The second series premiered on 10 December 2023. It replaces the nautical setting of the first series with a land-based drama that focuses on prototype drone technology. Jones, Leslie and Lewis reprise their roles with Dougray Scott and Romola Garai joining the main cast.
Plot
Series 1
Detective Chief Inspector Amy Silva of Police Scotland is sent to HMS Vigil, a nuclear-poweredVanguard-classballistic missile submarine, to investigate a death on board, which takes place shortly after the mysterious disappearance of a Scottish fishing trawler. Her investigations, and those of her colleagues ashore, bring the police into conflict with the Royal Navy and MI5, the British Security Service.
The loss of the trawler Mhairi Finnea in the series bears similarities to the sinking of the FV Antares by Royal Navy nuclear-powered submarine HMS Trenchant in the Firth of Clyde in 1990. Families of the Antares's crew expressed upset at scenes of the Mhairi Finnea foundering; however, the BBC denied that the drama was inspired by or based on a specific real-life event.[3][4]
Series 2
When a Royal Air Force prototype combat drone is compromised and kills several soldiers during a joint demonstration in Scotland, Silva’s team are tasked with finding the perpetrator. She travels to joint Al-Shawka Air Base in the Kingdom of Wudyan, a controversial ally in the Persian Gulf, and discovers a wider conspiracy intertwined with the current regime's collaboration with the British government and private enterprise on drone development.[5][6]
Tommy Sim'aan as Firas Zaman, a Wudyani journalist and dissident living in Scotland [7]
Khalid Laith Nicole as Abdullah Ghazali, leader of Jabhat Al-huriya[7]
Kamal Mustaffai as Mutaz, one of Ghazali's henchmen[7]
Production
In a 2021 interview, writer Tom Edge was approached by development producer George Aza-Selinger to develop a submarine project for television. It was inspired by the UK's Continuous At-Sea Deterrent (CASD) and the life of its submarine crews.[8] The show was filmed and primarily set in Scotland. Production designer Tom Sayer created elaborate studio sets to represent the interior of the submarine.[9]
The first series received generally positive reviews from critics, with praise for the writing, pace, acting, visual style, set design, tone, and atmosphere, but it was criticised for the dialogue, plot, and inaccuracies. In March 2022, Vigil was renewed for a second series,[10] which premiered on 10 December 2023.[11]
The programme's theme music is the song "Fuel to Fire" from the 2013 album Aventine by Danish singer, songwriter and musician Agnes Obel.[14] Other music included in the series is composed by Afterhere (Berenice Scott and Glenn Gregory).[15] Episode 4 includes the song "Anchor" by Welsh singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Novo Amor, released as a single in 2015 and included on his 2017 EP Bathing Beach.[16]
Chief Petty Officer Craig Burke, a member of the crew of a ballistic missile nuclear submarine HMS Vigil, reports his concerns over unusual sonar readings while on patrol. Confined to quarters following insubordination, he is later found dead in an apparent drug overdose. Police Scotland are asked to investigate and DCI Amy Silva and a man called Doward, Burke's replacement on the crew, are airlifted to Vigil's classified location. Unable to contact her colleagues by radio due to the sensitive nature of the patrol mission, she suspects the sailor was murdered, but the captain and other officers disagree. On land, Silva's DS and former lover, Kirsten Longacre, has begun a parallel investigation into Burke's movements and his acquaintances. She finds a clue during a search of Burke's room which she keeps hidden from the Navy. Vigil loses power suddenly when the reactor SCRAMs and the boat lurches in an uncontrollable dive.
The crew rush to restart the reactor and restore power. DCI Silva finds evidence to support her murder theory, but encounters resentment from most of the crew, apart from the coxswain Elliot Glover, in whom she confides the reason for her claustrophobia and fear of being underwater. Silva is also haunted by memories about the death of her fiancé during a car accident and having to make the difficult choice to save their daughter Poppy. After locking her in her cabin, Lieutenant Commander Mark Prentice, the Executive Officer, admits to striking Burke and concealing this when Burke was found dead in his bunk. Silva doubts the blow was fatal and thinks Burke may have been poisoned. DS Longacre is attacked when she arrives home to find two burglars ransacking her house. She makes contact with a young anti-nuclear weapons activist, Jade, who had been dating Burke and agrees to talk to her. On arriving at the rendezvous, she discovers that Jade has drowned.
