A high-flying diplomat contends with political crises and personal turmoil while serving as the British Ambassador to Ireland.
Harriet Smith (Pauline Collins) is the newly appointed British Ambassador to Dublin, a posting that requires a delicate touch and a steady nerve. A widow still mourning her husband, who was killed in a terrorist attack, she must balance sensitive international incidents with the challenges of raising her children in a high-pressure environment. Aided by her dependable deputy, John Stone (Denis Lawson), Harriet is confronted with a series of crises that test her professional ethics and personal loyalties. Cases include sheltering the abused wife of a foreign diplomat, the discovery of her own son’s connection to a drug-smuggling ring, and accusations of murder and espionage levelled against members of her staff.
This glossy diplomatic drama was constructed as a vehicle for its star, Pauline Collins, whose performance anchored the production. The series used its Dublin setting to generate stories that frequently mirrored contemporary political anxieties, from anti-drug initiatives to the legacy of the Northern Ireland Troubles. While the plots occasionally veered into melodrama, the programme maintained a focus on the procedural realities of diplomatic life, examining how personal morality and political expediency collide within the walls of an embassy. Each episode presented a self-contained crisis, but the serial also built a continuing narrative around Harriet’s professional and private life, creating a template for later character-led political dramas.
Broadcast: BBC One, 12 Episodes, Sundays, 4 January 1998 – 8 February 1998; 18 April 1999 – 30 May 1999
Created by: Russell Lewis
Writers include: Russell Lewis, Julian Jones, Guy Andrews
Directors include: Patrick Lau, Syd Macartney
Producer: Christopher Hall
Executive Producer: Douglas Rae
Main Cast: Pauline Collins (Harriet Smith), Denis Lawson (John Stone), Owen Roe (Kevin Flaherty), William Chubb (Stephen Tyler), Alison McKenna (Jennifer), Tom Connolly (Sam Smith), Peter Egan (Michael Cochrane), Frederick Treves (Robert Beauchamp)
