Slow Horses (2022–…): Season 1, Episode 6 - Follies - full transcript

What is it?

Diana Taverner is downstairs.

Tell her I'll be down in five minutes.

She says to come straight down.

- What's going on, darling?
- Nothing, darling.

I wonder what the others are up to.

Could have called them if you hadn't
thrown away Min and Louisa's phones.

Should let them know
they're not being hunted anymore,

in case they're halfway through
some dodgy backstreet plastic surgery.

Can't hack the satnav.

- Because?
- Cheap bastards didn't hire one.



Or the flash bastards had their own.

What I have done,
and which is beneath you puny mortals,

is hack into
the van's Theft Recovery Transmitter.

So we can track it?

Signal's intermittent,
so you'll only get where the vehicle is

or was every ten minutes.

But they're heading east on the A12.

Last ping from a petrol station
just outside Chelmsford.

- What? So what do we do with this?
- Well, we call it in.

To the Park? When they're trying to hang
the kidnap on us?

Then we get it to someone else.

Diana. I'm afraid our maid is asleep,

so it's me on char duty.
What can I get you?

Tea, please. Assam if you have it,
builder's otherwise.



Milk, no sugar.

- So, you know why I'm here?
- I've no idea why you're here.

I think you do.
Otherwise, you'd have asked.

I've a woman in my kitchen I've met
a few times on the cocktail party circuit.

I'm more concerned with how I'm going
to explain your presence to my wife.

I can give her a précis if you like.

We know from phone records
that Robert Hobden called you

yesterday afternoon, repeatedly.

None of the calls lasted
more than 15 seconds

so clearly he couldn't get through.

Now, I could pull CCTV
from surrounding streets

to confirm what I already know
but don't have the time to prove,

which is that Hobden eventually turned up
here, desperate to talk to you.

Would you believe it?
After all that, no Assam.

Have to be builder's.

By the way, what's his name, Hobden?

Haven't seen him for years.

Doubt I'd recognize him if I did.

Another thing I know but don't have
the time to prove at this exact moment

is that after Hobden's visit,
calls were made,

by you or someone close to you,

to certain individuals with links
to the people who kidnapped Hassan Ahmed.

Again, I could pull up the phone records
for everyone in this building,

starting with the man
listening at the door.

And, of course, your phone records.

I'm guessing there might be some numbers
you don't want your wife to know about.

Those to the mothers of the children
she's not aware of, perhaps?

- I have a very open marriage.
- I don't give a fuck about your marriage!

I have a dead agent at the scene of a
kidnapping and a boy who's God knows where

who'll be next to die,
all because of a phone call you made.

I wish I could help you, Diana,
but I made no such call.

I'm gonna turn on the kettle
for the tea you've failed to make.

If you're not talking straight with me
by the time it boils,

I'm going to call in the Dogs

and begin the process
of turning your life inside out.

Okay, thank you.

Judging by the tone of the woman
who answered the phone,

this was likely the 1,000th tip
they received today.

Well, surely it made
a difference coming from you.

Well, who was I to say was calling?

"Hello, Scotland Yard?

I'm with the punishment detail at MI5,
although at present,

they're hunting me for the kidnapping
that I'm trying to help you solve."

I'm going.

- Where?
- Down the A12.

- You'll never catch them.
- I might if I put my foot down.

Pigs'll pull you over for speeding.

How many times, we're the pigs.

I won't stop.
I'll lead them to the kidnappers.

Hey. Hold on. I'll come with you.

Roddy and I will go to Lamb's flat,
in case he shows.

Lamb's not at his flat.

And how do you know that?

I put a tracker on his car a year ago.
I put one on all of your cars.

What? I did it precisely
for a situation like this.

This isn't about whether or not
Hobden was here or if I made a call.

You're on the clock
and need me to do something,

so why don't you just come out and ask?

I want you to use your contacts

in the far right to connect with
the head of the Sons of Albion.

