Talk:Spooks (TV series)

Spooks?

what's the source for spooks being MI:5 because spooks is offensive? According to the 'spooks expert' on the official website, it was called that because americans would associate spooks with the CIA.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/spooks/spooksexpert_questions_1.shtml#2 see the answer to the question 'Why is the show also called "MI5 not 9 to 5"?'

The programme guide to the series by Jim Sangster, who ironically is I believe also the man who does the Q&A section on the website. Angmering 13:29, 13 Sep 2004 (UTC)

On a parallel, doesn't The Human Stain use the idea of 'spooks' being an offensive term? NickBarlow 01:15, 15 Dec 2004 (UTC)

I believe it's something to do with spook being a racist slang word in America.

"Spook" as a racist slang word is very rare in America. The term is used much more often for members of the intelligence community. The name change is almost certainly a smart marketing move to make it clear to an American audience that the show is about British intelligence officers and not American ones. Mtiffany 15:06, 27 August 2007 (UTC)

Spook was once quite common as a derogatory term for black Americans, which older generations may remember. It may also connotate ghosts or the horror genre (as in spooky). It is not "much more common" as a label for spies or other intelligence personnel. -24.149.185.189 (talk) 11:41, 8 February 2008 (UTC)

Ben Richards

In the episode list at the bottom of the article the following is present: "The Seventh Division" ("A Very Corporate Coup") — Written by Ben Richards, directed by Sam Miller. Ben Richards redirects to The Running Man, which is not helpful - is there a standard way to resolve this sort of problem - perhaps by making a new link to Ben Richards (Writer) or something similar. Tompagenet 15:45, 29 May 2006 (UTC)

Done. Angmering 19:09, 29 May 2006 (UTC)

Series 3

What do people think of Series 3 so far? --Frankie Roberto 01:32, 24 Oct 2004 (UTC)

Not happy with Tom leaving! It's still pretty good, but I can't help but feel that it's losing something. Lan3y - Talk 05:13, Nov 15, 2004 (UTC)

Oh dear, looks like Zoe just left too! :( Lan3y - Talk 23:40, Nov 15, 2004 (UTC)

Indeedy - the main characters are dropping out like flies... I still have the feeling that Tom will make a re-appearance. --Frankie Roberto 12:28, 17 Nov 2004 (UTC)

I've enjoyed it - interesting that there's a much more political edge to the stories now - though I appreciate that's not everyone's cup of tea. In terms of the article, shouldn't some of the information on Series 3 (and perhaps before) be after a spoiler warning? NickBarlow 01:15, 15 Dec 2004 (UTC)

I've added a spoiler warning after the first paragraph. It's not ideal, as there isn't that much in the second paragraph about the plot, apart from the mention of what happened in episode 2. Silverfish 02:08, 15 Dec 2004 (UTC)

I've added the American episode titles for episodes 1-9 of the Series 3 from the A&E site - anyone know where the British working titles can be found? BBC website only calls them by episode number. I'll add the title in for episode 10 when it becomes available next week. NickBarlow 13:40, 5 Mar 2005 (UTC)

Spooks rap group

Just wondering if anyone has any info on the spooks rap group --195.194.71.251 11:09, 13 Jun 2005 (UTC)

Episodes

Perhaps split off into separate episodes, using the Beeb page's episode guides, a la Rome (tv series)?, if we can get sufficient manpower!:-) Just a suggestion. Neddyseagoon 00:07, 6 June 2006 (UTC)

Or at least create a single episode table (not the 2 we have now) for cast, writers, guests, date., plot etc a la Rome (tv series)#Season 1 (2005)

Yes... I was wondering why the "episodes" and "series" sections linked to from this article are so strangely fomatted - it's not normal to go to the "category" namespace for a list of episodes. Rather, check out List of South Park episodes for a WP:Featured List Example. Cheers, Witty lama 16:05, 14 April 2007 (UTC)

JUST REDONE THE EPISODE LIST< PLEASE HELP CLEAN IT UP MORE!!! - Adam —Preceding comment was added at 01:47, 28 November 2007 (UTC)

Cleanup (Sept 2006)

I just added the tag. The listings of the individual episodes are in two places. In one, we have some rough plot info, a touch of trivia, etc. In the second listing, info such as who wrote it, etc. These need to be combined, and I just don't have time. I didn't want to just wipe out either one, since valuable info is in each. — RevRagnarok ^{Talk Contrib} 23:21, 17 September 2006 (UTC)

I'll take a shot at it. I've just finished cleaning Ideal (TV series), so I'm a bit worn out but I'm sure I can do something with this, either now or sometime over the next few days. --B33R 04:13, 18 September 2006 (UTC)

I've nearly finished the update. The page is looking a bit long, maybe the episode list needs a page of its own... Episodes from series 4 still need a description and a bit of beefing up, and series 5 has yet to be added to the episode list. Series 2 background info needs beefing up too.

