TV series
Called out of retirement to settle the affairs of a friend, Smiley finds his old organization, the Circus, so overwhelmed by political considerations that it doesn't want to know what happened. He begins to follow up the clues of his friends past days, discovering that the clues lead to a high person in the Russian Secret service, and a secret important enough to kill for.
Availability
Smiley's People premiered September 20, 1982. We don't have a confirmed streaming, rental or purchase option yet.
Called out of retirement to settle the affairs of a friend, Smiley finds his old organization, the Circus, so overwhelmed by political considerations that it doesn't want to know what happened. He begins to follow up the clues of his friends past days, discovering that the clues lead to a high person in the Russian Secret service, and a secret important enough to kill for.
Choose an episode, then use the watch options above for the show.
Episode 1
Once more, George Smiley is brought out of retirement to look into the murder of an old colleague.
Directed by Simon LangtonWritten by John le Carré, John HopkinsGuest stars Eileen Atkins, Bill Paterson, Anthony Bate, Ingrid Pitt, Vladek Sheybal, Germaine Delbat, Curd Jürgens, Michael Gough
Episode 2
Smiley takes a trip to investigate his friend's flat for clues. After finding a series of clues that lead to something bigger, Smiley interrogates a man about Vladimir's whereabouts. And lastly, a picture of two men in bed with a woman stirs things up.
Directed by Simon LangtonWritten by John le Carré, John HopkinsGuest stars Eileen Atkins, Anthony Bate, Ingrid Pitt, Vladek Sheybal, Andy Bradford, Curd Jürgens, Michael Gough, Maureen Lipman
Episode 3
The investigation of Vladimir's murder leads Smiley to interrogate his latest suspect. Smiley is told to stop investigating the case by a man on a motorcycle, and he just blows him off. Smiley's next stop is Oxfordshire, speaking to a mother and a daughter about the case.
Directed by Simon LangtonWritten by John le Carré, John HopkinsGuest stars Eileen Atkins, Bernard Hepton, Andy Bradford, Germaine Delbat, Mario Adorf, Jacques Maury, Beryl Reid, Norma West
Episode 4
Smiley continues his investigation, now looking for a man named Otto in a small fishing community, only to find his decaying body in his boat, and a mysterious chalk mark he's seen before. Smiley talks to the now-perpetually afraid woman.
Directed by Simon LangtonWritten by John le Carré, John HopkinsGuest stars Eileen Atkins, Bill Paterson, Michael Byrne, Vladek Sheybal, Andy Bradford, Tusse Silberg, Germaine Delbat, Mario Adorf
Episode 5
Smiley and his colleagues read through an extremely long deathbed confession. Using an undercover name, Smiley travels to Berne to attempt to find the missing pieces of the murder mystery. Meanwhile, we are introduced to a woman in an asylum.
Directed by Simon LangtonWritten by John le Carré, John HopkinsGuest stars Bill Paterson, Bernard Hepton, Anthony Bate, Michael Byrne, Vladek Sheybal, Andy Bradford, Tusse Silberg, Michael Lonsdale
Episode 6
Smiley interrogates a diplomat by showing him a series of photographs, and in turn, closes in on the person who killed Vladimir. He is led to the asylum, and ironically, things eventually become clearer.
Directed by Simon LangtonWritten by John le Carré, John HopkinsGuest stars Bill Paterson, Bernard Hepton, Michael Byrne, Tusse Silberg, Michael Lonsdale, Rosalie Crutchley, Julia McCarthy, Lucinda Curtis
Episode information updated Sep 17, 2026
Available now in United States
These shows are available now and closely match Smiley's People.
Alec GuinnessGeorge Smiley
Eileen AtkinsMadame Ostrakova
Bill PatersonLauder Strickland
Bernard HeptonToby Esterhase
Anthony BateOliver Lacon
Ingrid PittElvira
Michael ByrnePeter Guillam
Vladek SheybalOtto Leipzig
BBC TwoUnited Kingdom
BBCUnited Kingdom
Paramount TelevisionUnited States
