Cobra (2020–2021): Season 2, Episode 4 - Episode #2.4 - full transcript
- So current casualties stand at...? - Over 300. And it will go up.
We've ascertained that the total system failure at Dover
is the result of a massive ongoing Cyber-attack.
Priority is to maintain public calm.
I want to know where all of these attacks have come from.
What is this...?
Did you know your wife did legal for Mikhailo Kostenko?
I've got MI5 all over me.
Someone's leaking you explosive stuff that affects National Security.
- That's their job. - I'm offering you Foreign Secretary.
Bad enough you give Archie back the whip but Foreign Secretary?
From every direction we face a different storm.
One of which is the distrust surrounding the Singer Report.
'Specialist, approach with caution.
The truck contains what appears to be a human body.
I want to know who it is and how it got there.
And I want to know if this country needs to be ready for war.
We've little doubt the Cyclamen scanners at Dover
were attacked and disabled so that the irradiated body could be brought into the country.
- Irradiated body of whom? - The investigation's ongoing.
But the scale and sophistication make us certain
that this was state-sponsored.
- Russia remaining the prime suspect? - Remaining a suspect.
But there's no smoking gun.
The malware code could viably point in multiple directions.
And the truck had been scoured clean of
anything forensically detectable.
We do, however, have a cause of death.
He was force-fed Polonium 210.
Russia may be behind this.
But with the backlash around Jiayou Energy's drilling
and the ship explosion, the Chinese are furious with us too.
Or it could be misdirection by another actor entirely.
We don't yet have anything solid.
Whoever did this could've brought a nuclear bomb into this country
right under our noses.
Instead, they dumped the body of a murdered man
they knew we'd find.
They're sending a message.
And once we've identified the dead man, we can try to decode it.
Maybe deduce who sent it and for whom.
And in the meantime, we just sit and wait?
Hoping you get a grip on something solid
before this country suffers yet another attack on Christ knows what?
We will continue to investigate every possible avenue.
In terms of an attack,
we are facing a significantly escalated domestic threat,
so I've asked Robert to convene COBRA at 10.
Which I will be doing.
And you will all be attending.
Of course people are angry.
After what we heard about the Cyber-attack on Dover last week,
it is clear that this country is under assault.
And the public's lost all trust in this government's ability to keep us safe...
or to tell us the truth.
Well speaking of the truth, you crossed the floor to join Robert Sutherland's government.
Okay. Well..."Crossed the floor" is hardly accurate. I was advising in a Policy Unit.
I resigned because I wanted nothing to do with
a government soaked in its people's blood.
And the Junction 23 inquiry with Lord Singer chosen to conduct it,
it makes an absolute mockery of accountability.
So you're suggesting inherent bias?
If a government wanted to be exonerated,
they couldn't find someone more reliable
to side with the establishment against the will of the people.
Which makes it hard not to wonder if Lord Singer's been,
shall we say, singing for his supper.
And I wanted nothing to do with a government soaked in the blood of it's own people.
An insider blows the whistle!
And the public don't trust the government to keep us safe or to tell us the truth.
We told you the truth.
The government is weak and venal,
a regime which forced its army to use live rounds on its people.
And the Junction 23 inquiry
with Lord Singer chosen to conduct it,
makes an absolute mockery of accountability.
They couldn't find someone more reliable
to side with the establishment against the will of the people.
Saving their own skin.
Makes it hard not to wonder
if Lord Singer's been, shall we say,
"Singing for his supper".
A government which used its weapons at J23 to send a message to us,
the people of this nation,
that we should be too afraid to dissent,
to rise up ever again.
But we do not know fear.
Only these corrupt, glutted reptiles will know fear.
For we shall rise up for justice, for our nation
and teach it to them, these enemies of the people.
And where we go, our brothers will follow.
Francine Bridge.
Scourge of the Tories, savior of democracy, future of this nation.
OK, stop it.
Convert to the heady nectar of pumpkin spice latte.
- You didn't! - Christ, I'm not a monster. Double espresso.
Ever considered you might have trust issues?
Only with journalists.
Saw you on the television doing some of that politics.
- What did you think? - I flipped back to Bake Off.
Hari. I want your opinion.
You were brilliant. I mean it.
You've been trending.
Even the far-right thinks you're...well, right.
- What? - Your mentions. Hang on.
Can't you just tell me?
Okay. A lot of those accounts have St.George's Cross...
and I'd stick a monkey on the owners enjoying at least two out of...
Brexit, real ale, and dogging.
Eleanor has provided me with a report
monitoring the rise of far-right online extremism.
It makes clear that in the wake of recent events,
the rise has become a surge.
Escalation of rhetoric, hate, conspiracy, violence.
Calls for insurrection.
We're seeing suspicion over the Singer Report.
An increasing belief that Jiayou Energy's sea-bed drilling
set off the ship explosion.
And the Cyber-attacks give these sites a drum to beat
that the UK is weak, defenseless.
We should probably ask Intelligence to do something
about those attacks.
One site...
Firestorm,
stands out in prominence, reach, vitriol.
And it's targeting those it regards
as most deserving of summary justice.
The Home Secretary, Foreign Secretary, Lord Singer,
the Prime Minister...
..and his wife.
Rachel? Why?
Her links to Kostenko.
It doesn't matter that it's just smoke.
If this is incitement, isn't it under the Terrorism Act?
We're navigating a legal minefield to find out, but...
For Christ sake. I've been a Conservative MP for 30 years.
I've been screamed at, egged, fruit-pelted, mud-pied,
so I'm afraid I just can't muster the willies
over some pallid little bed-wetter.
Everyone we consider at risk will be assigned additional security.
You ought to reconsider attending the memorial for the victims of the Kent disaster.
No. If I need extra security, so be it. But I'm going.
Prime Minister, if I could just point out,
300 people lost their lives. I'm going.
