Summary
- Slow Horses' multiple character deaths drive the action, shaping the story's irreverent tone and dramatic twists throughout the seasons.
- Peripheral characters like Jed Moody and Alan Black meet shocking ends, revealing the show's brutality and moral ambiguity.
- The show's key antagonists, like Chieftain Mercenaries and Duffy, suffer brutal fates, setting the stage for the intense drama of Slow Horses season 4.
Apple TV+'s spy thriller Slow Horses season 4.
Because Slow Horses is an action-oriented show, there are a number of more peripheral characters who also die as part of the story. Characters like Nevsky and his henchmen in season 2, who may not have been given extensive character development, nonetheless play a decisive role in the story. However, while collateral and off-screen deaths are key features in Slow Horses, the show is also not afraid to kill off its more significant characters – starting from the outset in season 1.
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1 Jed Moody
Killed By Min Harper And Louisa Guy
In many ways, Jed Moody's death establishes Slow Horses' irreverent tone from the off. Having betrayed Lamb to work with Diana Taverner, Jed Moody is killed accidentally by Slough House agents Min and Louisa, who sneak back into the office after a night in the pub. To make the situation even more macabrely ludicrous, Moody is killed accidentally after breaking his neck falling down the stairs.
However, while his death is darkly comic, it also alerts Slough House that something untoward is going on, setting up the drama to come. Jed may not have been a character in Slow Horses for long, as he was killed in the third episode of season 1 ("Bad Tradecraft"), but his death was an important one when it came to laying the foundations of the rest of the show. Plus, it was an incredibly memorable scnee for Min and Louisa, showing viewers exactly how incompetent the pair could truly be.
2 Alan Black
Killed By Curly
There have been several memorable and surprising deaths in Slow Horses, but Alan Black's stands out for several reasons. Firstly, it was an incredibly twist when it came to implications for the plot. Secondly, it managed to be a key moment in the show despite the fact that viewers never actually get to see Alan get murdered — his death is simply revealed through dialogue in season 1, episode 4, "Visiting Hours.
Perhaps the most shocking death in Slow Horses season 1, Alan Black's murder happens off-screen. Sent by Taverner to infiltrate the Sons of Albion and instigate the kidnapping of a British Asian student, Alan Black is secretly an MI5 mole. However, his identity is unearthed by Sons of Albion member, Curly, who displays fanatical loyalty to the cause and dramatically decapitates Black, plunging Taverner's plans into chaos.
3 The Sons of Albion
Killed by Curly/MI5
The Sons of Albion were a somewhat hapless group of antagonists introduced in the first season of Slow Horses, and their deaths weren't exactly shocking, but they were comedic. The final moments of the Sons of Albion were a textbook comedy of errors, with none of them getting to see their terribly-executed plan come to fruition.
After Alan Black's death, the remaining Sons of Albion are killed in a series of dramatic circumstances. First, Zeppo is shot and killed by Curly after expressing a wish to abandon the plan to execute Hassan Ahmed. Next, Larry is murdered by the Dogs after trying to board a boat to the European mainland – with Duffy planting a gun on his body in order to justify the killing. Ironically, Curly himself survives, after the Slough House team shields him from a helicopter sent by Taverner to cover her tracks.
4 Robert Hobden
Killed By Duffy
Another dramatic and shocking death in Slow Horses season 1, Robert Hobden's death highlights the ruthless efficiency of MI5's Dogs. It's also one of the most violent and brutal deaths in the show. While many of the Slow Horses deaths can be quite brutal and sudden, the final moments of Paul Hobden still stand out as among the most intense in the entirety of the black comedy.
The moment comes in Slow Horses season 6, episode 6, "Follies". Walking along a busy London street, Hobden is shown in urgent conversation about the information he has regarding the Ahmed abduction. Suddenly, out of nowhere, Duffy appears to literally throw him under a bus. The moment highlights the moral ambiguity at the heart of the service, with Hobden's nefarious character juxtaposed against his alarming extra-judicial murder.
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5 Charles Partner
Killed By Jackson Lamb
Shown in flashback, Charles Partner's murder is one of the most narratively significant moments in the whole of Slow Horses. Initially suggested to by suicide, it becomes clear in the Slow Horses season 1 ending that Partner was actually murdered by Jackson Lamb himself, on the orders of River's grandfather, David.