Find out where his boys might go
if they wanted to leave the country.

I don't know Simmonds.

You went grouse shooting
with him last year.

There were a lot of people on that shoot.

Just the two of you golfing
at Sunningdale, though.

My sources say he thrashed you,
which is probably why you blanked it.

Why should he do me any favors?

Tell him I don't have time
to kick his door in,

but I will if he leaves me no option.

He gives them up within five minutes,

or the pair of you are having breakfast
in a holding cell.

I know about the Frontline Club, Diana.

And what Hobden overheard you say
to your brother, was it?

Your one card. Are you sure
you want to play that now?

Now is the only time to play it.
Game'll be over soon.

Then go and get dressed.

I'll take the hit when it comes,
but you are going to the Park.

Down to a floor with no number.
I'd wear something comfortable.

Something you don't mind ruining
with piss, shit and blood.

Now, now, Diana, I'm not suggesting
mutually assured destruction.

What are you suggesting?

You and I share the same problem.

Connection to the unsavories
through one man.

Robert Hobden.

I hope you don't mind if I listen in
when you make your calls.

How the fuck did you find us?

Well, put it back.
It'll come in handy if it gets nicked.

They haven't cuffed us.
You must have the photographs.

- Yeah. We checkmated Taverner.
- Were you planning on telling us?

No, I was enjoying not seeing you.

Where are Min and Louisa?

Well, Ho worked out a way
to track the kidnappers.

Min and Louisa are chasing after them.

My orders were pretty clear. Do fuck all!

You've let two Slow Horses tear off
in a doomed attempt

to try and not make things worse.

I didn't let them.
Jackson, they're autonomous beings.

I just hope they only get themselves
killed and don't set an orphanage on fire.

Keep tracking that van.
Let me know if it so much as changes lane.

Think they're headed here.

This is Duffy.
Get a tactical team airborne. Now.

They're headed to Harwich.

How did you know?

Black used an old legend to hire a van.
Ho accessed the van's theft locator.

They're on the A12.
Nearest port is Harwich.

Standish and Ho will give you
all the various. I'm off for a kip.

You're not actually
gonna go to bed, are you?

You have something for us?

That's the van's plate number
and the ID for the theft locator.

They're going after the kidnappers,
aren't they?

God, men are such boys.

Ma'am, while I appreciate you
offering to include me

in your circle of sisterhood,
I'll have to decline.

Unless you want to fulfill
the promise you made

and tell me what you know
about Partner's death?

That ship sailed, Standish,
when you pulled a gun

on one of my Dogs.

Just think, if you'd returned my call,
you'd be back at the Park tomorrow.

And why on earth would I want that?

- Roddy.
- What?

- Shut up and keep walking.
- Where?

- Slough House.
- No, but that's...

I know it's the other way, Roddy,
but I was in dire need of a dramatic exit.

Do not look back.
That's just what she wants.

They stopped for petrol,
headed east 20 minutes ago.

- Sure it was them?
- Yeah, they made Hassan get it.

Hassan? Why make him...

The guy remembered him
because he left a tip.

Did you not get any food?

You can see I didn't. Let's go, Min.

Do you mind if I nip in and get something?

Yeah, sure. Only if you don't mind
admitting at Hassan's inquest

that we arrived late
because you needed crisps.

Okay, okay.

Jesus Christ, Min. Hurry up!

All right! I just function better
on a bit of food, that's all.

For God's sake.

I was seven, maybe eight.

It was the first castle I saw up close.
All in ruins.

You could play around it, climb on it.
My granddad said it was Norman.

Very old.

As England as England could be.

Be a good spot for it.

- Can we just go to the boat?
- How's your memory?

Fine. What?

'Cause you seem to be forgetting
what happened to the last person

who asked,
"Can we not just go to the boat?"

No, I mean we'll kill him, yeah?
We'll kill him!

All right? But at the harbor
or the boat or something...

Are you sure about that?