This meeting's over. I'm done.
Firestorm. I want to know who it is and how we stop it.
Hey! Appreciate you coming in, Hari.
Sorry it's a bit rushed. Thanks.
Francine said you were going to the memorial. With Sutherland.
- Yes. - Labor and Tory...
hand in hand... British fortitude
and Blitz spirit, et cetera.
Oh. Hadn't pegged you as a cynic, Hari.
No, I'm a believer.
In Francine and your resuscitation of the Party.
That's why I'm here.
And why I'm about to publish another gut-punch to Robert Sutherland.
Any chance of a preview on that?
Nope.
To be clear I'm on your side that morbid symptoms ain't no Pravda.
- Understood. - I'm just here to talk about Francine's campaign.
Yes, let's do that. Erm...
- I think you should come with me. - To the memorial?
To your future constituency.
I think I've filled my quota of political opportunism this week.
Opportunism? You don't mean the Singer interview?
I do, as it happens.
I'm really not okay with a strategy that lets a bunch
of far-right assholes use me to legitimize their bullshit.
We polled after your appearance.
It was an overwhelmingly positive reaction from the members.
- And if you've also broadened your appeal to... - Fascists?! Jesus Christ.
I want to announce that you're contesting in Kent.
And I want you to win...
because I want you on my front bench.
If ballot-papers then shower on you like confetti,
then I don't really care who throws them.
Lord Singer, we take this kind of precautionary measure all the time.
It's just peace of mind, Allan.
Oh, for God's sake, Robert.
In my entire career of prosecuting and sentencing,
I've never once needed a police guard.
But I conduct one inquiry for your government...
It's bad enough being harangued by the press night and day,
but worse than that, that bloody Francine Bridge woman
is on the news accusing me of being a stooge.
But to top it all...
I'm now on a fascist hit-list?
- Allan, look... - And you call it peace of mind?
Marjorie and I were going away next week to the house in Cyprus.
We'll cancel the flights. We'll leave tonight.
We'd prefer it if we could guarantee your security here.
And I would prefer it if you could guarantee it till Marjorie and I
are away from this bloody bedlam.
And we'll return when you can make sure
she's at no further risk of being widowed.
Please. Come in.
Sorry to intrude. I wanted to catch you before...
An unexpected pleasure.
And to which ailing area of policy do I owe it?
It's uh...
actually about the by-election.
Clive Turner's seat.
God rest his soul.
Yes. Quite
But we'd rather his seat rested with the Tories.
We've been discussing potential candidates, and...
one mooted is Roger Hawkins.
Is he Robert's choice?
The discussion is ongoing.
Roger's name cropped up and I...
If...
Robert were to end up...
leaning towards him...
I wondered how comfortably that would sit with you.
Because Roger has some...
..eccentric views?
Because he has a widely-documented history
of inflammatory rabble-rousing and barely-veiled racism.
Well...nobody's perfect.
Look. I have no desire to break bread with Roger Hawkins.
But I assume he's Robert's choice because Robert thinks he can win.
And given the demographic, he probably can.
That demographic being a white working class
whom a populist like Hawkins will do his best to whip up.
I would've thought that would've been more troubling to a Home Secretary.
A Home Secretary...or a black man?
I'm frankly curious as to why it doesn't trouble you as either.
Whether or not it troubles me is irrelevant.
We need to hold the seat, and I trust Robert's judgment.
So, I'm afraid...
I cannot lend authentic ethnic ballast
to your struggles in dissuading him.
And if his judgment's wrong?
Well...
we...
learn from the mistakes of others.
As much as from our own.
Shall we?
We don't want to miss our lift.
Rachel, the car will be here shortly. Are you ready?
Darling, what's the matter?
That website that tried to make out I had something to do with kickbacks to Kostenko...
They've just tried even harder.
Oh, it's going to be all over the news
and I'm so sorry but it's lies. I swear, it's lies.
Rachel, I don't know what you're talking about.
Hari Misra from Morbid Symptoms has interviewed a former colleague of mine,
claiming I knew about the bribes.
He's saying it's impossible I didn't know what was going on.
- On what grounds when you were a junior. - Yeah, I was.
But, you know, right-hand to the senior.
I didn't know my senior was breaking the law. Of course I fucking didn't.
But Nigel Raine's saying either I knew and turned a blind eye, or I was part of it.
Surely that's defamation.
He's too slick to do anything actionable.
He's lying but I can't prove it.
But I...
I don't think he's going public to grind an old ax.
So, maybe it's money, maybe it's blackmail.
But somebody's got their hand up the puppet
and it's the same someone, I imagine,
who gave the documents to Morbid Symptoms.
And then, you know, the dots just join themselves.
Dots?
Oh, Rob, come on!
This assault on me amid the Cyber-attacks
isn't happening by unfortunate fucking coincidence.
It's your integrity, your job they're trying to capsize.
I'm just...
Mine are just collateral damage.
So our dead man has a name.
The body found in the truck was Edward Price.
US citizen.
He was abducted on a holiday in Bordeaux.
- Have the Americans been informed? - Not yet.
But the NSA are breathing down our necks.
The NSA? Why?
Price was a scientist...
at DARPA.
- The military lab? - Military technology, yes.
But Price's field of research was heavily classified.
Last time I checked, the Americans were still our key ally
so they may be able to tell us why one of theirs
ended up glowing like Chernobyl in the back of a lorry.
Speak to their intelligence as a matter of immediate urgency.
Understood. And I'll pass on your gratitude to my team, shall I?
Why don't we just file it under "better late than never".
I would like to clarify one last thing.
Yes?
I am keen for us to work together as productively as possible
despite your pitiful animosity.
But when I am briefing COBRA,
please keep your snide little peashooter in your pencil-case.
- Just a little levity between colleagues. - Hmm.