If anyone has any comments about moving the episode list to its own page or any other ideas they'll be appreciated. --B33R 06:43, 18 September 2006 (UTC)

Nice work, but long? It's tiny, compared to some other shows. I don't think it needs subarticles just yet. Iorek85 07:56, 18 September 2006 (UTC)

OK, thanks for your comment. :) --B33R 08:44, 18 September 2006 (UTC)

Series 5 Episode 9 "Directed by Julian Holmes"? The credits say Julian Simpson.ComaDivine 07:11, 18 November 2006 (UTC)

The BBC website credits seem to say it's Julian Holmes. Which credits were you looking at? Jaws87 15:04, 1 December 2006 (UTC)

The credits that roll at the end of the actual episode. I emailed the BBC and they said:

All information available to us suggest that is was directed by Julian Holmes. However, we are unable to check this with the programme makers or against the programme credits. As you can appreciate, the expenditure to do this can only come from the licence fee, resulting in resources being diverted from the primary function of the BBC, which is to provide programmes. I regret we are unable to supply a comprehensive response on this occasion. I hope you are not too disappointed.

It definitely says Julian Simpson on the credits, so it must have been an error there. ComaDivine 23:12, 1 December 2006 (UTC)

I think you're right, it's Julian Simpson, IMDB have it as Julian Simpson too. It must be an error on the BBC Spooks website. Does this suggest that the director for episode 5.10 needs changing to Julian Simpson too? Jaws87 14:46, 4 December 2006 (UTC)

Can't say for certain. Episode 10 was (I think) broadcast only on BBC1, so the episode finished rather abruptly with no credits, unlike if it ran on BBC3, where credits are shown at the end of each episode. ComaDivine 23:14, 4 December 2006 (UTC)

Wikipedia:WikiProject Spooks

Just an idea - with the new series just starting in the UK and some interest to exploit, why don't we start to create individual pages for each episode for this series (and working back into the backlog of the previous 4 series) a la the Doctor Who taskforce, who have been a model of practice in this area? I can take a lead if there's a consensus. See also Wikipedia talk:WikiProject British TV shows#Wikipedia:WikiProject Spooks[[User:Neddyseagoon | [[User talk:Neddyseagoon|talk]]]] 21:43, 18 September 2006 (UTC)

I think thats a good idea, The current page lacks detail and seems quite disjointed! --The Loon

Go for it - not sure what your episope template adds over what is already available though. :: Kevinalewis : ^{(Talk Page)}/_(Desk) 15:57, 22 September 2006 (UTC)

Would you care to join it?  :-) User|Neddyseagoon 21:47, 22 September 2006 (UTC)

This is terrible English...

"Carter was abducted and in a bid for captivity from her abductors, cut her wrists to make it appear to deranged ex-husband that she had taken her life. By creating this diversion she hoped to be able to escape. However her attempt was short lived when she was shot dead by the ex-husband she had thought had been hanged several years previously"

Series 5

Can anyone provide the episode names for the just ended series? Where did someone get the names from for the earlier series? I couldnt find anything on BBCs site or in the credits of the episodes. - — Preceding unsigned comment added by 84.191.147.111 (talk • contribs)

Does anybody know when A&E will air series 5 in the US? Frankly I think A&E has been terrible at marketing and supporting the show ever since series 2... Wl219 11:30, 20 December 2006 (UTC)

Footnote/Reference system conversion

Are people happy for me to convert from the old Wikipedia:Footnote3 referencing system to the new Wikipedia:Footnote referencing system using the <ref> and <references/> tags? I think it'd improve the article as reference numbers don't match the numbers in the references section. Jaws87 14:57, 24 December 2006 (UTC)

I'd be all for that. Trebor 18:43, 24 December 2006 (UTC)

Go ahead. You could convert the links randomly dotted around the article while you do it...RHB 19:22, 24 December 2006 (UTC)

I've changed the referencing system as above. 3 of the references on the old system weren't actually mentioned in the main article. One of these (HN and PF talking about series 5), I've moved to the external links section. The other two are reports of an episode getting axed which isn't specifically mentioned in the main article. I've left these two in the references section for now, but maybe somebody could do a write up on this and then reference them properly? Could stick it in the series 5 info section?

