Slow Horses star reacts to "satisfying" episode 3 reveal and major book change
"It was really, really satisfying to have that narrative pay off." **CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR SLOW HORSES SEASON 5 EPISODE 3**
*Warning - contains spoilers for Slow Horses season 5 episode 3*
The fifth season of Slow Horses has featured a number of changes from the novel on which it is based, Mick Herron's London Rules, but one of them was signposted well ahead of time in season 4.
At the end of that season, it was revealed that Roddy's girlfriend, Kim, was in fact a bot – a change from the novels in which she was an actual person, and went on to play the role Tara does in season 5 in London Rules.
Now, in the third episode of the new season, a link was made back to that season 4 reveal, with Dianna Taverner telling Roddy Ho that she and the Park believe Kim was in fact a plant, profiling him to set in motion the events of season 5.
Speaking about this reveal, Christopher Chung told RadioTimes.com exclusively: "When we did season 4, Will had floated the idea. Because I think actually in the book, Spook Street, there's not a whole bunch for Roddy to do within that.
"But Will had started to talk to me about pushing this idea into season 4 about this girlfriend who's actually a bot, which gets revealed at the end of the season."
He continued: "I thought ‘Oh, that's a really interesting kind of segue moving into season 5, because then he gets a real girlfriend’. And then Will's brilliance is knowing 'Well, in season 5, what we’d end up doing is that the chat bot from season 4 was a plant to profile you'. It's brilliant.
"So it's setting these things up and putting these Easter eggs and puzzle pieces within the show that no one else is aware of unless you have those conversations or until you get the next season. So, yeah, it was really, really satisfying to have that narrative pay off."
Speaking about the book changes in season 5, Herron previously told RadioTimes.com that he wasn't surprised by any of them, as he had "been involved in the adaptation and as such I discussed any changes they were making".
"But there are a lot of interesting departures from the book which I enjoyed," he said, before adding: "Some of which I instigated."
Slow Horses season 5 will continue on Apple TV+ on Wednesday 15th October. Seasons 1-4 are available to watch now – sign up to Apple TV+ here.
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Authors
James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.
