Viewers who tuned into ITV’s new spy thriller, Betrayal, have wasted no time binge-watching all four episodes after Sunday night’s “brilliant” premiere.
The series, penned by David Eldridge, stars Shaun Evans as a mid-career MI5 officer, John Hughes, as he navigates a “rapidly evolving intelligence landscape” while trying to keep his home life intact, and his marriage to long-suffering wife Claire (Romola Garai) alive.
© ITVShaun Evans leads the cast
What is Betrayal about?
The series follows John Hughes, as he meets a British Iranian man with links to the Stockport gangland who claims he has intelligence about a plot on UK soil. Before he can share intel, the informant is executed, and John kills the assassin in self-defence.
The synopsis continues: “John soon finds himself under internal investigation, facing scrutiny from his superiors, including Simone Grant (Nikki Amuka-Bird), while his partner Claire grapples with the secrecy that defines his world.
“John’s efforts to save his marriage are complicated by his inability to let the case go. And when he meets Mehreen AskariEvans (Zahra Ahmadi), an intelligence operative who is tasked with taking over John’s duties, he finds an unlikely ally. As John becomes increasingly convinced of the involvement of a hardline faction of the Iranian regime, he also starts to worry there are enemies closer to home. But can he identify the target and avert the attack before it’s too late?”
© ITVRomola Garai plays Claire in the drama
What has the cast said about the show?
In an exclusive interview with HELLO!, Romola said that she relates to Claire, John’s hard-working GP wife as she juggles her responsibilities as a wife, with being a mother and career woman.
“It was really nice to see a show written by a man, where the [woman’s] problem of how to be present for her children, fulfil the demands of her career and keep her marriage alive – and not get buried under resentment – felt really present,” said Romola.
“How you divide yourself between other people becomes a big conversation, and the fact that there’s nothing left over for yourself at the end becomes a potential endpoint for a lot of women.”
On how Betrayal stands out from other spy series, leading star and executive producer Shaun told ITV: “It’s about someone having a midlife crisis. Things are no longer working for John and he’s trying to find a way forward. His relationship is falling down around his ears, and he no longer has the respect at work for his maverick qualities.
“His body is beginning to fail and his currency in the world is changing. If you set that against the world of international espionage, it becomes a very interesting dual story.”
© ITVThe series is available to stream on ITVX
How to watch Betrayal
All four episodes of Betrayal are available to stream on ITVX now. Episode two airs on Monday 9 February at 9pm on ITV1.
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