Spooks (series 1)
Kudos Film and Television developed "Spooks" after releasing Channel 4 medical drama "Psychos" in 1999, though the company initially faced friction from television networks which saw no potential in a post-Cold War spy show. The producers later successfully pitched the series to the BBC after the networks' commissioning teams were replaced. Four episodes were being written when the September 11 attacks took place, and the some scenes were rewritten to take the event into account to show the audience "Spooks's" goal of fighting terrorism. Throughout production, the producers were advised by former intelligence officers from the Security Service, KGB and Central Intelligence Agency. Filming took place from November 2001 to March 2002.
Spooks (series 1)
The second episode included the death of a main character. The idea was originally going to be used in the series finale. However, the producers did not know how to fill in episode two, so the death was moved up. According to Wolstencroft, the inclusion of Helen's death was to give the audience the message that "the world of Spooks isn't the world where the cavalry always arrive, because in reality these people [MI5] do risk their lives on our behalf and they do get into sticky situations with genuinely nasty people." The producers also wanted main characters to die on occasion rather than on a weekly or bi-weekly basis; otherwise it would show MI5 officers as not doing their jobs properly. Although "Spooks" is a serious show, the writers add occasional humour from the characters. According to Wolstencroft, he felt that anybody who works in such an occupation with high responsibilities tends to have humour around, and that those people make jokes even though they have seen "heinous things". This became the basis for creating Jools Siviter.