You never struck me as the type to feel so needled.
And you always struck me as knowing better
than to pull an Oxbridge rapier on a serrated machete.
I'd never pull a rapier.
I was in the Pistol Club.
And I, Foreign Secretary, on the Royal fucking Artillery.
Pencil case it is, then.
Hmm.
'While we the people starve,
these corrupt gluttons continue to gorge at the trough of power.
More proof from Hari Misra of the corruption in Number 10.
Rachel Sutherland was at the heart of the Kostenko bribery scandal.
My brothers, we must take action and stamp on these cockroaches.
Let's rise up for justice and our nation.
On the same bench, for once.
Well, if ever there was a place for miracles...
I shall begin with the reading from Philippians 4, verse 8.
Whatever is true,
whatever is honorable,
whatever is just,
whatever is pure,
whatever is pleasing,
whatever is commendable,
if there is any excellence in it...
if there is anything worthy of praise.
We are here today in the memory of these people who have perished.
I want you to consider these thoughts.
No recriminations, no guilt,
just the memory of the good things in their lives.
Step back ladies and gentlemen, thank you.
Keep away.
No comment!
Oh, for God's sake, how many times do I have to say "no comment"?!
Can you just leave us alone?!
Mr Singer.
- Did you sing for your supper? - What?
No!
No!
There he is! There he is!
Eleanor. Can't this wait?
He's what?
No, no. He's what?
Oh, my God.
Police and Ambulance crews attended the scene where the killing took place.
The suspect has been apprehended.
A message has been recovered from his recording equipment.
A warning. This report contains images that some people may find disturbing.
I have stamped on a cockroach.
Great Britain has one less instrument of corruption.
Where I have gone, may my brothers follow.
He don't sing for his supper no more.
There will be a statement from the police shortly,
regarding the murder of Lord Allan Singer.
What's happened?
A statement of sympathy has been issued for Lord Singer's family.
- And the Protection Officer? - Critical but stable.
Our next move needs to be...robust.
- This cannot stand. - She's bloody right. Look at this.
The killer,
this Thompson bastard, now a hero to the nutter factions.
His disgusting footage all over social bloody media.
I'm aware. And the companies have said they'll be co-operative.
But every time they stamp it out, it pops up somewhere else.
Meanwhile, we are monitoring
a worrying traction with certain conspiracy theories
that Thompson was put up to the murder by MI5.
Which is now being tied to theories that the Prime Minister ordered
the Kostenko assassination to protect his wife from prosecution.
Firestorm.
Firestorm incited Thompson...
..and now Allan Singer is dead.
There will be another Thompson, and another...and more dead...
as long as Firestorm is spewing its poison.
And this government will not tolerate that.
I don't doubt that we could prosecute
whoever's behind Firestorm under the Terrorism Act.
The issue is finding them.
You said internet companies were cooperating.
To the usual limit.
But if we demand records,
we're looking down the barrel of an enormous legal fight.
No. That's no good.
We won't look strong,
we'll look draconian.
Then what do we do about this?
Then we don't go through these bloody companies.
We tell GCHQ to go around.
Underneath.
Is that legal?
It's erm...somewhat gray.
I don't give a shit if it's jet black. Do it.
Understood.
And then deal with Hari Misra.
His site's adding fuel to all of this.
- So now we're arresting journalists? - Finding out who pulls his strings.
The investigation is progressing, Prime Minister.
Well, I'm sure that inspires us all with confidence
Thank you, Eleanor. Proceed.
Joseph didn't seem happy with our strategy.
I'm sure he'll come on board...
if it puts at least one hateful bastard under lock and key.
But since you mention him,
I wouldn't mind your opinion on something, if you've got a moment.
It's what I'm here for.
What do you think of him?
Who?
Joseph, Anna.
I think...
Why?
Because I'm asking.
Bright, charismatic, ambitious.
Do you want an essay?
No, he's someone worth recruiting...
to harangue me over my choice of Roger Hawkins for the by-election.
- Robert... - Before we discuss you going behind my back...
Roger Hawkins may be to the right of us, may even be a reactionary,
but I will tell you something he hasn't done.
He hasn't accused a respected judge of corruption...
shortly before he was butchered, and even supplied a fucking hashtag for it.
You brought Francine Bridge in.
Vouched for her.
I hear you're even pals again.
And yet you have the temerity to question my judgment?
You think Francine is the problem?
You're going to blame a black woman for feeding far-right extremism
while you shove your weight behind a dog-whistling jingoist?
And, yes, I spoke to Joseph.
Because my job is to make sure you make the best possible decision.
Well, maybe that's something overdue for reappraisal.
Robert...
Get a fucking grip.
I say this with kindness...
but you're mental,
thinking you played a part in it...
any fucking part.
The scumbag who killed Singer was a Nazi incel.
You think a prick like that listens to a black woman?
All you did was speak truth to power
and that's what this country needs from its politicians.
You did your job. Like I do mine.
Maybe you've just had more practice.
- At truth? - At collateral damage.
When you run pieces that...like with Rachel Sutherland.
Oh, Jesus. Seriously?
- Next you'll ask me how I sleep. - How do you sleep?
Like a baby. Curled up and crying for my mum.
I'm being serious, Hari. A man is dead.
I'm being serious too. About truth.
And truth is the only blade that draws blood from liars.
However deep the lie, however high the liar.
Your sources must find that very comforting.
I couldn't tell you. Lately, I don't even know who they are.
Doesn't that bother you?
Nothing I've been sent is illegal and I don't run anything without due diligence
But if you don't know who, you don't know why.
The Rachel Sutherland stuff, for example.
- Somebody has got an agenda. - I don't care.
When it's my story, it's my agenda.
Remind me not to come to you for emotional support again.
Look. Here's an idea.
We do an interview for the site.
You can be front-footed with your reaction to Singer.
