Reilly: Ace of Spies

Synopsis

Reilly, Ace of Spies is a 1983 television miniseries dramatising the life of Sidney Reilly, a Russian Jew who became one of the greatest spies ever to work for the British. Among his exploits, in the early 20th-century, were the infiltration of the German General Staff in 1917 and a near-overthrow of the Bolsheviks in 1918. His reputation with women was as legendary as his genius for espionage.

First Air Date: 1983-09-05

Last Air Date: 1983-11-16

Number of Seasons: 1

Number of Episodes: 12

Created By: Troy Kennedy Martin

Networks: ITV1

View Technical Specifications on IMDb

Top Cast

Sam Neill as Sidney Reilly
Michael Bryant as Narrator (voice)
Norman Rodway as Cummings
Tom Bell as Dzerzhinsky
Hugh Fraser as Hill
Clive Merrison as Savinkov
Peter Egan as Fothergill
Leo McKern as Zaharov
Jeananne Crowley as Margaret
Brian Protheroe as Grammaticoff

Seasons

Miniseries (1983)

No overview available for this season.

Episodes:

Ep. 1: An Affair with a Married Woman (1983-09-05)

1901: Professor Sydney Rosenblum is taken from a train and held under unofficial arrest in a provincial Russian village, suspected of stealing confidential oil surveys. The young wife of an elderly vicar may hold the secret to his escape.
Ep. 2: Prelude to War (1983-09-07)

1904: Reilly is stationed in Port Arthur and forced to help the Japanese, against his better judgement, in taking the port from the Russians. As a mass evacuation gets under way, Reilly’s plans are put at risk by a soft-spoken detective.
Ep. 3: The Visiting Fireman (1983-09-14)

1905: A British operation to steal German ship plans is in danger of being uncovered. Zaharov wants the plans and Cummings wants a compromised agent saved, but Reilly decides on a unique approach to the problem.
Ep. 4: Anna (1983-09-21)

1906: Reilly’s search for Margaret takes him to Paris, where Cummings forces him into helping secure an oil contract from an Australian who may sell to the Rothschilds. An unexpected turn of events reunites Reilly with his sister.
Ep. 5: Dreadnoughts and Crosses (1983-09-28)

1910: Apparently now working for the Germans in Russia, Reilly is to bid on their behalf for a valuable weapons contract, giving him a chance to finally get his revenge on Zaharov.
Ep. 6: Dreadnoughts and Doublecrosses (1983-10-05)

1910: Reilly’s winning of the weapons contract depends on his marriage to a Russian Countess. Unfortunately, Margaret’s reappearance, engineered by Zaharov, threatens to ruin everything.
Ep. 7: Gambit (1983-10-12)

1918: Back in Russia, Reilly is tasked with appealing with the Bolsheviks to end their peace treaty with Germany and return to the war. When Lenin refuses, he sets in motion a plan to overthrow the government and place himself in power.
Ep. 8: Endgame (1983-10-19)

1918: Reilly’s plans come under strain when the British fail to give Savinkov the promised military support and Dzerzhinsky scuppers plans to assassinate Lenin. But then unexpected events change everything.
Ep. 9: After Moscow (1983-10-26)

1918: Reilly and his friends filter back to Britain and face questioning from an official enquiry. As Lenin's condition becomes stable, both Reilly and Dzerzhinsky plan their next moves.
Ep. 10: The Trust (1983-11-02)

1924: Reilly is in exile in New York drumming up support and money for Savinkov’s anti-bolshevik movement. A new organisation, the Trust, campaigns for Savinkov’s return, but Reilly suspects that Dzerzhinsky is behind them.
Ep. 11: The Last Journey (1983-11-09)

1925: Reilly’s propaganda war against the Trust has gone well enough for them to reach out and invite him to Russia. He hopes to finally undermine Dzerzhinsky’s operation, but Dzerzhinsky is already under scrutiny from Stalin.
Ep. 12: Shutdown (1983-11-16)

1925: Reilly has been arrested and is subjected to interrogation and torture. Back in Britain, Pepita fights to find out the truth while Cummings campaigns for his release. As Dzerzhinsky’s whole operation is put under threat, a last minute deal is attempted.