Babylon

London's police is in need of an image makeover and Commissioner Richard
Miller (James Nesbitt) has found just the woman to do it. A star of new media
with a TED talk under her belt, ex-Instagram PR exec Liz Garvey (Brit Marling)
has the vision and determination to shake things up in the largest and oldest
police force in the world. No sooner has she arrived than violence erupts on
London’s streets. Specialist firearms officers are deployed to corner a lone
shooter and Garvey is called into action over the handling of the ensuing siege.

A private security firm calls the police for assistance at a prison riot giving Liz
Garvey (Brit Marling) the ideal opportunity to publicize the force’s opposition to
the transfer of essential services away from the public sector.

Eager to justify Commissioner Miller’s (James Nesbitt) faith in her, Liz (Brit
Marling) presents her vision for Metwork: the force’s very own digital news
channel that will rival established outlets and tell it like it is, for better or
worse. It could be a game-changer but to Finn (Bertie Carvel) Metwork is a
vanity project and he is determined to kill it. His opportunity comes on the eve
of the Mayor’s Conference on Policing. With another clash with Deputy Mayor
Grant Delgado (Ralph Brown) on the cards, a youth arrested for possession of
drugs turns out to be Delgado’s son. Finn leaks the news to trump Liz’s big idea
and ruin Delgado in the process. An indignant Liz (Brit Marling) helps Delgado
save face unaware that she has rescued Miller’s most powerful enemy.
Warwick’s psychological state reaches crisis point after the high-risk pursuit of
a gang of armed robbers and firearms trainee Robbie (Adam Deacon) realises he
must sharpen up if he is to make the cut….

It’s Robbie’s (Adam Deacon) first day on the ARV unit and with Warwick (Nick
Blood) clearly not fit for duty he discovers how far Banjo (Andrew Brooke) and
Tony (Stuart Martin) will bend the rules to help their brother in arms. Liz (Brit
Marling) faces a backlash when the police play down a bomb threat at a
conference centre but news goes viral and threatens to cause widespread
panic. Deputy Commissioner Charles Inglis (Paterson Joseph) finds that nobody
is above the law when his arrest over a minor offence heaps further pressure
on Richard Miller (James Nesbitt). And as Liz accompanies Miller to diffuse
media tension at the bomb scene he confides in her that a journalist has a story
ready to run that is infinitely more explosive for the force and its chief…

More shocking detail emerges around Commissioner Miller’s death and Liz (Brit
Marling) is incriminated over the nature of her relationship with him. Finn
(Bertie Carvel) concentrates his efforts on positioning himself as Acting
Commissioner Inglis’ (Paterson Joseph) consigliere and sidelining Liz in her own
department. While police on the streets can only speculate about the
extraordinary events higher up the food chain, the fugitive bomber is located
and Assistant Commissioner Sharon Franklin (Nicola Walker) is despatched to
take the reins on the scene of a house-to-house search. As Banjo’s (Andrew
Brooke) suspicions mount over Davina’s affair his agitation starts to affect work.
When the ARV team is called to attend a nightclub after reports of a gun, the
incident takes a disastrous turn as a black youth is fatally wounded…

With tension in the capital rising in the aftermath of the nightclub shooting,
Banjo (Andrew Brooke) reassures a nervous Robbie (Adam Deacon) ahead of the
internal police investigation. At headquarters there’s a vacancy at the top of
the force and, in the eyes of Deputy Mayor Grant Delgado (Ralph Brown), Acting
Commissioner Charles Inglis (Paterson Joseph) is already proving a more
malleable candidate than his predecessor. With Finn (Bertie Carvel) as his most
trusted advisor, Inglis’ appointment would mean Liz (Brit Marling) is finished in
the organisation. But when the hunt for a missing child proves fruitless Liz is
inspired to find help in the unlikeliest of places and in the process may just
have found a contender to challenge Inglis’ bid for power….

With their suspension lifted the ARV boys return to duty. But when footage
goes viral of Banjo (Andrew Brooke) venting his frustrations on a rubbish bin
and Sharon Franklin (Nicola Walker) proposes to reopen the nightclub shooting
investigation, it sparks industrial action by TSG and firearms units. As civil
unrest erupts on London’s barely policed streets, Charles Inglis (Paterson
Joseph) and Franklin go head to head to prove themselves the best choice for
the job of Commissioner. And when potentially explosive material lands on
Liz’s (Brit Marling) desk she must decide whether to play king or queen-maker
to salvage her vision of transparency and openness…