BBC’s The Game Does for Brutalism What Mad Men Did for Mid-Century Design

CityLab, Dec. 12, 2014

If you’re a fan of spy thrillers, you’ll enjoy BBC America’s miniseries The Game the way you might a dog-eared novel and a cup of tea on a winter’s night. The pace is leisurely, and the plot elements familiar (an enigmatic young spy with tangled loyalties, a possible mole inside MI5).

The show is also a particular visual treat if, like me, you can appreciate a muted 1970s color palette and the Cold War Britain it evokes—the Britain of the three-day week, unfortunate cardigans, and National Health Service glasses. It’s likeTinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, with just as much suspense as you can handle before bed.

There is one area where The Game—which premiered Nov. 5 and is available on-demand—does make an original contribution: in its use of Brutalist architecture.

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