Because it's pretty tricky swinging an axe
on a boat. I might miss. I might hit you.

- Mate, time is running out...
- So is my fucking patience!

Fucking hell!

He won't shoot you at the wheel.
We'd crash, we might all die.

Well, you're not at the wheel, are you?
What's to stop me shooting you?

Because you want to chop my head off.

You want me on my knees, remember?

Not long now.

Van's 20 miles ahead of you.

Min and Louisa?

Ten miles.

Are you into the Park's feed?

Was nearly there when you called.

- Then stop talking!
- Well, no, wait, wait, Roddy.

When you get a sec,
can you get into the hospital's system

and find out how Sid is? And...

What the fuck?

You need to hear this from me,
not an insensitive prick like him.

What, she's gone?

Yeah.

Count yourself lucky.

Jesus Chri...

Yeah, lucky me. Yeah.

From my end of the telescope,
surviving's the short straw.

By the time I was your age,
I'd lost a baker's dozen.

It was bad enough when the Wall was up,

but once they reduced it to bricks
and rubble, everything went to shit.

Whole networks of joes rounded up, blown.

I haven't forgotten any of them.

And I won't forget Sid.

- Besides, she was the only one of you...
- Who wasn't complete shit.

Yeah, yeah. You... You've said that.

Any rate, the moral of the story is,
get used to death.

Cause you're gonna see a lot more of it.

And if that scares you,
then open the door and roll out now.

Out. Get the f...

Get our friend out.

Get rid of him.

In there. And you're helping.

You get his legs. Go on.

Once he's killed me, he's gonna
wanna go out in a blaze of glory.

If you're with him,

- you'll get killed in the cross fire.
- Shut up!

All right. Tie his hands and feet.
Make sure he can't run.

- Help me escape. Please.
- Shut the fuck up!

The fuck's going on in there?

You didn't know. You didn't know.

All right, get up. Here.

Fucking... Go on. Go on.

What the hell, Min?

Well, I've run out of petrol.

Are you fucking kidding?

How can we be out of petrol?
We were just at a petrol station.

Well, hang on. We were...
We weren't stopping for petrol.

Yeah, I know.
Otherwise you'd have got fucking petrol!

We were stopping for intel.

I got the intel! What were you doing
whilst I was doing that?

I... I was distracted.
I was thinking about stuff.

What stuff?

I don't know. Nothing.

No, no one thinks about nothing, Min,

unless they're a Zen master.
Are you a Zen master?

No, I'm not! No, I'm tired.
I was thinking about sleeping.

Food, you know.

- Fuck.
- Oh, my God.

What?

You were thinking about sex.

No.

Yes, you were.
Specifically about shagging me.

No.

Jesus fucking Christ!

No! Fucking stand over there!

Over there!

Nowhere fucking near me.

- Here?
- Yeah.

You've got an axe.

Yeah, and he's got a gun.

- Please. Please.
- Quiet.

- You know we're both dead.
- Stay on the paths!

You know we're both dead.

Stay on the paths! Stay on it!

Get down. Get down.

Don't move.

Come on, give me your hands.

Bastards!

Back to the van?

I'm going back to the van.
You're going the other way.

Where are you?

- Run!
- Where are you?

Fuck!

Fuck!

I fucked up! He gave me the slip!

- What? Fucking where?
- I don't know!

Where am I?

I want you to bring
the boy's parents to London

ahead of a successful outcome.

Do not let the press get wind of this.

Diana.

Diana. Your office.

Ma'am…

The kidnappers are headed for Harwich,
and the Dogs are en route.

Well… Now we wait.

- Slow Horses in the building?
- They've been cleared.

It appears Alan Black was operating alone.

Either he was trying to be the hero,
or he went full right-wing nationalist.

- It's hard to tell.
- Either version makes us look terrible.

I'd prefer his story died with him.

It's being written out already.

Can I request he's kept out? No witnesses…

They are dangerous men.
They will be met with force.

