Keri Russell continues a fine run of TV shows with a thrilling first series of The Diplomat
“If the house is on fire, you gotta tell me”
It seems the best way to get me to watch a programme that has been languishing on a to-watch list is to flash the date of a forthcoming second series in front of me (although I may need to address this if the ease with which streamers are dropping the axe on newly released things continues as it has been doing – it’s all about those eyes in the first few days…). The first season of The Diplomat aired back in April 2023 and as a second is about to drop on Netflix on 31st October 2024, I finally pressed play.
Created by Debora Cahn, it’s a fast paced political thriller with real Anglo-American charm and chutzpah. Experienced career diplomat Kate Wyler (Keri Russell) is whisked away from an expected posting in Afghanistan when the US President decides that he wants her to serve as United States ambassador to the United Kingdom. She accepts and it is off to London along with her husband Hal (Rufus Sewell), himself a former ambassador to Lebanon who has a lot of adjusting to do recast as an ambassador’s spouse.
Kate is dropped in at the deep end as a suspected Iranian attack on a British aircraft carrier has killed more than 40 sailors but as she urges caution on a retaliatory attack, she realises just how challenging the role can be as she balances long-standing strategic alliances with a healthy dose of scepticism about the reality of international affairs. Russia comes into play, naturally, but just as much of a provocative presence is UK prime minister Nicol Trowbridge, a wonderfully obdurate Rory Kinnear.
Alongside all of this political intrigue (and there’s some cracking moments here, especially with the clandestine meetings) is a carefully calibrated examination of the personal cost of such service. The Wylers’ marriage is seriously crumbling as Hal can’t help but interfere, pushing Kate towards the undeniable charms of David Gyasi’s UK Foreign Secretary Austin Dennison. But theirs is a deep connection that keeps them coming back together, especially once a major secret about her recruitment to her new post is revealed – Russell and Sewell are great in their roles, a really sparky chemistry that I hope we get to see continue….
The location work is super fun too, as the US embassy is just down the road from me so there’s some Nine Elms and Vauxhall spotting that can be done. The grandness of the ambassador’s residence – Winfield House in Regent’s Park – is well evoked, even if it seems so far overboard. And there’s a cracking supporting cast at play – Celia Imrie’s Tory fixer, Penny Downie’s prim house manager, T’nia Miller’s flirtatious sister to Austin, Nana Mensah’s White House Chief of Staff and Ali Ahn’s CIA station chief and Ato Essandoh’s deputy chief of mission carrying out their own kinda clandestine relationship in the face of all that is swirling around them. Some very accomplished TV here.
