MI-5 (TV Series) The Rose Bed Memoirs (2002) User Reviews

That's more like it!

[grantss · 9/10 · 22 November 2022]

A disgraced MP, Hampton Wilder, is released from prison and reveals to MI-5 that he has written a tell-all memoir. Amongst the revelations is that Richard Maynard, high-ranking politician, is illegally selling arms to Middle Eastern countries, the very crime Wilder was sent to prison for. What follows is a game of political intrigue.

When I first started watching Spooks this is what I expected the show to be like. Political machinations, leaks from within, untrustworthy colleagues, wheels within wheels and a season-long arc. Until now the show has been more about action, in independent single-episode bites. It's been great but didn't quite have the intrigue and long-term plot that I imagined (except for Tom's private life).

So, at last we have it: wonderfully spun machinations, who-can-you-trust moments and a complex web of loyalties. In addition to Tom's private life we also have the longer term Tessa sub-plot, which is now also a Zoe and Danny sub-plot.

For good measure we have the interesting, and fairly amusing, sub-plot of Ellie's ex-boyfriend who decides to check up on Tom and quite quickly lives to regret it.

Episode #1.5

[Prismark10 · 6/10 · 5 August 2019]

A story ripped out of the press headlines. It was a time when former Conservative bigwigs were being imprisoned for being naughty in their private life, usually finding God when they were inside. I suppose that was better than needing a jar of Vaseline in the prison cells.

Hampton Wilder is a former minister released from prison for illegal arms sales. On his release he tells Harry that a Labour politician and close friend of the Prime Minister, Richard Maynard is also corrupt and was friendly with a Russian spy.

Wilder wrote all this in his memoirs but the manuscript has gone missing.

Harry thinks this could be a wild goose chase by a bitter ex-minister. Siviter shows up again with some important information but Harry does not trust him. However Siviter questions Maynard's loyalties and he is also more than friendly with Tessa.

Another intriguing episode, with twists and turns that has a nice payoff. There are also some ongoing threads, Danny and Zoe are now flat sharing and have cause to mistrust Tessa. Tom gets trouble from Ellie's ex husband who finds out that Tom is not a man you want to tamper with.

This was Hugh Laurie's last appearance in Spooks. He would go off to America to become the world's highest paid television actor.