Look, it's been a while for me, okay?

Since you had sex?

No, no, si...

Since I've been with someone
who doesn't completely fucking loathe me.

And… you know, us...
Us kissing in the stairwell, that was...

I mean, that was good.

It was great. But then us going upstairs
with the paperweight

and the stapler, that was amazing.

I mean, that was...
You know, we were good. We were a team.

You know.
I mean, we had each other's back.

Bit cheesy.

And now we've got no petrol and no way
to catch up to the bastards, so…

We were never gonna catch them, were we?

Just felt good being part of
something, didn't it, you know?

Two years.

Since you last had sex?

God, no.

Since someone had my back.

- There's Lamb!
- Lamb!

Lamb!

- Hey!
- Hey! For fuck's sake!

You not gonna stop?

We're ten minutes from Harwich.

Dogs, bad guys, guns.
You want to miss the show?

We have a visual.

They're armed. Lethal force authorized.

Listen to me! Listen to me!
Get down! On your knees!

Get down on your knees.

Hands visible!

Keep your hands visible!

He's reaching. Drop him.

All units to Control.
Target down, target down.

Van is empty, ma'am.

Suspect was armed, ma'am.

Retrace the route. Meter by meter.

Van got to Harwich.

Dogs shredded a kidnapper.
Pretty wild. I got some headcam footage.

Taverner's not taking any prisoners.

Roddy, Roddy. Hassan?

No sign of him or the other kidnappers.

Where did the van last stop?

- Lay-by. Five miles behind you.
- Shit.

You know, I knew you were trying to turn
him when you were dumping that body.

And I knew he was never a real soldier.
No harm done.

Apart from him scalping you.

Head wounds bleed.
It all worked out in the end.

He got away. How is that "all worked out"?

- I let him go.
- Sure.

Not that you're a crap shot.
That's not why he escaped. You let him go.

Listen, I could shoot you right now, mate.

But we're gonna do things medieval,

which is appropriate,
considering your religion.

You don't know the first thing
about my religion.

What the fuck. They've come back.

Well, come on. Get in, then!

Fuck.

- We forgot to get petrol.
- We?

There.

What the fuck are you laughing at?
You're gonna die up there.

- That's not a Norman castle.
- Yes it fucking is!

- It's a folly.
- It's a what?

A folly. A fake.

Fake how? It's still a castle.

It's around 150 years old,
built to look older.

Why would people build ruins?
That makes no sense.

Because they wanted to impress people.

Because they th-thought
that it was romantic.

- Because they thought it was English.
- It is English.

It's fake.

Seems I paid more attention in my madrassa
than you did in school.

Get up. Get the fuck up. Move.

Move!

Keep going.

In there.

Are you sure this is right?

You are at the right location.
I've done my bit. Over to you.

Right. Ho, there's no "I" in "team,"
but there is a big "fuck you" in fuck you.

Roddy, Roddy, there's nothing here.
Look again.

That is where they stopped.

This is the place.

Three men came into the woods.
One came out.

I'm assuming the one
who took the van to Harwich.

How do you know?

Reading the signs of the earth.

What, like snapped branches,
trampled grass?

No, you dozy sod.
The dead body over there.

Fuck me.

Cleared to shoot on sight.

Affirmative.

So what now?

You kill me.

Put it on YouTube. Run to the boat.

Kneel.

Fuckin' kneel!

The boat is blown.

Once that video's online, they'll be here,

and either they take me out,
or I use the last one on myself.

So you become a martyr.
Like all the suicide bombers.

It's about being part of
something bigger than yourself.

Not that you'd understand.
I'm putting this country first.

It's what won us the war.

You are so fucking stu...

Told you I was a good shot.

Next one's in your balls.

Hassan, Hassan! Hassan. Stop, stop.

- Who are you with?
- I'm with MI5.

You're safe. You're safe now.
Look. Put it down. Give me the axe.

- You're gonna stop me?
- You don't want to kill him.