While I was there I also corrected some of the wiki links and cleared up some of the external links in the main article and put them in the references section. There are still external links in the main article for the BBC episode guides for each series. I feel they don't really fit how they are at the moment nor do they fit as references - maybe something to think about for another day? Jaws87 21:20, 24 December 2006 (UTC)

Section B or D?

I notice a recent edit was made that changed all references to the Spooks' department to "Section D" from "Section B". I've looked into this and it seems there is an inconsistency between the scripts. In episode 2.5 when the team are undergoing the EERIE exercise, Tom says: "What about the other floors? Immigration? Sections A and D?...", suggesting that they are not Section D and it must be Section B. Also various places on the BBC website suggest it's section B: here (3rd question) and here (1st question) and on a press release (last paragraph).

However, in episode 4.10 when Harry orders the lockdown, he says: "This is Harry Pearce, Section D".

Therefore, which do we adopt for the article? Also, does this inconsistency warrant mention in the article also or would that be original research? Jaws87 20:27, 17 January 2007 (UTC)

Significant recent edits and the episode list

I notice that there have been some significant edits to the Spooks article this week. The DVD section has definitely been improved.

The episode list has also been moved to a different article. I do, however, feel that it would have been better if it had been discussed on this talk page before the new article was created. Personally, I feel the episode list would be better in the main article, or at least some of it, as having it in another article seems to fragment the main article. I realise the page was getting quite large and was over the 25 KB guide but had all the information in one place. What do other people think? Jaws87 14:13, 18 February 2007 (UTC)

I made the edits to which you referr. I felt the DVD section needed improving hence my edits. And as for the episode list i felt it was getting to big to be included on the main page. So while im still working on the episode list page i think it should remain as is for now. However i welcome differing opinions Pat 20:24, 18 February 2007 (UTC)

Hi. Thanks, the DVD section is much improved. Sure, we'll leave as is for the moment. Please could you leave in the short episode descriptions though as mentioned on the other talk page? Thanks, Jaws87 19:55, 8 March 2007 (UTC)

Oliver Mace

Why is Oliver Mace listed as being part of the current cast, when in s5e5 it is said that he has resigned. Surely that makes him past cast.84.13.112.35 00:01, 7 May 2007 (UTC)

Rogue Spooks

There are references to the spinoff rogue spooks, however, there's no mention of this whatsoever at the bbc press office.84.13.112.35 00:01, 7 May 2007 (UTC)

Logos/credits

Does that long graf in the intro on ending logos and lack of credits really belong in the intro? Amyloo 13:19, 15 November 2007 (UTC)

The Grid

It's odd that this article uses the term "The Grid" but does not explain it. Regular watchers may well know precisely what it means but it is hardly encyclopaedic to assume that the rest of us know. Could someone in the know please include an explanation? 138.37.199.206 (talk) 11:23, 19 December 2007 (UTC)

Zaf's Death

Zaf shouldn't be listed as dead, as that is as yet (S6e10) unconfirmed. —Preceding unsigned comment added by HasanDiwan (talk • contribs) 10:08, 21 December 2007 (UTC)

I'm sure that it was confirmed in the final episode. ~~ [Jam]^[talk] 11:13, 21 December 2007 (UTC)

It was - but who knows in TV. :: Kevinalewis : ^{(Talk Page)}/_(Desk) 12:13, 21 December 2007 (UTC)

Well, we'll just have to assume the body was his, and was correctly identified by the dental records, unless/til we're informed otherwise... ^† DBD 12:20, 21 December 2007 (UTC)

Wasn't the death confirmed by the American agent who turned out to be a traitor? Maybe he was lying. I'd err on the side of caution here, especially given shows of this type like plot twists and Spooks in particular has a penchant for faking deaths. Lurker (said · done) 12:59, 21 December 2007 (UTC)

See http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/spooks/personnel_zy.shtml - he has been killed. ~~ [Jam]^[talk] 16:01, 21 December 2007 (UTC)

the BBC would hardly list him as a current character if they were going to bring him back as a surprise, would they? ;) I still have hope - the way they handled his 'death' didn't seem at all real to me.

Where has he been listed as a current character? ~~ [Jam]^[talk] 12:03, 18 April 2008 (UTC)

Current/Former characters

This section violates WP:FICTION. Articles must be written in present continuous tense. None of the "former" characters were dead in the first episode for example. 59.167.45.168 (talk) 13:05, 19 April 2008 (UTC)