Denounce all extremism,
state in all caps how we must cleave to truth...but also peace.
And then we can have dinner.
You just don't quit, do you?
No.
Jesus Christ.
The lab's this way
Just before the ship blew, we had a reconnaissance boat over it,
scanning, gathering data, the condition of the hull, munitions, sea-bed seismology.
- All got bloody obliterated. - Along with 300 people.
Audrey.
I'm here. I'm here.
Like I said - obliterated.
The dive team have been searching the wreckage
and this morning we found our VDR.
Heard of a black box on a plane?
Well, it's that. For boats.
All data up until the moment of detonation is backed up here.
That's excellent news! Isn't it?
Well, force of the blast damaged the unit.
We're only just managing to pull the readings from it now.
Look. Spectrogram...
taken moments before the explosion.
These lines represent the noise made from the boat's engines.
And down here we'd expect to see a low seismic frequency,
from the tremor that set off the blast.
This is what a tremor should look like.
This was taken 17 hours prior to the explosion.
But...when the boat went off,
there's nothing.
So the scanner was bust?
Yeah, or there was no tremor at all.
- But hang on, what's this? - Ah.
Something extremely low frequency but high decibel.
Let me show you in more detail.
Starts here. 32 minutes...
then stops. 3.7 seconds later...
..boom.
- If that's not a tremor, what could it be? - Most likely a faulty sensor.
- But just supposing it wasn't faulty? - I have no idea.
But I can tell you there's no natural phenomena
which explains this wave pattern.
We're still analyzing.
Bored of your office?
Just thought we'd um...
what did they used to say?
Take the air.
New hobby?
14 years since I quit.
That's plenty.
I'm worried about Robert.
He's...
I think this thing with Rachel might be pushing him over the edge.
Yeah. About that...
I didn't move this meeting out of my office for fresh air.
We're here because I'm doing you a favor I shouldn't be.
Francine Bridge. Are you still friends?
- Or friends again? - Yeah.
She's due to give Hari Misra an interview this afternoon.
But he won't be able to make it.
There's been an escalation and our hand's been forced.
If you value Francine,
and she values anything resembling a political future...
..tell her to cut Misra loose.
And do it now.
Holy fucking hell.
What the...?
What...?
"Grip it." Or what?
Fuck this.
Ah...
Uh...
It isn't fucking on.
- Hey, Anna. Can I call you back? - No.
- I'm about to do an interview. - I know.
- Wait. How do you know? - I need you to meet me. Now.
I can't. Like I said, I'm about to do this interview.
Hari's not someone you should associate with.
- What? - Please listen.
I don't want to speak on the phone, but I...I need you to...
- Okay, Anna, I will call you back. Alright? Bye. - Fra...
He's on the move. Follow, or...?
Take him.
Who the fuck are they?
Woah, woah!
- Passenger on board? - Boss, someone else snatched him.
What do you mean someone else?
The car came out of nowhere and they grabbed him.
What fucking car?
Follow!
Eleanor?
What?
Firestorm. We've traced it. We know who he is.
- Who? - Gavin Beadle.
Currently at his residence in Old Trafford.
Everything's in place for the raid.
- I need your permission to proceed. - Do it now.
Pop his hat off.
Hello, Hari.
Who are you?
I'm Tommy.
So's he.
Yard? MI5?
We're Tommy.
Let's talk about you.
You're all right. Come on.
I will proceed with Unit Alpha to the front of the building.
Sierra 5 will proceed with Unit Bravo to the rear of the building.
Then all units hold position and await my command to breach.
May 22nd to 27th, 2015, you took a trip to Moscow.
Is that when you were tapped up by the SVR?
I was reporting a gay pride rally.
Sierra 5, Trojan 3-7. That's a go. Proceed to breaching position.
'Trojan 3-7, Sierra 5. Moving now.'
Sierra 5 confirm when you're in position.
Let's talk about another report, then.
The one you were due to publish tomorrow.
The one you were instructed to run by your masters...
to disseminate egregious untruths about the United States.
You work for the Yanks?
You're mercs?
Get back inside.
Sierra 5, Trojan 3-7. Front position held.
No sign of movement. Confirm your status.
Trojan 3-7, Sierra 5. In position. Exporting breach signal.
Who gave you the American documents?
Aargh!
Who is your fucking handler?!
'Trojan 3-7, stand by.
Unit Bravo on the move.'
Armed police! Armed police!
'Armed police!'
Go! Go! Go!
'Gavin Beadle. Where is he?!'
Trojan 3-7, Unit Alpha. Proceeding with search upstairs.
Two rooms. Checking room one.
'Clear, clear, clear.
Proceeding to room two.'
'Contact! Contact! Contact!
- Down! Down! Get down! - On the floor!
Hands behind your back! Hands behind your back!
All units, all units.
Trojan 3-7, positive contact with suspect in room two.
Hold positions.
Awaiting visual confirmation of suspect ID.
We actually got him.
'Trojan 3-7. Suspect apprehended.
Repeat, Trojan 3-7. Suspect apprehended.
'N-PAS 6-0 to control.
Suspect en route to secure location Delta 7-3. Over and out.
Well, that's one fire snuffed out.
Or have we stoked it?
How many more Firestorms are out there?
And who's pulling the strings?
It's Hari. You know what to do.
Not even the basic courtesy of a text.
You made me look a twat this afternoon, Hari.
We don't have much choice here, Hari.
See, our business is just like yours, really.
We're only after the truth.
I've told you the truth. I told you. No, no, wait! Please!
Please don't, no. Wait, wait, wait, wait!
I told you the truth, I don't know who my source is.
Please don't...
You're just a useful bloody idiot, really, aren't you, pal?
No hard feelings.
Ride home?
It is believed to be a firebomb attack.
It's not yet known if anybody was inside the offices
of the left-leaning online political site Morbid Symptoms.
