Hard targets ... The cast of Spooks Code 9. Photograph: Kudos/BBC
Setting a spin-off series of Spooks in 2013, as Britain regroups after terrorists nuked London during the previous year's Olympic Games, might be an innovative (if somewhat scary) notion. But there's more to Spooks Code 9 than just a TV show about the new breed of counter-terrorist operative.
While the spying game is played out on screen, viral marketing and high-concept interactive elements are extending the story - and the brand - to the online community. BBC3, already home to multi-platform shows like Lily Allen and Friends, are rolling out the techie tricks to drama.
At libertynews.co.uk (a website purporting to belong to a future news agency), news, sport and entertainment stories from 2013 abound. We can see the extent of the radioactive exclusion zone in London, and discover which landmarks were damaged in the bomb blast.
Amy Winehouse adds her voice to the London relief effort, displaced football teams Arsenal and Chelsea have been relocated to Spain, and EastEnders characters re-emerge in post-nuke soap Camp 136. The world of Spooks Code 9 is fleshed out interactively online, and we can place ourselves in this alternate reality, conversing with its inhabitants and trying to spot the seeds of future Spooks Code 9 storylines. Members of the online community can even role-play and share their 2013 stories and photos.
When major events occur on our TV screens, whether it's a bad guy being bagged or a good guy being blasted to kingdom come (this is a Spooks spin-off, so we can't expect the whole team to survive the series), additional information will filter through via news reports on the site.
But will it work? I've seen a preview, and the show is disappointing. But with such energy fizzing throughout its online extensions, the question is no longer what these web offerings can add to the television experience. Rather, will the televisual adventures of these maverick young MI5 operatives live up to Spooks Code 9's multi-layered web of online activity?
