Netflix has dropped an absolute British TV treat just in time for the lead up to Christmas: Black Doves.
Starring Keira Knightley, Ben Whishaw and Sarah Lancashire, the spy TV series explores the life of a politician's wife Helen Webb (Knightley) who is feeding government secrets to a spy organisation called the Black Doves. Pretty early on in the series, Helen's lover is murdered – and she is intent on wreaking revenge on the person who did it.
GLAMOUR have rounded up the Black Doves cast list, where you might have seen them before and whether we reckon they will appear in season 2, which was confirmed before the first season even dropped. Impressive stuff.
“Welcome to the naughtiest show on television.”
Meet the Black Doves cast
Keira is without a doubt a bonafide British movie star, with credits from Pirates of the Caribbean to Love Actually, Atonement and The Imitation Game. But we'd venture to say this is one of her best performances yet. As Helen Webb, she is inscrutable at times, strong and very very funny.
We reckon it's pretty likely Keira will return for Black Doves season two – what would the show be without our enigmatic spy lead, after all?
We've got a huge soft spot for the Paddington star, as well as his very damaged character in Black Doves, Sam. He is hired to protect Helen in the wake of her lover's murder, but also acts as friend and confidante to her as she navigates her feelings of revenge and grief. But he also has his own secrets and bubbling beneath the surface, so we'd love to see more of him.
You might also recognise Ben from This Is Going To Hurt, Skyfall, Mary Poppins Returns and Suffragette. He's got some serious range.
Perhaps known best for her role as tough police sergeant Catherine Cawood in Happy Valley, Sarah Lancashire is pretty much TV royalty and we love her. She plays Reed, Helen's self-contained and dry-witted boss at the Black Doves. She pretty much calls the shots on the show, so where would we be without her for season two?
Omari (who you may recognise from It's A Sin and Rye Lane) plays Michael, a previous lover of Sam's who clearly still lingers on the assassin's mind. He also appeared in the stage adaptation of bestselling (and devastating) novel A Little Life and starred alongside Billie Piper in I Hate Suzie.
Buchan plays Helen's Conservative minister husband – we'd love to know what kind of role he could have in season 2, and whether Helen will still be able to steal government secrets from him. It's all so salacious. It's not Andrew's first turn playing a politician, he played Matt Hancock in 2022 series This England, also appearing in Industry.
Kathryn plays terrifying Lenny, who Sam is clearly indebted to after his surprise return to London. She represents the city's criminal underworld, and we'd love to see more of her. Kathryn has starred alongside Emma Stone in Poor Things and also appeared in the Harry Potter movie franchise as Arabella Figg.
Ella plays Williams, a freelance assassin who works for Lenny, who has it in for Sam after he murders someone close to her. She has also worked on 2025 TV series A Thousand Blows, starring alongside Stephen Graham and Erin Doherty.
Gabrielle plays Eleanor, who works with Williams as an assassin, but has been described as "desperate for a connection". Could she be a weak link? The actor also starred in US TV series Three Women, adapted from Lisa Taddeo's incredible book.