There are claims a far-right group is behind the attack.
We've ascertained that the total system failure at Dover
is the result of a massive ongoing Cyber-attack.
Priority is to maintain public calm.
I want to know where all of these attacks have come from.
What is this...?
Did you know your wife did legal for Mikhailo Kostenko?
I've got MI5 all over me.
Someone's leaking you explosive stuff that affects National Security.
- That's their job. - I'm offering you Foreign Secretary.
Bad enough you give Archie back the whip but Foreign Secretary?
From every direction we face a different storm.
One of which is the distrust surrounding the Singer Report.
'Specialist, approach with caution.
The truck contains what appears to be a human body.
I want to know who it is and how it got there.
And I want to know if this country needs to be ready for war.
We've little doubt the Cyclamen scanners at Dover
were attacked and disabled so that the irradiated body could be brought into the country.
- Irradiated body of whom? - The investigation's ongoing.
But the scale and sophistication make us certain
that this was state-sponsored.
- Russia remaining the prime suspect? - Remaining a suspect.
But there's no smoking gun.
The malware code could viably point in multiple directions.
And the truck had been scoured clean of
anything forensically detectable.
We do, however, have a cause of death.
He was force-fed Polonium 210.
Russia may be behind this.
But with the backlash around Jiayou Energy's drilling
and the ship explosion, the Chinese are furious with us too.
Or it could be misdirection by another actor entirely.
We don't yet have anything solid.
Whoever did this could've brought a nuclear bomb into this country
right under our noses.
Instead, they dumped the body of a murdered man
they knew we'd find.
They're sending a message.
And once we've identified the dead man, we can try to decode it.
Maybe deduce who sent it and for whom.
And in the meantime, we just sit and wait?
Hoping you get a grip on something solid
before this country suffers yet another attack on Christ knows what?
We will continue to investigate every possible avenue.
In terms of an attack,
we are facing a significantly escalated domestic threat,
so I've asked Robert to convene COBRA at 10.
Which I will be doing.
And you will all be attending.
Of course people are angry.
After what we heard about the Cyber-attack on Dover last week,
it is clear that this country is under assault.
And the public's lost all trust in this government's ability to keep us safe...
or to tell us the truth.
Well speaking of the truth, you crossed the floor to join Robert Sutherland's government.
Okay. Well..."Crossed the floor" is hardly accurate. I was advising in a Policy Unit.
I resigned because I wanted nothing to do with
a government soaked in its people's blood.
And the Junction 23 inquiry with Lord Singer chosen to conduct it,
it makes an absolute mockery of accountability.
So you're suggesting inherent bias?
If a government wanted to be exonerated,
they couldn't find someone more reliable
to side with the establishment against the will of the people.
Which makes it hard not to wonder if Lord Singer's been,
shall we say, singing for his supper.
And I wanted nothing to do with a government soaked in the blood of it's own people.
An insider blows the whistle!
And the public don't trust the government to keep us safe or to tell us the truth.
We told you the truth.
The government is weak and venal,
a regime which forced its army to use live rounds on its people.
And the Junction 23 inquiry
with Lord Singer chosen to conduct it,
makes an absolute mockery of accountability.
They couldn't find someone more reliable
to side with the establishment against the will of the people.
Saving their own skin.
Makes it hard not to wonder
if Lord Singer's been, shall we say,
"Singing for his supper".
A government which used its weapons at J23 to send a message to us,
the people of this nation,
that we should be too afraid to dissent,
to rise up ever again.
But we do not know fear.
Only these corrupt, glutted reptiles will know fear.
For we shall rise up for justice, for our nation
and teach it to them, these enemies of the people.
And where we go, our brothers will follow.
Francine Bridge.
Scourge of the Tories, savior of democracy, future of this nation.
OK, stop it.
Convert to the heady nectar of pumpkin spice latte.
- You didn't! - Christ, I'm not a monster. Double espresso.
Ever considered you might have trust issues?
Only with journalists.
Saw you on the television doing some of that politics.
- What did you think? - I flipped back to Bake Off.
Hari. I want your opinion.
You were brilliant. I mean it.
You've been trending.
Even the far-right thinks you're...well, right.
- What? - Your mentions. Hang on.
Can't you just tell me?
Okay. A lot of those accounts have St.George's Cross...
and I'd stick a monkey on the owners enjoying at least two out of...
Brexit, real ale, and dogging.
Eleanor has provided me with a report
monitoring the rise of far-right online extremism.
It makes clear that in the wake of recent events,
the rise has become a surge.
Escalation of rhetoric, hate, conspiracy, violence.
Calls for insurrection.
We're seeing suspicion over the Singer Report.
An increasing belief that Jiayou Energy's sea-bed drilling
set off the ship explosion.
And the Cyber-attacks give these sites a drum to beat
that the UK is weak, defenseless.
We should probably ask Intelligence to do something
about those attacks.
One site...
Firestorm,
stands out in prominence, reach, vitriol.
And it's targeting those it regards
as most deserving of summary justice.
The Home Secretary, Foreign Secretary, Lord Singer,
the Prime Minister...
..and his wife.
Rachel? Why?
Her links to Kostenko.
It doesn't matter that it's just smoke.
If this is incitement, isn't it under the Terrorism Act?
We're navigating a legal minefield to find out, but...
For Christ sake. I've been a Conservative MP for 30 years.
I've been screamed at, egged, fruit-pelted, mud-pied,
so I'm afraid I just can't muster the willies
over some pallid little bed-wetter.
Everyone we consider at risk will be assigned additional security.
You ought to reconsider attending the memorial for the victims of the Kent disaster.
No. If I need extra security, so be it. But I'm going.
Prime Minister, if I could just point out,
300 people lost their lives. I'm going.
This meeting's over. I'm done.
