Black Doves viewers give verdict on Sarah Lancashire and Keira Knightley's new spy thriller
Netflix's new spy drama Black Doves arrived on Thursday and viewers have wasted no time getting stuck into the six-episode series.
Starring Keira Knightley, Ben Whishaw and Sarah Lancashire, the Christmas thriller is billed as a "sharp, action-filled, heartfelt story of friendship and sacrifice" and follows three operatives of a covert organisation embroiled in a dangerous conspiracy.
Keira plays Black Doves agent Helen Webb, who is married to a senior figure in the British government and has been feeding her husband's secrets to spymaster Reed (Lancashire) for a decade. But when Helen's secret lover Jason is killed, Reed suspects her top spy might be next and calls in an old friend, exiled assassin Sam (Whishaw), to help find out who murdered Jason and why.
It's safe to say the series has gone down a storm with viewers, with many spending hours binge-watching the show in one sitting.
Taking to social media, one person wrote: "#BlackDoves is a really good spy show. I just had to binge it. Keira Knightley is everything in this role, she's fantastic! I want many more Helen Webb adventures" while another penned: "#blackdoves is a perfection of a show. WOW."
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A third viewer commented: "Impressed by Netflix casually dropping the ridiculously entertaining #BlackDoves at the end of the year without much fanfare as if it wasn't an absolute triumph. People are going to be quoting the dialogue for years," while another hailed it as one of their favourite shows of 2024.
Many fans also applauded the performances of the starry trio, Kiera, Ben and Sarah, with one fan penning: "What a gripping binge-worthy thriller with lots of twists! Superb dialogue, dark humour and totally OTT violence but it really works! Kiera Knightley, Ben Wishaw and Sarah Lancashire are superb in it."
Fans will be pleased to know that Netflix has already commissioned a second season, although a release date has not yet been announced.
For those who have yet to tune into the series, it's set against the backdrop of London at Christmas and follows Helen, a quick-witted, dedicated wife and mother who also happens to be a professional spy.
For ten years, she's been passing on her politician husband's secrets to the shadow organisation she works for, Black Doves, headed up by spymaster Reed.
The synopsis continues: "When her secret lover Jason is assassinated, her spymaster, the enigmatic Reed, calls in Helen’s old friend Sam to keep her safe.
"Together, Helen and Sam set off on a mission to investigate who killed Jason and why, leading them to uncover a vast, interconnected conspiracy linking the murky London underworld to a looming geopolitical crisis."
Black Doves is available to stream on Netflix.