terror. Those who lived through these trying times will instantly relate to the tension, uncertainty and the palpable fear that life as you knew it, could change in an instant.

The Game is a BBC Cymru Wales production for BBC One. The series is created and written by Toby Whithouse with episodes written by Debbie O’Malley and Sarah Dollard. It is directed by Niall MacCormick and Daniel O’Hara and executive produced by Hilary Salmon and Toby Whithouse.

CAST AND PRODUCTION CREDITS

Joe Lambe Tom Hughes (Dancing on the Edge, Cemetery Junction)
Daddy Brian Cox (The Bourne Supremacy, An Adventure in Space and Time)
Bobby Waterhouse Paul Ritter (Quantum of Solace, Friday Night Dinner)
Sarah Montag Victoria Hamilton (Lark Rise to Candleford, What Remains)
Alan Montag Jonathan Aris (Sherlock, Bright Star)
Jim Fenchurch Shaun Dooley (The White Queen, Misfits)
Wendy Straw Chloe Pirrie (Misfits, Black Mirror)
Arkady Marcel Lures (Pirates of the Caribbean, Foyles War)
Odin Jevgenij Sitochin (The Bourne Supremacy)
Yulia Zana Marjanovic (In the Land of Blood and Honey)

GUEST STARS
Hester Waterhouse Judy Parfitt (Call The Midwife, Little Dorrit)
Tom Mallory Steven Mackintosh (Kick-Ass 2, Luther)
C Anton Lesser (Game of Thrones, Ripper Street)
Creator and Writer Toby Whithouse (Being Human, Doctor Who)

Writers Toby Whithouse (Eps 1, 2, 5, 6)
Debbie O’Malley (Ep 4)
Sarah Dollard (Eps 3, 5)

Directors Niall MacCormick (Wallander)
Daniel O’Hara (Being Human)

Executive Producers Hilary Salmon
Toby Whithouse

Producer Radford Neville

The Game is a BBC Cymru Wales production for BBC One.

BBC AMERICA delivers U.S. audiences high-quality, innovative and intelligent programming. Established in 1998, it has been the launch pad for talent embraced by American mainstream pop culture, including Ricky Gervais, Gordon Ramsay, Graham Norton, and successful programming formats including ground-breaking non-scripted television like Top Gear and top-rated science-fiction like Doctor Who. Owned by BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of the BBC, BBC AMERICA has attracted both critical acclaim and major awards including two Emmy(R) Awards, five Golden Globes(R) and eleven Peabody Awards. The channel attracts one of cable’s most affluent and educated audiences and is available on cable and satellite TV in 80 million homes. It broadcasts in both standard and high-definition, with content available On Demand across all major digital platforms. Online, www.bbcamerica.com is the place to go to dig deeper into pop culture with a British twist. Find out more by visiting www.press.bbcamerica.com.

What do you think? Do you like the sound of this series? Will you check it out?