Tom Bradby opens up on what inspired ITVs Secret | UK News

Tom Bradby has revealed the inspiration behind his novel Secret Service, which has been tailored into a compelling five-part sequence.

Gemma Arterton stars in the lead position as Kate Henderson, a senior MI6 operative who finds herself unexpectedly propelled into the limelight. On the face of it, her existence appears unremarkable—a civil servant with a husband and two teenage kids.

Yet to those unfamiliar with her real work, Kate’s precise place includes overseeing the Russia Desk at the Secret Intelligence Service. The plot attracts from the 2019 e book of the same title, penned by ITV News presenter Tom, who has mentioned what sparked the thought for his novel.

Speaking at ITV Showcase 2026, Tom explained: “We really designed this as a bit of a peek behind the curtains and I think it’s weirdly a way for me to try and make sense of the crazy stuff that keeps going on in the world every day.

“It truly allowed me to type of course of it and hopefully permit people to ponder some of the problems and the hazards we face. I truly had the thought of strolling past the MI6 building.”

“I imagined what if you have been the MI6 officer that bought this intelligence about a potential Russian asset high up in the British authorities? What would that be actually be like? How would your bosses react?

“I just I was fascinated by the idea of how that would actually play out for someone trying to juggle her domestic life and everything else. So I found that just an incredibly intriguing idea in a way to explore some broader stuff.” He continued: “What we wanted into was tell a really fantastic story that was gripping and emotional, and, you know, fundamentally, fabulous mainstream entertainment. So hopefully we’ve done that.

“If people are speaking about it the next day over they’re Corn flakes that would make me very, very pleased because I do assume some of the problems that we type of contact on are fairly important.”

The News at Ten presenter has previously revealed that his inspiration for the original book stemmed from the Cold War, stating: “When I first got here up with this thought, it was clear to me we’re in a new Cold War.

“It was clear to me that democratic societies were being undermined. There was the question about whether Western politicians were being bribed, blackmailed, corrupted.”

Devoted followers of the spy style will already know this isn’t actress Gemma’s first foray into the world of espionage, having appeared in James Bond movie Quantum of Solace as intelligence operative Strawberry Fields alongside Daniel Craig. The actress has also spoken out about what viewers can anticipate from her character in the new sequence.

Gemma said: “She trains spies and finds out some very important information, which is that there is a Russian spy within the British government. Her mission is to find out, by hook or by crook, who that is.

“It’s actually gripping. It’s edge-of-your-seat stuff.” The series also stars Rafe Spall, Mark Stanley, Alex Kingston and Roger Allum.

Secret Service is accessible to stream on ITVX now