Firestorm. I want to know who it is and how we stop it.
Hey! Appreciate you coming in, Hari.
Sorry it's a bit rushed. Thanks.
Francine said you were going to the memorial. With Sutherland.
- Yes. - Labor and Tory...
hand in hand... British fortitude
and Blitz spirit, et cetera.
Oh. Hadn't pegged you as a cynic, Hari.
No, I'm a believer.
In Francine and your resuscitation of the Party.
That's why I'm here.
And why I'm about to publish another gut-punch to Robert Sutherland.
Any chance of a preview on that?
Nope.
To be clear I'm on your side that morbid symptoms ain't no Pravda.
- Understood. - I'm just here to talk about Francine's campaign.
Yes, let's do that. Erm...
- I think you should come with me. - To the memorial?
To your future constituency.
I think I've filled my quota of political opportunism this week.
Opportunism? You don't mean the Singer interview?
I do, as it happens.
I'm really not okay with a strategy that lets a bunch
of far-right assholes use me to legitimize their bullshit.
We polled after your appearance.
It was an overwhelmingly positive reaction from the members.
- And if you've also broadened your appeal to... - Fascists?! Jesus Christ.
I want to announce that you're contesting in Kent.
And I want you to win...
because I want you on my front bench.
If ballot-papers then shower on you like confetti,
then I don't really care who throws them.
Lord Singer, we take this kind of precautionary measure all the time.
It's just peace of mind, Allan.
Oh, for God's sake, Robert.
In my entire career of prosecuting and sentencing,
I've never once needed a police guard.
But I conduct one inquiry for your government...
It's bad enough being harangued by the press night and day,
but worse than that, that bloody Francine Bridge woman
is on the news accusing me of being a stooge.
But to top it all...
I'm now on a fascist hit-list?
- Allan, look... - And you call it peace of mind?
Marjorie and I were going away next week to the house in Cyprus.
We'll cancel the flights. We'll leave tonight.
We'd prefer it if we could guarantee your security here.
And I would prefer it if you could guarantee it till Marjorie and I
are away from this bloody bedlam.
And we'll return when you can make sure
she's at no further risk of being widowed.
Please. Come in.
Sorry to intrude. I wanted to catch you before...
An unexpected pleasure.
And to which ailing area of policy do I owe it?
It's uh...
actually about the by-election.
Clive Turner's seat.
God rest his soul.
Yes. Quite
But we'd rather his seat rested with the Tories.
We've been discussing potential candidates, and...
one mooted is Roger Hawkins.
Is he Robert's choice?
The discussion is ongoing.
Roger's name cropped up and I...
If...
Robert were to end up...
leaning towards him...
I wondered how comfortably that would sit with you.
Because Roger has some...
..eccentric views?
Because he has a widely-documented history
of inflammatory rabble-rousing and barely-veiled racism.
Well...nobody's perfect.
Look. I have no desire to break bread with Roger Hawkins.
But I assume he's Robert's choice because Robert thinks he can win.
And given the demographic, he probably can.
That demographic being a white working class
whom a populist like Hawkins will do his best to whip up.
I would've thought that would've been more troubling to a Home Secretary.
A Home Secretary...or a black man?
I'm frankly curious as to why it doesn't trouble you as either.
Whether or not it troubles me is irrelevant.
We need to hold the seat, and I trust Robert's judgment.
So, I'm afraid...
I cannot lend authentic ethnic ballast
to your struggles in dissuading him.
And if his judgment's wrong?
Well...
we...
learn from the mistakes of others.
As much as from our own.
Shall we?
We don't want to miss our lift.
Rachel, the car will be here shortly. Are you ready?
Darling, what's the matter?
That website that tried to make out I had something to do with kickbacks to Kostenko...
They've just tried even harder.
Oh, it's going to be all over the news
and I'm so sorry but it's lies. I swear, it's lies.
Rachel, I don't know what you're talking about.
Hari Misra from Morbid Symptoms has interviewed a former colleague of mine,
claiming I knew about the bribes.
He's saying it's impossible I didn't know what was going on.
- On what grounds when you were a junior. - Yeah, I was.
But, you know, right-hand to the senior.
I didn't know my senior was breaking the law. Of course I fucking didn't.
But Nigel Raine's saying either I knew and turned a blind eye, or I was part of it.
Surely that's defamation.
He's too slick to do anything actionable.
He's lying but I can't prove it.
But I...
I don't think he's going public to grind an old ax.
So, maybe it's money, maybe it's blackmail.
But somebody's got their hand up the puppet
and it's the same someone, I imagine,
who gave the documents to Morbid Symptoms.
And then, you know, the dots just join themselves.
Dots?
Oh, Rob, come on!
This assault on me amid the Cyber-attacks
isn't happening by unfortunate fucking coincidence.
It's your integrity, your job they're trying to capsize.
I'm just...
Mine are just collateral damage.
So our dead man has a name.
The body found in the truck was Edward Price.
US citizen.
He was abducted on a holiday in Bordeaux.
- Have the Americans been informed? - Not yet.
But the NSA are breathing down our necks.
The NSA? Why?
Price was a scientist...
at DARPA.
- The military lab? - Military technology, yes.
But Price's field of research was heavily classified.
Last time I checked, the Americans were still our key ally
so they may be able to tell us why one of theirs
ended up glowing like Chernobyl in the back of a lorry.
Speak to their intelligence as a matter of immediate urgency.
Understood. And I'll pass on your gratitude to my team, shall I?
Why don't we just file it under "better late than never".
I would like to clarify one last thing.
Yes?
I am keen for us to work together as productively as possible
despite your pitiful animosity.
But when I am briefing COBRA,
please keep your snide little peashooter in your pencil-case.
- Just a little levity between colleagues. - Hmm.
You never struck me as the type to feel so needled.
