

57 minSeason 1 • Episode 6
LatestBrydon works to uncover and expose the conspiracy that is propelling the United States to war with Tyrgyztan.
The State Within is a six-part British television political thriller serial written and created by Lizzie Mickery and Daniel Percival, broadcast on BBC One from 2 November to 7 December 2006. After a plane explodes over Washington DC, panic begins to envelop the British embassy, and its ambassador to Washington, Mark Brydon, finds himself caught in a potentially damaging diplomatic incident.
Acting
Jason Isaacs simmers then explodes; masterclass in restraint.
Writing
Mickery's script trusts you to keep up—no handholding.
Direction
Percival makes embassy corridors feel genuinely claustrophobic.
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Shot partly in Toronto doubling for DC—Isaacs reportedly insisted on wearing his own Savile Row suits.
Aired during the dying days of Blair's Britain; critics read it as a meditation on Iraq War guilt and special relationship anxiety.