Season five of Apple TV+’s hit spy thriller Slow Horses concluded on a dramatic cliffhanger last night. The critically acclaimed show stars Gary Oldman as the dishevelled boss of Slough House, Jackson Lamb, Kristin Scott Thomas as MI5’s deputy director Diana Taverner and Jack Lowden as River Cartwright, an ambitious but naive field agent.
Each series of the critically acclaimed show is based on a different book in Mick Herron’s book series, Slough House, with the latest following the events of London Rules. Good news for fans, season six has already been confirmed – but this time, it will cover two books in the series: Joe Country and Slough House.
Both the books and the screen adaptation are a comedic take on the espionage genre – less James Bond and more The Thick of It. The series follows intelligence officers – dubbed “slow horses” by their peers – banished to desk work for bad behaviour. These misfit spies are prone to leaving top-secret documents on trains, chasing down the wrong bad guys, and accidentally embroiling themselves in government corruption.
The first novel, Slow Horses, was published in 2010 – but it didn’t make its way into the bestseller charts until years later. Herron has since penned eight more novels in the series, including the recently released Clown Town.
The winning formula of MI5 operations, high-profile assassinations, political conspiracies and dysfunctional agents has won the series a loyal fan base. Despite all the black humour, the spy plots are just as tight as an Ian Fleming or John Le Carre storyline. Whether you’re looking to dive into Slow Horses for the first time or want to catch up on the season five finale, here’s everything you need to know – including potential season six storylines.
Where to watch ‘Slow Horses’ season 5 finale
Slow Horses is an Apple TV+ exclusive, so you’ll need to sign up if you haven’t already. Apple TV+ costs £9.99 per month. If you haven’t already subscribed, you can try out the streaming service with a seven-day free trial. Apple TV+ is also home to fan favourite shows like Ted Lasso, Silo, The Morning Show and more.
The final episode of Slow Horses season five dropped yesterday (29 October), with all six episodes of the latest series now available to binge on the streaming platform.
Will there by a ‘Slow Horses’ season 6?
Slow Horses season six was confirmed all the way back in January 2024, with season seven confirmed in October 2024. Looking at the pattern of previous series premiers, we can likely expect season six to land in autumn 2026.
As for the plot, the upcoming season will use the sixth and seventh books in Mick Herron’s series as source material. The first book, Joe Country (£9.77, Amazon.co.uk), sees a former colleague of the slow horses asking for their help to find a missing teenager. Their search takes them deep into the snowy countryside of Wales, face-to-face with age-old enemies and forced to reckon with unresolved secrets from operations in the past.
The seventh novel, Slough House (£10.11, Amazon.co.uk), is set against the backdrop of a growing populist movement in London. When several members of the Slough House team vanish, Lamb must track down whoever is targeting his band of misfits. Making his life difficult, there are Russian hit teams and political protests around every corner of London.
Find out more about Mick Herron’s Slough House book series ahead of Slow Horses season six dropping