The police find that Burke held compromising material on the crew following a mission to Florida where two US contractors died; his findings include a compromising photo of medical officer Docherty with an unknown tattooed man. On land, the news of Burke’s death is leaked to the media. Longacre learns that Jade was the daughter of Scottish MP Patrick Cruden, who also reveals that Burke shared incriminating information through Jade. The missing fishing trawler is revealed to have been dragged down by an American submarine, raising questions as to why it was in British waters. The Navy believe that the Americans were still uneasy following the Florida incident. On board the Vigil, CPO Gary Walsh gets drunk, steals a gun and attempts suicide, but is stopped by Silva and Glover. Longacre is tracked down by MI5 officers and questioned about her investigation. Silva identifies Glover as the tattooed man.
MI5 reveal to the police that the suspected murderer of Jade was a Russian GRU spy with diplomatic immunity. The police, MI5 and the navy present their findings to the Secretary of State for Defence, and speculate that there may be a Russian spy on board the Vigil. Shaw reluctantly makes the decision to recall the submarine, but there is no response because Vigil's communications are down as a result of sabotage. On Vigil, suspicion falls on the chief cook, Jackie Hamilton, whose son was imprisoned in Indonesia on drug charges, which have suddenly been dropped. Hamilton is later found dead by Silva and Silva is attacked by an unknown assailant wearing a mask.
The masked man turns out to be Glover, who is trying to save Silva from a nerve agent which he thinks killed Jackie Hamilton and which continues to be present in a key part of the submarine. Silva and Longacre's past relationship continues to be told in flashbacks. Longacre visits Silva's deceased boyfriend's daughter Poppy and her grandparents. Working with MI5, Longacre and DS Porter continue their investigation into Russian espionage. Ben Oakley from the peace camp is revealed to have been abetting the Russians; posing as a whistleblower on Britain's nuclear activities, he persuades Patrick Cruden, the Scottish MP and Jade Antoniak's natural father, to arrange political asylum for him at a foreign embassy. Longacre identifies Doward, the sonar operator who replaced Burke, as a probable Russian agent. Glover and Silva don protective gear in a dangerous assignment to examine Jackie Hamilton's body and the surrounding sealed-off area to investigate her death and make the area safe from further contamination. When Silva returns, she is overpowered by Doward, who traps her in one of the torpedo tubes and starts to fill it with seawater.
Prentice rescues Silva from the torpedo compartment but is murdered by Doward, who also sabotages the submarine’s valves so that it begins to take in water. Walsh and other maintenance personnel manage to stop the leak and get communications back on, and Captain Newsome receives orders from the Admiralty and the information about Doward. Silva is taken hostage by Doward in an effort to force Newsome to resurface and contact a Russian vessel. Newsome has the submarine tilt rapidly upward, throwing Doward off balance; he is overpowered by other crew members and is arrested by Silva. Longacre and her team arrest Oakley outside the Chinese consulate, and he confesses that he was an accessory to Jade's murder. Silva returns to dry land and rekindles her relationship with Longacre, and they visit Poppy. Doward is interviewed by MI5, and reveals to them that the plan was meant to discredit Britain’s Trident nuclear deterrent, at a time when Parliament was to vote on whether to retain Trident. Shaw persuades Cruden to go along with the official story that the sinking of the fishing trawler was caused by a Russian submarine.
DCI Silva and DS Longacre continue their relationship, with the latter pregnant. The couple investigate a botched drone demonstration drill at the Dundair Air Weapons Range in Scotland, which ended with the deaths of several British military personnel and delegates from Wudyan, an authoritarian Middle Eastern monarchy. A drone controller is suspected of piloting the rogue drones but the detectives suspect a bigger conspiracy. Air Vice-Marshal Marcus Grainger is involved in a lucrative partnership to export military drones to Wudyan amidst human rights concerns. Longacre detains Firas, a dissident Wudyan journalist who was spying on the test demonstration. While searching for a missing British Air Force officer Anthony Chapman and his daughter Sabiha, Silva and Longacre discover that an assassin has killed Chapman but find Sabiha.