And you always struck me as knowing better
than to pull an Oxbridge rapier on a serrated machete.
I'd never pull a rapier.
I was in the Pistol Club.
And I, Foreign Secretary, on the Royal fucking Artillery.
Pencil case it is, then.
Hmm.
'While we the people starve,
these corrupt gluttons continue to gorge at the trough of power.
More proof from Hari Misra of the corruption in Number 10.
Rachel Sutherland was at the heart of the Kostenko bribery scandal.
My brothers, we must take action and stamp on these cockroaches.
Let's rise up for justice and our nation.
On the same bench, for once.
Well, if ever there was a place for miracles...
I shall begin with the reading from Philippians 4, verse 8.
Whatever is true,
whatever is honorable,
whatever is just,
whatever is pure,
whatever is pleasing,
whatever is commendable,
if there is any excellence in it...
if there is anything worthy of praise.
We are here today in the memory of these people who have perished.
I want you to consider these thoughts.
No recriminations, no guilt,
just the memory of the good things in their lives.
Step back ladies and gentlemen, thank you.
Keep away.
No comment!
Oh, for God's sake, how many times do I have to say "no comment"?!
Can you just leave us alone?!
Mr Singer.
- Did you sing for your supper? - What?
No!
No!
There he is! There he is!
Eleanor. Can't this wait?
He's what?
No, no. He's what?
Oh, my God.
Police and Ambulance crews attended the scene where the killing took place.
The suspect has been apprehended.
A message has been recovered from his recording equipment.
A warning. This report contains images that some people may find disturbing.
I have stamped on a cockroach.
Great Britain has one less instrument of corruption.
Where I have gone, may my brothers follow.
He don't sing for his supper no more.
There will be a statement from the police shortly,
regarding the murder of Lord Allan Singer.
What's happened?
A statement of sympathy has been issued for Lord Singer's family.
- And the Protection Officer? - Critical but stable.
Our next move needs to be...robust.
- This cannot stand. - She's bloody right. Look at this.
The killer,
this Thompson bastard, now a hero to the nutter factions.
His disgusting footage all over social bloody media.
I'm aware. And the companies have said they'll be co-operative.
But every time they stamp it out, it pops up somewhere else.
Meanwhile, we are monitoring
a worrying traction with certain conspiracy theories
that Thompson was put up to the murder by MI5.
Which is now being tied to theories that the Prime Minister ordered
the Kostenko assassination to protect his wife from prosecution.
Firestorm.
Firestorm incited Thompson...
..and now Allan Singer is dead.
There will be another Thompson, and another...and more dead...
as long as Firestorm is spewing its poison.
And this government will not tolerate that.
I don't doubt that we could prosecute
whoever's behind Firestorm under the Terrorism Act.
The issue is finding them.
You said internet companies were cooperating.
To the usual limit.
But if we demand records,
we're looking down the barrel of an enormous legal fight.
No. That's no good.
We won't look strong,
we'll look draconian.
Then what do we do about this?
Then we don't go through these bloody companies.
We tell GCHQ to go around.
Underneath.
Is that legal?
It's erm...somewhat gray.
I don't give a shit if it's jet black. Do it.
Understood.
And then deal with Hari Misra.
His site's adding fuel to all of this.
- So now we're arresting journalists? - Finding out who pulls his strings.
The investigation is progressing, Prime Minister.
Well, I'm sure that inspires us all with confidence
Thank you, Eleanor. Proceed.
Joseph didn't seem happy with our strategy.
I'm sure he'll come on board...
if it puts at least one hateful bastard under lock and key.
But since you mention him,
I wouldn't mind your opinion on something, if you've got a moment.
It's what I'm here for.
What do you think of him?
Who?
Joseph, Anna.
I think...
Why?
Because I'm asking.
Bright, charismatic, ambitious.
Do you want an essay?
No, he's someone worth recruiting...
to harangue me over my choice of Roger Hawkins for the by-election.
- Robert... - Before we discuss you going behind my back...
Roger Hawkins may be to the right of us, may even be a reactionary,
but I will tell you something he hasn't done.
He hasn't accused a respected judge of corruption...
shortly before he was butchered, and even supplied a fucking hashtag for it.
You brought Francine Bridge in.
Vouched for her.
I hear you're even pals again.
And yet you have the temerity to question my judgment?
You think Francine is the problem?
You're going to blame a black woman for feeding far-right extremism
while you shove your weight behind a dog-whistling jingoist?
And, yes, I spoke to Joseph.
Because my job is to make sure you make the best possible decision.
Well, maybe that's something overdue for reappraisal.
Robert...
Get a fucking grip.
I say this with kindness...
but you're mental,
thinking you played a part in it...
any fucking part.
The scumbag who killed Singer was a Nazi incel.
You think a prick like that listens to a black woman?
All you did was speak truth to power
and that's what this country needs from its politicians.
You did your job. Like I do mine.
Maybe you've just had more practice.
- At truth? - At collateral damage.
When you run pieces that...like with Rachel Sutherland.
Oh, Jesus. Seriously?
- Next you'll ask me how I sleep. - How do you sleep?
Like a baby. Curled up and crying for my mum.
I'm being serious, Hari. A man is dead.
I'm being serious too. About truth.
And truth is the only blade that draws blood from liars.
However deep the lie, however high the liar.
Your sources must find that very comforting.
I couldn't tell you. Lately, I don't even know who they are.
Doesn't that bother you?
Nothing I've been sent is illegal and I don't run anything without due diligence
But if you don't know who, you don't know why.
The Rachel Sutherland stuff, for example.
- Somebody has got an agenda. - I don't care.
When it's my story, it's my agenda.
Remind me not to come to you for emotional support again.
Look. Here's an idea.
We do an interview for the site.
You can be front-footed with your reaction to Singer.
Denounce all extremism,
state in all caps how we must cleave to truth...but also peace.
