Slow Horses
EspionageSpies, intelligence agencies and double lives.This show: 10/10Dry humorDeadpan, understated wit.This show: 9/10British TVThe British television sensibility: tone, restraint and format traditions.This show: 9/10Tight writingNo wasted scenes, just disciplined storytelling.This show: 8/10CynicalDeeply distrustful of institutions and human motives.This show: 8/10Witty banterRapid-fire verbal sparring.This show: 8/10TenseSustained suspense and pressure from start to finish.This show: 8/10Dialogue-drivenThe writing's voice is the main event.This show: 7/10
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Starring
Gary OldmanJack LowdenKristin Scott ThomasSaskia ReevesChristopher ChungAimee-Ffion Edwards
Starring
Gary OldmanJack LowdenKristin Scott ThomasSaskia ReevesChristopher ChungAimee-Ffion Edwards
Ratings per Episode
Votes per Episode
Slow Horses Episode Ratings Heatmap
| Avg | E1 | E2 | E3 | E4 | E5 | E6 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S1 | 7.9 | 7.5 | 7.7 | 8.1 | 7.9 | 8.2 | 8.2 | |
| S2 | 8.2 | 7.9 | 7.8 | 8.2 | 8.2 | 8.6 | 8.6 | |
| S3 | 8.5 | 8.2 | 8.3 | 8.6 | 8.3 | 8.7 | 8.6 | |
| S4 | 8.4 | 8.4 | 8.1 | 8.1 | 8.1 | 8.6 | 8.8 | |
| S5 | 8.1 | 7.7 | 7.9 | 8.1 | 8.2 | 8.4 | 8.5 | |
| S6 |
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About
"Espionage played by proud, brilliant failures"
Slow Horses follows Slough House, a dumping ground for disgraced MI5 agents who botched their careers and now handle humiliating grunt work under their slovenly, foul-mouthed boss Jackson Lamb. Each season pulls this crew of screwups into an actual espionage plot they stumble through with more luck than skill. The tone mixes sharp workplace comedy with real tension and sudden brutal violence, moving briskly across tight seasons. Gary Oldman's gleefully repulsive performance anchors it, but the whole ensemble sells the mix of pathetic and dangerous that makes this feel different from cleaner, glossier spy dramas.
Watch it for
Gary Oldman's monstrous, hilarious Jackson Lamb commanding every scene he's dropped into.
Maybe skip if
you want tidy, high-gloss spycraft rather than shabby offices and messy human failure.
Written by our AI editor to help you decide, spoiler-free by design.
All Seasons
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Season 12022
7.925K64h 40m
When a young man is kidnapped and threatened with beheading, the slow horses find themselves unexpectedly embroiled in a dangerous case that forces them to prove their worth.
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Season 22022
8.219K64h 35m
Long-buried Cold War secrets emerge which threaten to bring carnage to the streets of London. When a liaison with Russian villains takes a fatal turn, our hapless heroes must overcome their individual failings and raise their spy game in a race to prevent a catastrophic incident.
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Season 32023
8.519K64h 18m
A romantic liaison in Istanbul threatens to expose a buried MI5 secret in London. When Jackson Lamb and his team of misfits are dragged into the fight, they find themselves caught in a conspiracy that threatens the future not just of Slough House but of MI5 itself.
▶
Season 42024
8.417K64h 29m
In season 4, a bombing detonates personal secrets, rocking Slough House's already unstable foundations.
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Season 52025
8.115K64h 25m
In season five, everyone is suspicious when resident tech nerd Roddy Ho has a glamorous new girlfriend. When a series of increasingly bizarre events occur across the city, it falls to the Slow Horses to work out how everything is connected. After all, Lamb knows that in the world of espionage, the London Rules — cover your back — always apply.
▶
Season 62026
—06
In season six, the Slow Horses are on the run as Diana Taverner embroils them all in a fatally high-stakes game of retaliation and revenge.
Full Cast & Crew
Cast
Gary Oldman Jackson Lamb
Jack Lowden River Cartwright
Kristin Scott Thomas Diana Taverner
Saskia Reeves Catherine Standish
Christopher Chung Roddy Ho
Aimee-Ffion Edwards Shirley Dander
Rosalind Eleazar Louisa Guy
Ruth Bradley Emma Flyte
Kadiff Kirwan Marcus Longridge
Tom Brooke JK Coe
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