With the help of armed police, Silva and Longacre save Sabiha from the assassin but are unable to stop him from fleeing. The detectives' investigation leads Silva to travel to Wudyan where British military personnel led by Squadron Leader Eliza Russell conduct joint military and training operations with Wudyan military forces. Silva travels with Sabiha, who is of mixed Wudyan-British origins. Longacre remains in Scotland to continue the investigation there. She encounters the assassin Ross Sutherland in an abandoned apartment complex but allows him to escape. In Wudyan, Silva learns that a reserve RPAS console was stolen and CCTV footage removed to cover the theft. Her investigation is further complicated when Sabiha stabs Callum Barker, a lieutenant who was one of Chapman's colleagues.
In Wudyan, Silva manages to convince Sabiha not to kill Barker and to surrender. In custody, Sabiha admits to stealing a drone console from the base as part of a Wudyan dissident movement. Sabiha reveals that she and her father Chapman had been concerned about Wudyan's human rights abuses. Silva manages to convince the Wudyan and British authorities to allow Sabiha to return to the United Kingdom to face trial. After questioning Barker, Silva searches for a traitor within the base, who organised the theft of the drone console. As part of her investigation, Silva questions a wealthy Wudyan man, who proves uncooperative. While driving with Russell, the two women are held at gunpoint by a Wudyan man. Back in Scotland, Longacre learns from Daniel Ramsay that Barker had run a social media account documenting human rights abuses in Wudyan. Following an argument with Silva, Longacre encounters Sutherland, who reveals details of the drone plot. Later, she leads a successful manhunt that captures Sutherland.
Silva and Russell are kidnapped by a group of Wudyan political dissidents, who are opposed to the ruling regime's military partnership with the United Kingdom. Back in Scotland, Longacre and Ramsay question the Wudyan dissident for information about Silva and Russell's whereabouts. The dissident's brother is revealed to be the leader of the group holding Silva and Russell hostage. Captain Kader, a secret Wudyan dissident, infiltrates the base using Russell's access codes but is captured before he can complete his mission to obtain classified information. Lieutenant Barker obtains the flashdrive containing the information. Silva and Russell escape their captors and managed to contact British and Wudyan forces before their recapture. The two are liberated by British and Wudyan forces, who kill most of the dissidents.
Following their rescue, Silva clashes with Air Vice-Marshal Grainger and Squadron Leader Russell about the heavy-handed killing of the dissidents. Captain Kader is arrested by Wudyan authorities, who regard him as a terrorist. Despite Grainger's orders that she return to Scotland, Silva continues her investigation in Wudyan. Barker provides Silva with the flashdrive, which contains footage of the failed drone demonstration. Silva also discovers evidence that the stolen drone console was planted in the Wudyan dissident hideout with the intention of framing them for the drone rampage. Silva also pursues technician Wes Harper, who has access to information about the drone programme. After escaping assassins, Silva and Harper depart Wudyan with Russell on an Air Force transport plane. During the flight, Harper is killed by Russell seemingly in self defence. Elsewhere, Sutherland escapes the hospital.
Returning to Scotland, Silva and police investigators discover evidence that Russell murdered Harper. Before they can question Russell, she is whisked into hiding by MI5. Meanwhile, Longacre tracks down Sutherland, who is meeting with the arms dealer McCabe. McCabe kills Sutherland and shoots Longacre, wounding her. After tending to Longacre, Silva locates Russell, who confesses to manipulating Sabiha into stealing the drone console, hiring Sutherland to kill Chapman for looking for the missing console, and murdering Harper for blackmailing her. Russell also reveals that she and Grainger staged the Dundair drone attack as a false flag operation for the UK to enter Wudyan's war against the Jabat Al-Huria insurgents. With Ramsay's help, Silva uncovers evidence incriminating Grainger. Grainger and Russell are subsequently convicted of the Dundair murders and conspiracy and sentenced to life imprisonment. Firas delivers a victim impact statement criticising the British support for Wudyan's repressive government. Captain Kader has his sentence commuted to two years. Silva, Longacre and Poppy celebrate the impending birth of Longacre's son.