- He's done. Finished.
- Like fuck I don't!

Hassan. Look at me, Hassan. No.

No. No! Hassan, Hassan!

You make me ashamed to be British.

All right. Come on. Let's step away.
Step away.

Back up. Back up. Good man.

Twenty seconds to target.

Okay. Okay.

Okay. Okay. Let's just sit down.
There you are. Okay.

Okay. Hassan? I'm gonna have to stop
the bleeding on that arm.

That's it, that's it.

There you are. Good man.

Can you ring my parents?

Don't really have a phone
at the minute. Sorry.

What kind of spy are you?

Yeah. Hard to tell, really.

- Who's that?
- That's Cartwright and the Slow Horses.

Assessing target. Stand by.

Intel confirms bomb threat.

Southeast wall.

Kill order confirmed.

There you are. You've done it now.

Are they gonna kill him?
He should go on trial.

Min! What are you doing?

Friendly approaching target.

He's unarmed!

Jesus.

Clear the shot!

- Piss off! Stop!
- What the fuck are you doing?

You're gonna get yourself freaking killed!

Suspect is armed. Clear the shot!

You are impeding an official operation!

Clear! Now!

No clear shot, sir.

Piss off!

Ma'am?

Ma'am?

Stand down.

Fuck off.

Diana.

Your idiot Slow Horses have screwed
the entire service.

The boy was saved.

The boy and the surviving kidnapper
both know we had an agent on the inside.

- I'll handle that.
- Like you handled the rest of this?

Alan Black has been wiped
from our records,

and I'll make sure Hassan says nothing.

You better fucking had!
This is your shit, Diana.

Clean it up!

I'm joined now by our Home
Security correspondent, Derek Rothery.

Derek, what can you tell us
about the investigation so far?

We understand
that First Desk, Ingrid Tearney,

will be debriefing
the Home Secretary later on today

on what has been a successful operation
to rescue kidnapped student Hassan Ahmed.

I'd just like to say thank you

to the police a-and the security services

for their really, really incredible work.

We understand he was freed
shortly after 7:00 a.m. this morning

by an MI5 operation in which
two of the kidnappers were killed,

and a further man remains in custody.

Well, I suppose well done, us.

I've got a bottle of wine
in the desk if anyone wants to celebrate.

Celebrate? What?

Well, we saved him.

How? You... You were useless.

I tracked the van.

Yeah, to Harwich,
where the Dogs were waiting for him.

Thanks to me squeezing Lady Di.

Yeah, well, I actually did save him.

Whilst he was being shot at
and threatened with an axe.

The kid saved himself, with a rock.

I just love these team talks, I really do.

Come on, everyone. Back to work!

It's Saturday.

Then everyone piss off!

Drink?

Got a lead on Sid.

Okay. Wine.

Right. Well, I hope you don't mind,
a vin de Tesco.

Yeah. I'll get some glasses.

- All right.
- Actually, you know what, Min?

I... I am... I'm shattered.
I'm gonna crash. Sorry.

Yeah. Sure. Sure.

It's been a long day.

Yeah. No, I'm tired too.

But I am free tonight for some drinks or…

maybe some food or something.

- Yeah. Yeah.
- Yeah?

Great. Sounds good.

Yeah, I'm just thinking how about...

Well, how about I just actually
stop talking before I spoil everything?

Smart.

- See?
- See what? I don't see anything.

Exactly.

There's no record of her
ever having been at the hospital.

And, when I pop through
my own private backdoor

into MI5's database,

there's no record of her whatsoever.

So what does that mean?

It means, far as you know,
and even as far as Roddy Ho knows,

which is a fuck of a lot farther
than anyone has ever known,

there is gonna be
no funeral or memorial service

or so much as drinks at the pub
for Sidonie Baker.

'Cause no one
named Sidonie Baker ever existed.

So, in return?

In return for what?

For letting you know
she might still be alive somewhere.

You wanna know?

