| Spies of Warsaw | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Historical fiction |
| Written by |
Dick Clement Alan Furst Ian La Frenais |
| Directed by |
|
| Starring | |
| Composer | Rob Lane |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 4 ( list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Richard Fell
|
| Production locations | Kraków, Warsaw |
| Cinematography | Wojciech Szepel |
| Running time | 180 minutes total |
| Production companies |
|
| Original release | |
| Network | BBC Four |
| Release | 9 January – 16 January 2013 |
Spies of Warsaw is a British television miniseries in which a Deuxième Bureau intelligence agent (spy) poses as a military attaché at the French embassy in Warsaw, and finds himself drawn into the outbreak of World War II. [1]
The television series takes its name from its source, The Spies of Warsaw, a 2008 spy novel by Alan Furst. The book was adapted for television in 2013 as a co-production of TVP1, BBC Four, BBC America, and ARTE and premiered in January in the United Kingdom and in April in the United States. [2] It starred David Tennant as the protagonist Colonel Jean-François Mercier and Janet Montgomery as his love interest Anna Skarbek. [3] As in other Alan Furst novels, the fictional Parisian restaurant Brasserie Heininger serves as one of the settings for dialogue. [4]
Cast
Main
Main cast includes: [1]
- David Tennant - Jean-François Mercier
- Janet Montgomery - Anna Skarbek
- Marcin Dorociński - Antoni Pakulski
Support
Support cast includes: [1]
- Mirosław Zbrojewicz - Marek
- Ellie Haddington - Madame Dupin
- Burn Gorman - Jourdain
- Radosław Kaim - August Voss
- Linda Bassett - Malka Rosen
- Allan Corduner - Viktor Rosen
- Anton Lesser - Doctor Lapp
- Piotr Baumann - Maxim Mostov
- Jan Pohl - Zoller
- Richard Lintern - Colonel Lessard
- Julian Glover - General Beauvilliers
- Fenella Woolgar - Lady Angela Hope
- Richard Teverson - Roddy Fitzware
- Tuppence Middleton - Gabrielle
- Tusse Silberg - Helena Skarbek
- Gregg Lowe - Young German Soldier
- Grazyna Zielinska - Wladzia
- Grzegorz Emanuel - Weasel
- Nicholas Blane - Papa Heiniger
- Dan Fredenburgh - Armand
- Julian Harries - Duff Cooper
- Ziggy Heath - Kazimir
- Bogdan Koca - Leszek
- Adam Godley - Julius Halbach
- Nicholas Murchie - Johannes Elter
Episodes
There are four episodes, which have also aired as a two-part series. [5]
Reception
The two-part drama received some positive reviews in the UK, especially for the script and acting, [6] although The Guardian described it as "pallid as much of the washed-out photography". [7]
The Telegraph liked the series for many features: appropriateness for "intergenerational shared viewing, never... too visually brutal, and the playing of the minor characters... was convincingly understated". [8] The Guardian complained: "It should have been the perfect spy thriller. It had everything. Except tension". [9]
The New York Times found the series an "enjoyable, straightforward espionage tale without a lot of twists or extra layers" but deemed it "true to the original in story and in spirit", [5] though slow-moving, [10] and the Boston Globe thought it "a strangely bloodless affair". [11]
Rotten Tomatoes rated the television series 64% from critics and 50% from average audience. [12]
References
- ^ a b c "Spies of Warsaw". Internet Movie Database. Archived from the original on 19 September 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
- ^ "Spies of Warsaw". BBC America. Archived from the original on 24 December 2013.
- ^ "Media Centre – David Tennant and Janet Montgomery star in The Spies of Warsaw". BBC. 4 April 2012. Archived from the original on 11 November 2020. Retrieved 25 December 2019.
- ^ "Lonely Spy in a Love Triangle". New York Times. 2 April 2013. Archived from the original on 24 June 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2013.
- ^ a b Stanley, Alessandra (2 April 2013). "Lonely Spy in a Love Triangle". New York Times. Archived from the original on 6 December 2017. Retrieved 5 December 2017.
- ^ "Spies of Warsaw, BBC Four, review". Daily Telegraph. 10 January 2013. Archived from the original on 6 December 2017. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
- ^ "TV review: Spies of Warsaw; The Food Inspectors". The Guardian. 9 January 2013. Archived from the original on 4 April 2017. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
- ^ Howse, Christopher (10 January 2013). "Spies of Warsaw, BBC Four, review". Telegraph. Archived from the original on 6 December 2017. Retrieved 5 December 2017.
- ^ Crace, John (9 January 2013). "TV review: Spies of Warsaw; The Food Inspectors". Guardian. Archived from the original on 6 December 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
- ^ Thomas, June (3 April 2013). "Why You Should Watch 'Spies of Warsaw'". Slate. Archived from the original on 7 December 2017. Retrieved 5 December 2017.