^In an October 2021 press release, the BBC claimed 13.8 million viewers for Series 1 Episode 1, citing BARB 28 day consolidated data as the source. BARB 28 day consolidated data is not directly available to the public.[35]
Reception
Ratings
Series 1 Episode 1 attracted an audience of 10.2 million viewers across its first seven days, making Vigil the BBC's most watched new drama of the year.[36]
Series 1
The review aggregatorRotten Tomatoes gave the first series an 85% approval rating, with an average rating of 6.6/10, based on 20 reviews. The critical consensus reads, "Vigil is ludicrous just as often as it is suspenseful, but a committed cast and pulpy pace make it worth diving in”.[37] On Metacritic, the series has a weighted average score of 83 out of 100 based on five reviews.[38]
Lucy Mangan of The Guardian found the first episode intriguing, awarding it five out of five and describing it as "solid, old-fashioned entertainment".[39]The Independent gave the first episode four out of five, praising the cast and Edge's writing.[40] In a four-starred review for London's Evening Standard, Katie Rosseinsky said: "Even scenes set in the depths of the sub are visually striking, lit up in reds and blues. Add in some jump scares, a handful of near-catastrophes and a couple of cliffhangers and you have all the makings of a taut mystery with intriguingly murky depths. Sunday nights are stressful again – I wouldn’t have it any other way."[41] In a five-starred review, Empire magazine described Vigil as "[a] relentless conspiracy drama bursting with performers who know how to keep their cards close to their chests. British TV doesn’t get more thrilling than this."[42]Hugo Rifkind in The Times described "[s]etting a whodunnit on a submarine" as "a masterstroke".[43] Giving the programme four stars, Suzy Feay of the Financial Times said that "The submarine setting has the welcome effect of pressure-cooking some fairly standard ingredients into a tasty concoction".[44]
Other reviewers were less complimentary, citing the unrealistic sets and other technical inaccuracies, the implausibility of elements of the plot, and its political bias. James Delingpole in The Spectator described it as "amateurish and implausible", noting that "the uniforms are wrong; the ceilings are too high and the sub generally far too spacious" and criticised "the hackneyed dialogue, the implausible plotting and the box-ticking".[45] Anita Singh in The Telegraph described the series as "so bad it could be Russian propaganda", and her colleague Ed Power noted that "the story was nonsense" and that "the premise was wasted".[46][47]The Telegraph also reported that the naval advisor working on the series was an SNP councillor and anti-nuclear campaigner, leading to accusations of bias.[48] Carol Midgley in The Times said that "this subpar ocean drama made my heart sink", and described it as "stultifying".[49]
Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet said the series was "effective" in the beginning but more and more became like an "unnecessary under-water version of Line of Duty".[50]
Series 2
The review aggregatorRotten Tomatoes gave the second series a 58% approval rating, based on 12 reviews. The critic consensus read, "Taking Vigil out of its original submarine relieves the cabin pressure but also much of the suspense, although Suranne Jones and Rose Leslie's rapport still provides intrigue."[51]
Jack Seale of The Guardian awarded the second series four out of five, describing it as a "pacy, extremely good crime drama tackling murder on a military base" that was full of "political truth bombs". He also praised Jones's performance.[5]
Rebecca Cook of Digital Spy regarded the second series as inferior to the first, because it lacked the intrigue of the first series and settled "for something which feels far more ripped from the headlines". Cook however praised the second series for exploring the romantic human drama between Jones and Leslie.[6]
Paul Stacey of the Irish Independent gave the second series a critical review, describing it as a "daft and implausible cop thriller" with an "unlikeable lead". Stacey criticised Jones's performance as Silva as "drab... with little colour or depth".[52]
GQ pointed out serious flaws in the realism of the drones, but praised the imaginative way that the programme represented multiple drone technologies in one rather fantastical concept for dramatic effect.[53]
Peacock acquired the show and the first series was released in the United States on 19 December 2021. The second series was released on Peacock on 15 February 2024.
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