Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1979)

Drama · Mystery · Thriller

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is a seven-part BBC2 spy drama written by Arthur Hopcraft, adapted from John le Carré's eponymous 1974 novel. The serial, which stars Alec Guinness, Alexander Knox, Ian Richardson, Michael Jayston, Bernard Hepton, Anthony Bate, Ian Bannen, George Sewell and Michael Aldridge, was broadcast from 10 September to 22 October 1979. George Smiley, the ageing master spy of the Cold War and once heir-apparent to Control, is brought back out of retirement to flush out a top level mole within the Circus. Smiley must travel back through his life and murky workings of the Circus to unravel the net spun by his nemesis Karla 'The Sandman' of the KGB and reveal the identity of the mole before he disappears.

IMDb rating: 8.4 (10,962 votes)
Episode average: 8.1 -0.3 vs IMDb
Seasons: 1
Language: EN
Type: Mini-series

Rating trend: this show's seasons do not settle into one shape. Rising Shows ranks whole shows by the shape of their rating trend rather than one average score, which is how you find a show that got better rather than a show that started well.

Browse shows by rating shape → Open in Rising Shows app → View on IMDb

Ratings refreshed Oct 3, 2026 · 1 season indexed

Cast

Seasons

Season 1 (1979)

8.14 avg 7 episodes 7.9 → 8.4 55 min avg

Big finale

Season 1 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Return to the Circus	7.9	459
2	Tarr Tells His Story	8.0	387
3	Smiley Tracks the Mole	8.1	373
4	How It All Fits Together	8.1	358
5	Tinker Tailor	8.3	405
6	Smiley Sets a Trap	8.2	338
7	Flushing Out the Mole	8.4	345