Chris Connor on a new wave of espionage adaptations…
Espionage fiction on the page is truly thriving both in the UK and the US, spearheaded by Mick Herron’s Slough House series. There is a wealth of other writers, old and new, riding the wave of interest. A string of ex-spies are putting their experience on the page, bringing compelling stories dealing with an array of geopolitical situations to the masses.
David McCloskey is at the forefront of his four novels, starting with 2021’s Damascus Station, which has all proven to be huge successes; his most recent novel, The Persian, has been marked by some as his best work to date. IS Berry’s debut novel, The Peacock and the Sparrow, set in Bahrain amidst the Arab Spring, also proved somewhat of a sensation. Others like James Wollf, Charles Beaumont and Jack Beaumont’s Frenchman series all pull from a variety of real-life scenarios.
It’s not just on the page that spy fiction is booming; of course, Apple TV has brought Slough House to a new audience with Slow Horses, one of its flagship shows. Apple is now set to bring other acclaimed spy works to the masses with Dan Fesperman’s 2018 novel Safe Houses, which bounces between the Cold War and the 2010s. Although the novel has changed some of the geography of the novel, shifting it to Madrid, it looks set to retain the spirit of it and has quite the cast with Ana De Armas and Jennifer Connelly in central roles.
William Boyd is no stranger to espionage books or TV/film, penning the 2012 BBC adaptation of his novel Restless and creating the Dominic Cooper series Spy City set in the heart of the Cold War. His latest trio of novels centred on the unlikely spy Gabriel Dax, starting with 2024’s Gabriel’s Moon, has a film in active development. Should it prove a success, it could be followed by the 2025 sequel, The Predicament, and the soon-to-be-released Cold Sunset. With a globe-trotting story that follows a travel journalist drawn to the world of espionage in the early 60s, it has every ingredient to be a hit on the big screen.
David McCloskey has signed a first-look deal with Prologue Entertainment to bring both his existing and future works to the big and small screen. His recurring supporting character, Artemis Procter, has become an instant favourite, and the choice of casting for her has led to plenty of fan speculation. IS Berry’s Peacock and The Sparrow also has a film in development. The nuanced characters and Bahrain settings have all the ingredients for a unique film in the world of espionage.
These authors all offer a range of espionage stories across several distinct eras. It remains to be seen whether they will all make a smooth transition to big and small screens, but it will further boost the author profiles and likely lead to more well-received works being brought to a wider audience.
Along with new authors, John le Carré continues to be a constant draw for film and television, with one of his best-known works, The Spy Who Came in From the Cold, proving the basis for a new BBC series, A Legacy of Spies. After his passing, it will be interesting to see if there are attempts at further adaptations of Len Deighton’s work following the 2017 miniseries SS GB and the 2022 TV adaptation of The Ipcress File.
The interest in film and TV adaptations of the new generation of spy authors shows the robust health for the genre and this is barely scratching the tip of the iceberg. There will likely be plenty more to come especially if these adaptations live up to their potential and prove smash hits.
Chris Connor
