''Spy'' is a British situation comedy created and written by Simeon Goulden. The first series aired on 14 October 2011 on

Sky 1 Sky One was a British pay television channel operated and owned by Sky Group (a division of Comcast). Originally launched on 26 April 1982 as Satellite Television, it was Europe's first satellite and non- terrestrial channel. From 31 July 1989, ...

in the UK, as well as on the online video service

Hulu Hulu (, ) is an American Subscription business model, subscription streaming media service owned by Disney Streaming, a subsidiary of the Disney Entertainment segment of the Walt Disney Company. It was launched on October 29, 2007, initially as ...

in the United States. A second series began airing on 19 October 2012, ending with a Christmas Special on 26 December 2012. On 1 March 2013, Darren Boyd announced that the show would not be returning for a third series.

Cast and characters

Darren Boyd Darren John Boyd is a British actor who starred in the Sky One series '' Spy'', for which he won BAFTA TV Award for Best Male Comedy Performance. His work in television and film spans comedy and drama. Early life Boyd was born in Hastings, Su ...

as Tim Elliot *

Jude Wright Jude Wright (born 14 November 1999) is an English actor. Career Wright is best known for his role as Marcus in the television series '' Spy'', that ran from 2011 to 2012. Wright played Sam in the Channel 4 miniseries '' World Without End'' in ...

as Marcus Elliot, Tim's ten-and-a-half year-old son * Robert Lindsay as The Examiner, Tim's boss *

Dolly Wells Dorothy Perpetua Wells (born Gatacre; 5 December 1971)Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage, vol. III, 2003, pg 3046 is an English actress. She co-wrote and starred in the Sky Living series '' Doll & Em'' (2014–2015) with Emily Mortimer, ...

as Judith Elliot, Tim's ex-wife *

Tom Goodman-Hill Tom Goodman-Hill (born 21 May 1968) is an English actor in film, television, theatre and radio. He has acted for over 30 years, and in 2024 he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for his role in the Netflix drama '' Baby Reindeer''. Early ...

(series 1) and

Mark Heap Mark Heap (born 13 May 1957) is a British actor and comedian. Television credits include '' Ghost Train'' (1991), '' Smith & Jones'' (1997–1998), '' Brass Eye'' (1997–2001), '' Kiss Me Kate'' (1998), '' The Zig and Zag Show'' (1998), '' Ho ...

(series 2) as Philip Quil, Judith's partner and Marcus's headteacher *

Mathew Baynton Mathew John Baynton (born 18 November 1980) is an English actor, comedian, musician and writer. He is a member of the Them There collective, in which he wrote and starred in ''Horrible Histories (2009 TV series), Horrible Histories'', ''Yonderlan ...

as Chris Pitt-Goddard, Tim's friend and former colleague who is secretly a lawyer *

Rebekah Staton Rebekah Staton is an English actress and narrator. She has had roles in '' Pulling'' (2006–2009), ''Doctor Who'' (2007), ''Rome'' (2007), ''Wallander'' (2011), ''Black Mirror'' (2011), '' Raised by Wolves'' (2013–2016), '' DanTDM Creates a Bi ...

as Caitlin Banks, Tim's MI5 colleague *

Rosie Cavaliero Rosalind Cecilia Cavaliero (born 27 November 1967) is a British actress. She has appeared in numerous television roles. Filmography Film Television Video games Podcasts Radio Theatre * ''Dracula'' at the Everyman, Cheltenham – Florr ...

as Paula Abdul, Marcus's first social worker who had a romantic obsession with Tim * Ed Coleman as Moritz Skenk, Tim's hapless coworker * Ellie Hopkins as Justine, Marcus's love interest * Terence Maynard as Marion Portis, Caitlin's long-missing, assumed dead, fiancé *

Miles Jupp Miles Hugh Barrett Jupp (born 8 September 1979) is an English actor and comedian. He began his career as a stand-up comedian before playing the role of the inventor Archie in the children's television series ''Balamory''. He also played John Dugg ...

as Owen, Marcus's second social worker * Frank Kauer as Nick Chin, Marcus's rival * David K. S. Tse as David Chin, Nick's father

Episode list

Series 1 (2011)

Series 2 (2012)

Christmas Special (2012)

Reception

Reception of the series has been varied. Olly Grant of ''The Telegraph'' described the new series as "a very promising little comedy, and

obert Obert may refer to the following people: Given name *Obert Bika (born 1993), Papua New Guinean football midfielder *Obert Logan (1941–2003), American football safety *Obert Mpofu, Zimbabwean politician *Obert A. Olson (1882–1938), American p ...

