Work Drinks
The Sons of Albion are a group of men who have taken advantage of the situation to make money. They’re not interested in helping the war effort, or in making sure that everyone is treated equally. They just want to make a profit. And they’re doing this by kidnapping people and holding them hostage. This is a problem because it’s creating more tension and violence around the area. And it’s also causing problems for the police department. They can’t keep up with the demand for services, and they can’t keep track of who these kidnappers are working with.
MI5 is buzzing with the news of Diana’s appearance. Our victim, Hassan Ahmed, is a Birmingham-born man who is nothing out of the ordinary. However, the Sons of Albion are evidently not convinced, fueled by racism. Interestingly, extra intel from Diana (which she does not share) seems to hint that there could be more going on here. ..
Catherine is berated by Lamb at the office for her alcoholism despite her being in AA meetings trying to get sober. Catherine’s also haunted by the memories of her past, which we see sprinkled through the episode.
Cartwright learns from Karl that there is nothing on the USB stick. Not only that, Hobden has no online presence, with Roddy checking that angle to be sure. With this established, Cartwright realizes the only solution here is to grab Hobden’s laptop and go about this the old school way. ..
Diana meets with Mr Moody, who provides her with intel about Sid and Lamb’s operation. Moody used to be employed at Slough House for six years, but he left when he discovered a bug in Lamb’s office. He knows a great deal about the disgraced boss, prompting Diana to take advantage of this. She tells Moody to do some work for her off the book - and demands he get rid of the bug too. ..
Peter Judd, the MP we’ve been hearing about, is on a bus heading to work. Cartwright, using a burner to try and ring him, follows close behind. River follows him though, picking up his burner from the bins and eventually trying to outrun Cartwright. Only, he happens to be on the same bus.
That night, Sid caught up with Cartwright and the pair talked about why he’s after Hobden. After mentioning the suspicion he’s aroused, Cartwright goes on to reveal he’s found steel wool and rusting coffee filters in the man’s rubbish. Iron oxide - which happens to be one of the ingredients for thermite. ..
Sid and Cartwright learn that Roddy put someone on the sex offenders register because they took his seat on the bus. Sid is not sure if he could use Roddy to find out about why Lamb is there, but Sid is willing to try.
Cartwright and Sid are having a conversation about Hobden’s when they are interrupted by movement over at the other restaurant.
The agents jump into action and find Hobden up at gunpoint, at the hands of a masked assailant. The man sets off an explosive, charges past Cartwright, shoots Sid and leaves the place an inferno. It seems he’s part of the Sons of Albion but everything is left hanging on a precarious knife edge for next week’s follow-up.
The Episode Review
Slow Horses delivered another good episode this week, fleshing out the supporting characters and their various ties to Slough House. Seeing more of Roddy and Catherine was certainly appreciated, while Cartwright’s ties to this case were starting to send him down a dangerous path. ..
Sid has been sent to debunk his work and keep an eye on him for MI5 but to what end? Was all of this staged from the beginning? There are lots of question marks hanging over this case but the way this one has played out thus far has certainly been intriguing.