All right.

Well…

thing is, Roddy, you're in Slough House…

because you're too good.

You showed everyone else up.

Made them all look bad,
so they shoved you in here.

Figures.

Tried to cage me up…

but you can't cage a dragon.

All right.

Natasha. You need to bring me in
and put me on air.

But what you're seeing
on the news is bullshit!

Establishment cover-up bullshit.

Well, send a car.

I can get there quicker by myself.
I can be there in...

Jesus. You all right, mate? You all right?

Hold on, hold on, hold on.

Diana.

Jackson.

Well done.

Managed to keep the name Alan Black
out of the headlines.

Never existed.

You mean Dermot Radcliffe, Son of Albion.

Hassan didn't overhear anything
that might poke holes in that?

Possibly.

But his student debt's been cleared,

and his comedy club is about to receive
a large anonymous donation.

Do you know what boils my piss?

Is that you won.

Boy saved, you get to look like a hero.

Made your boss look even more of a hero.

What are you gonna tell Standish
about what's in that file?

And the photographs on Cartwright's phone?

Deleted.

Can I trust you on that?

Can I trust you
you didn't make a copy of this?

I'm assuming you don't want
Struan Loy back.

Well, you put him
in a very difficult position, Diana.

Betray me, get back to the Park.
Or don't and be cast into the wilderness.

He betrayed you, so wilderness.

Fuck yeah.

And River Cartwright?

I'm sorry, but what did you expect?

Well, Stansted wasn't me.
And we rescued Hassan.

So… clean slate back at the Park
didn't feel like too much of a stretch.

So you thought, what?

Diana Taverner would confess her sins

in order to benefit your career
while simultaneously destroying her own?

Tad naive, wouldn't you say?

Moscow rules, watch your back.
London rules, cover your arse.

Yeah.

I seem to have covered her arse,
while she stabbed me straight in the back.

I will permit one evening
of indulgent self-recrimination,

which will end when I nod off
after approximately 20 minutes.

You need to get your head down.

Keep your nose clean, and then maybe,
just maybe, there's a way back in.

Oh, come on.

Even the best spies have
their time in the cold.

Smiley was always coming back
from redundancy.

Charles.

There are things
about Charles Partner's death

that Lamb hasn't told you.

What was Taverner going to tell me?

For fuck's sake. It's... It's Saturday.

Haven't you got
other people's cats to steal?

What aren't you telling me
about Charles's death?

Nothing.

I don't believe you.
I should have read the signs. Should I?

Tell me. What don't I...

I gave him the gun.

Why?

Because he asked for one.

And he was my friend.

This was after the Wall came down.

Cold War scores were being settled.

And he told me
he'd seen some old, unfriendly faces.

I thought he was being paranoid,

but… you know, what if I was wrong,
and he ended...

Well, it threw my mojo off.

Put a dent in my armor.

I-I didn't want to be in the field.
I wanted to be a civilian even less.

So… this is why I asked for this place.

Somewhere where I could run out the clock.

Nothing matters, and no one gets hurt.

Oh, come on.
One of us has to leave the room now.

And I'm just too fucking tired.

Is it done?

Yeah.

And so am I.

If they find out…

How would they find out, David?
It's just you and me in this car.

They are rather good at their job.

Well, I hope for your sake they don't.

When an agent dies,
everything has to be considered.

Well, he left a note on his phone.
"Cicada."

Sleeper agents embedded
in British society.

We call them dead lions.

Lamb, I do not need you
digging around in the past.

Maybe the Cicadas have been reactivated,
and maybe more people are gonna die.

I'm putting you in the field.

- What?
- It's exciting.

Be careful, River.

The Russians have an incredible capacity
for pain and sacrifice. And grudges.

We had a traitor right at the top.

Thousands of people, they're gonna die.

Paperwork's gonna be a ballache.

I want the professional humiliation
of you and your team.

My team have already
humiliated themselves.

That's why they're my team.