Lindsay is particularly good in it." The premiere was described by Ben Arnold (''The Guardian'') as a "hopeful offering", but wrote, "It will need considerably more laughs in future episodes to stand repeat viewing." The series' second episode was termed "mediocre" by Catherine Gee (''Telegraph''), but Jack Seale (''

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in September 1923 by John Reith, then general manage ...

'') wrote "never mind that everyone's crazy and nothing is real, so that – like a lot of US sitcoms – you wouldn't mind missing an episode. When you're in front of it, ''Spy'' keeps doling out quick, cheap, satisfying laughs." In a 2011 year-end wrap-up, Julia Raeside (''Guardian'') wrote: In 2012, Sam Wollaston (''Guardian'') described it as "totally ridiculous, but in a charming way" and having "a lovable silliness."

DVD release

The complete first series of ''Spy'' was released on DVD on 5 November 2012. The complete second series of ''Spy'' was released on DVD on 29 July 2013.

International remakes

An American version was being discussed to broadcast on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

. ABC released casting info for the show, with

Rob Corddry Robert William Corddry (born February 4, 1971) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for his work as a correspondent on ''The Daily Show with Jon Stewart'' (2002–2006) and for his starring role in the film ''Hot Tub Time Machine''. He ...

being cast as Tim,

Mason Cook Mason Cook (born July 25, 2000) is an American actor. He played Cecil Wilson in the 2011 film '' Spy Kids: All the Time in the World''. From 2016 to 2019, he portrayed Ray DiMeo in the ABC sitcom '' Speechless''. Early life Cook was born on Jul ...

as Marcus,

Paget Brewster Paget Valerie Brewster ( ; born March 10, 1969) is an American actress. She first received recognition for her recurring role as Kathy on the fourth season of ''Friends''. She gained wider recognition as FBI Supervisory Special Agent Emily Pre ...

in the new role of Erica as Marcus' mom and Tim's ex-wife, replacing Judith,

Moshe Kasher Mark Moshe Kasher (born July 6, 1979) is an American stand-up comedian, writer and actor based in the Los Angeles area. He is the author of the 2012 memoir ''Kasher in the Rye: The True Tale of a White Boy from Oakland Who Became a Drug Addict, C ...

as Chris,

Camille Guaty Camille Guaty-Kaye is an American film and television actress. She portrayed Daisy in ''Gotta Kick It Up!'' (2002), Maricruz Delgado, Sucre's girlfriend, in ''Prison Break'' (2005–2007), and Walter O'Brien's sister, Megan, on the CBS series '' ...

as Caitlin, and

Ken Jeong Kendrick Kang-Joh Jeong ( ; ; born July 13, 1969) is an American stand-up comedian, actor and physician. He rose to prominence for playing Leslie Chow in ''The Hangover'' film series (2009–2013) and Ben Chang in the NBC sitcom ''Community'' ...

as The Examiner.

Nat Faxon Nathaniel Wales Faxon (born October 11, 1975) is an American actor and comedian. A frequent presence on comedic films and TV series, he won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for co-writing ''The Descendants'' (2011). He starred in the ...

was to guest star in the pilot, and if the series was picked up, would have been a guest star in as many episodes as possible. The show was to be produced by

ABC Studios ABC Signature was a production arm of the American Broadcasting Company (ABC), which is a subsidiary of Disney Television Studios, a sub-division of the Disney Entertainment business segment and division of The Walt Disney Company. The studio's ...

and

Hat Trick Productions Hat Trick Productions Limited is an independent British production company that produces television and radio programmes, mainly specialising in comedy, based in London. The company's logo is depicted as a rabbit pulling a man out of a hat inste ...

, with Simeon Goulden,

Jimmy Mulville James Thomas Mulville (born 5 January 1955) is an English comedian, comedy writer, producer and television presenter. He is best known for co-founding (in 1986) the British independent television production company Hat Trick Productions with D ...

and Helen Williams as executive producers. The series was to be written by Simeon Goulden as well, with

Alex Hardcastle Alex Hardcastle (born 19 November 1972) is a British television director and producer who has worked on television shows and movies in both the UK and the United States. He is best known for his directorial work on the American comedies ''New G ...

directing the pilot. On 10 May 2013, ''

Deadline Deadline(s) or The Deadline(s) may refer to: * Time limit, a narrow field of time by which an objective must be accomplished Arts, entertainment, and media Comics * Deadline (DC Comics), a fictional villain * ''Deadline'' (magazine), a Britis ...

'' reported that ABC had passed on the pilot.

References

External links

* * * * {{Sky1 2010s British sitcoms 2011 British television series debuts 2012 British television series endings British English-language television shows Sky UK sitcoms Television series by Hat Trick Productions MI5 in fiction British spy television series