And then we can have dinner.
You just don't quit, do you?
No.
Jesus Christ.
The lab's this way
Just before the ship blew, we had a reconnaissance boat over it,
scanning, gathering data, the condition of the hull, munitions, sea-bed seismology.
- All got bloody obliterated. - Along with 300 people.
Audrey.
I'm here. I'm here.
Like I said - obliterated.
The dive team have been searching the wreckage
and this morning we found our VDR.
Heard of a black box on a plane?
Well, it's that. For boats.
All data up until the moment of detonation is backed up here.
That's excellent news! Isn't it?
Well, force of the blast damaged the unit.
We're only just managing to pull the readings from it now.
Look. Spectrogram...
taken moments before the explosion.
These lines represent the noise made from the boat's engines.
And down here we'd expect to see a low seismic frequency,
from the tremor that set off the blast.
This is what a tremor should look like.
This was taken 17 hours prior to the explosion.
But...when the boat went off,
there's nothing.
So the scanner was bust?
Yeah, or there was no tremor at all.
- But hang on, what's this? - Ah.
Something extremely low frequency but high decibel.
Let me show you in more detail.
Starts here. 32 minutes...
then stops. 3.7 seconds later...
..boom.
- If that's not a tremor, what could it be? - Most likely a faulty sensor.
- But just supposing it wasn't faulty? - I have no idea.
But I can tell you there's no natural phenomena
which explains this wave pattern.
We're still analyzing.
Bored of your office?
Just thought we'd um...
what did they used to say?
Take the air.
New hobby?
14 years since I quit.
That's plenty.
I'm worried about Robert.
He's...
I think this thing with Rachel might be pushing him over the edge.
Yeah. About that...
I didn't move this meeting out of my office for fresh air.
We're here because I'm doing you a favor I shouldn't be.
Francine Bridge. Are you still friends?
- Or friends again? - Yeah.
She's due to give Hari Misra an interview this afternoon.
But he won't be able to make it.
There's been an escalation and our hand's been forced.
If you value Francine,
and she values anything resembling a political future...
..tell her to cut Misra loose.
And do it now.
Holy fucking hell.
What the...?
What...?
"Grip it." Or what?
Fuck this.
Ah...
Uh...
It isn't fucking on.
- Hey, Anna. Can I call you back? - No.
- I'm about to do an interview. - I know.
- Wait. How do you know? - I need you to meet me. Now.
I can't. Like I said, I'm about to do this interview.
Hari's not someone you should associate with.
- What? - Please listen.
I don't want to speak on the phone, but I...I need you to...
- Okay, Anna, I will call you back. Alright? Bye. - Fra...
He's on the move. Follow, or...?
Take him.
Who the fuck are they?
Woah, woah!
- Passenger on board? - Boss, someone else snatched him.
What do you mean someone else?
The car came out of nowhere and they grabbed him.
What fucking car?
Follow!
Eleanor?
What?
Firestorm. We've traced it. We know who he is.
- Who? - Gavin Beadle.
Currently at his residence in Old Trafford.
Everything's in place for the raid.
- I need your permission to proceed. - Do it now.
Pop his hat off.
Hello, Hari.
Who are you?
I'm Tommy.
So's he.
Yard? MI5?
We're Tommy.
Let's talk about you.
You're all right. Come on.
I will proceed with Unit Alpha to the front of the building.
Sierra 5 will proceed with Unit Bravo to the rear of the building.
Then all units hold position and await my command to breach.
May 22nd to 27th, 2015, you took a trip to Moscow.
Is that when you were tapped up by the SVR?
I was reporting a gay pride rally.
Sierra 5, Trojan 3-7. That's a go. Proceed to breaching position.
'Trojan 3-7, Sierra 5. Moving now.'
Sierra 5 confirm when you're in position.
Let's talk about another report, then.
The one you were due to publish tomorrow.
The one you were instructed to run by your masters...
to disseminate egregious untruths about the United States.
You work for the Yanks?
You're mercs?
Get back inside.
Sierra 5, Trojan 3-7. Front position held.
No sign of movement. Confirm your status.
Trojan 3-7, Sierra 5. In position. Exporting breach signal.
Who gave you the American documents?
Aargh!
Who is your fucking handler?!
'Trojan 3-7, stand by.
Unit Bravo on the move.'
Armed police! Armed police!
'Armed police!'
Go! Go! Go!
'Gavin Beadle. Where is he?!'
Trojan 3-7, Unit Alpha. Proceeding with search upstairs.
Two rooms. Checking room one.
'Clear, clear, clear.
Proceeding to room two.'
'Contact! Contact! Contact!
- Down! Down! Get down! - On the floor!
Hands behind your back! Hands behind your back!
All units, all units.
Trojan 3-7, positive contact with suspect in room two.
Hold positions.
Awaiting visual confirmation of suspect ID.
We actually got him.
'Trojan 3-7. Suspect apprehended.
Repeat, Trojan 3-7. Suspect apprehended.
'N-PAS 6-0 to control.
Suspect en route to secure location Delta 7-3. Over and out.
Well, that's one fire snuffed out.
Or have we stoked it?
How many more Firestorms are out there?
And who's pulling the strings?
It's Hari. You know what to do.
Not even the basic courtesy of a text.
You made me look a twat this afternoon, Hari.
We don't have much choice here, Hari.
See, our business is just like yours, really.
We're only after the truth.
I've told you the truth. I told you. No, no, wait! Please!
Please don't, no. Wait, wait, wait, wait!
I told you the truth, I don't know who my source is.
Please don't...
You're just a useful bloody idiot, really, aren't you, pal?
No hard feelings.
Ride home?
It is believed to be a firebomb attack.
It's not yet known if anybody was inside the offices
of the left-leaning online political site Morbid Symptoms.
There are claims a far-right group is behind the attack.