- ^ Gilbert, Matthew (2 April 2013). "Spies of Warsaw: Thriller with No Thrills". Boston Globe. Archived from the original on 7 December 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
- ^ "Spies of Warsaw (2013–2013)". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on 6 December 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
External links
- Espionage television series
- Television series set in the 1930s
- Fiction set in 1938
- Fiction set in 1939
- 2013 British television series debuts
- 2013 British television series endings
- 2010s British drama television series
- BBC television dramas
- World War II television drama series
- British English-language television shows
- 2010s British television miniseries
- British spy television series
- Television shows set in Warsaw
| Spies of Warsaw | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Historical fiction |
| Written by |
Dick Clement Alan Furst Ian La Frenais |
| Directed by |
|
| Starring | |
| Composer | Rob Lane |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 4 ( list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Richard Fell
|
| Production locations | Kraków, Warsaw |
| Cinematography | Wojciech Szepel |
| Running time | 180 minutes total |
| Production companies |
|
| Original release | |
| Network | BBC Four |
| Release | 9 January – 16 January 2013 |
Spies of Warsaw is a British television miniseries in which a Deuxième Bureau intelligence agent (spy) poses as a military attaché at the French embassy in Warsaw, and finds himself drawn into the outbreak of World War II. [1]
The television series takes its name from its source, The Spies of Warsaw, a 2008 spy novel by Alan Furst. The book was adapted for television in 2013 as a co-production of TVP1, BBC Four, BBC America, and ARTE and premiered in January in the United Kingdom and in April in the United States. [2] It starred David Tennant as the protagonist Colonel Jean-François Mercier and Janet Montgomery as his love interest Anna Skarbek. [3] As in other Alan Furst novels, the fictional Parisian restaurant Brasserie Heininger serves as one of the settings for dialogue. [4]
Cast
Main
Main cast includes: [1]
- David Tennant - Jean-François Mercier
- Janet Montgomery - Anna Skarbek
- Marcin Dorociński - Antoni Pakulski
Support
Support cast includes: [1]
- Mirosław Zbrojewicz - Marek
- Ellie Haddington - Madame Dupin
- Burn Gorman - Jourdain
- Radosław Kaim - August Voss
- Linda Bassett - Malka Rosen
- Allan Corduner - Viktor Rosen
- Anton Lesser - Doctor Lapp
- Piotr Baumann - Maxim Mostov
- Jan Pohl - Zoller
- Richard Lintern - Colonel Lessard
- Julian Glover - General Beauvilliers
- Fenella Woolgar - Lady Angela Hope
- Richard Teverson - Roddy Fitzware
- Tuppence Middleton - Gabrielle
- Tusse Silberg - Helena Skarbek
- Gregg Lowe - Young German Soldier
- Grazyna Zielinska - Wladzia
- Grzegorz Emanuel - Weasel
- Nicholas Blane - Papa Heiniger
- Dan Fredenburgh - Armand
- Julian Harries - Duff Cooper
- Ziggy Heath - Kazimir
- Bogdan Koca - Leszek
- Adam Godley - Julius Halbach
- Nicholas Murchie - Johannes Elter
Episodes
There are four episodes, which have also aired as a two-part series. [5]
Reception
The two-part drama received some positive reviews in the UK, especially for the script and acting, [6] although The Guardian described it as "pallid as much of the washed-out photography". [7]
The Telegraph liked the series for many features: appropriateness for "intergenerational shared viewing, never... too visually brutal, and the playing of the minor characters... was convincingly understated". [8] The Guardian complained: "It should have been the perfect spy thriller. It had everything. Except tension". [9]
The New York Times found the series an "enjoyable, straightforward espionage tale without a lot of twists or extra layers" but deemed it "true to the original in story and in spirit", [5] though slow-moving, [10] and the Boston Globe thought it "a strangely bloodless affair". [11]
Rotten Tomatoes rated the television series 64% from critics and 50% from average audience. [12]
References
- ^ a b c "Spies of Warsaw". Internet Movie Database. Archived from the original on 19 September 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
- ^ "Spies of Warsaw". BBC America. Archived from the original on 24 December 2013.
- ^ "Media Centre – David Tennant and Janet Montgomery star in The Spies of Warsaw". BBC. 4 April 2012. Archived from the original on 11 November 2020. Retrieved 25 December 2019.
- ^ "Lonely Spy in a Love Triangle". New York Times. 2 April 2013. Archived from the original on 24 June 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2013.
- ^ a b Stanley, Alessandra (2 April 2013). "Lonely Spy in a Love Triangle". New York Times. Archived from the original on 6 December 2017. Retrieved 5 December 2017.
- ^ "Spies of Warsaw, BBC Four, review". Daily Telegraph. 10 January 2013. Archived from the original on 6 December 2017. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
- ^ "TV review: Spies of Warsaw; The Food Inspectors". The Guardian. 9 January 2013. Archived from the original on 4 April 2017. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
- ^ Howse, Christopher (10 January 2013). "Spies of Warsaw, BBC Four, review". Telegraph. Archived from the original on 6 December 2017. Retrieved 5 December 2017.
- ^ Crace, John (9 January 2013). "TV review: Spies of Warsaw; The Food Inspectors". Guardian. Archived from the original on 6 December 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
- ^ Thomas, June (3 April 2013). "Why You Should Watch 'Spies of Warsaw'". Slate. Archived from the original on 7 December 2017. Retrieved 5 December 2017.
- ^ Gilbert, Matthew (2 April 2013). "Spies of Warsaw: Thriller with No Thrills". Boston Globe. Archived from the original on 7 December 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
- ^ "Spies of Warsaw (2013–2013)". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on 6 December 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
External links
- Espionage television series
- Television series set in the 1930s
- Fiction set in 1938
- Fiction set in 1939
- 2013 British television series debuts
- 2013 British television series endings
- 2010s British drama television series
- BBC television dramas
- World War II television drama series
- British English-language television shows
- 2010s British television miniseries
- British spy television series
- Television shows set in Warsaw