The significance of the death of Charles Partner first becomes apparent in Slow Horses season 2, episode 2, "Work Drinks". As is explained in greater detail in Slow Horses season 2, Partner was secretly a double agent working for Moscow, with his death both an act of revenge and a means for MI5 to tie up a dangerous loose end. It's a moment from before the events of Slow Horses that has serious ramifications, as Katinsky (the real identity of Russian spymaster Alexander Popov) has been intent on killing Lamb in retaliation.
6 Dickie Bow
Killed By Chernitsky
The catalyst for the dramatic events throughout Slow Horses season 2, Dickie Bow (real name Richard Bough) is killed by the dangerous assassin Chernitsky after he attempts to follow him from central London. Dickie recognizes Chernitsky as the Soviet agent who kidnapped him during the Cold War — an event that led to Bow enduring no shortage of torture while the Russian spy attempted to extract information about British Intelligence.
Initially, the cause of Bow's death is quite mysterious, and it kicks off the second chapter of the story in Slow Horses season 2, episode 1, "Last Stop". At first it simply seems like Dickie Bow died of a heart attack, until it becomes clear that Chernitsky himself has killed him with an injection of poison. Lamb's investigation of Bow's murder alerts him to the reactivation of the "Cicada" agents, and eventually to the true identity of his nemesis Alexander Popov.
7 Min Harper
Killed By Chernitsky
Andre Chernitsky, a former agent of the KBG, is a key antagonist in Slow Horses season 2, and one of the most dangerous Slough House face throughout the entirety of the show. However, despite the fact he's clearly a capable killer, he's not actually responsible for many deaths - although the second kill to his name after Dickie Bow remains one of the most shocking in Slow Horses overall.
One of the most upsetting deaths in Slow Horses, Min Harper is murdered after following Pashkin's men to a seemingly innocent warehouse. After being apprehended on his bike, he is taken back to the men's flat, where he engages in an evening of drinking with Piotr and Kyril. However, after leaving the apartment, his body is found on the road after becoming the apparent victim of a car accident. It is later confirmed by the car's driver that she saw Chernitsky kill Min, before his body was moved to the car crash location.
8 Pashkin
Killed By Marcus Longridge
The last few episodes of the second season of Slow Horses also bring some of the most dramatic deaths as the overarching narrative unfolds and draws to its conclusion. However, one of the most satisfying in the show overall comes during this period, when antagonist Pashkin meets his end in season 2, episode 6, "Old Scores."
The relationships between the various Russian operators at play is one of the most confusing aspects of Slow Horses season 2. However, the final episodes make clear that Pashkin – previously believed to be working for Nevsky – is likely an FSB agent who has killed Nevsky, accessed the funds in his , and stolen a supply of diamonds.
Before he can make his escape, however, he is apprehended by Louisa Guy on a helipad, before being shot in the Marcus Longridge as he was himself about to kill Louisa. This moment is not only dramatic, but also allows Louisa to steal one of the diamonds Pashkin was carrying.
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9 Chernitsky
Killed By David Cartwright
Pashkin isn't the only satisfying death to come in the final episode of Slow Horses season 2. Before the season concludes, another antagonist, Andres Chernitsky, also meets his end thanks to David Cartwright — and his final moments are just as rewarding for viewers. The cat-and-mouse game at the end of Slow Horses season 2 is one of the show's most dramatic moments, with multiple key characters in jeopardy.
One of the most nail-biting aspects is Chernitsky's pursuit of David Cartwright after Katinsky sets the hitman on his trail for his part in Charles Partner's murder. River desperately tries to reach his grandfather's house to thwart Chernitsky, even commandeering a plane. However, when he arrives, he finds that it is his grandfather who has killed Chernitsky, shooting him with a shotgun, rather than the other way around.
10 Katinsky/Alexander Popov
Killed By His Own Hand
Pashkin and Chernitsky may be key antagonists in the second season of Slow Horses, but it eventually emerges that Katinsky is the criminal mastermind behind almost everything that Slough House comes up against over the six episodes. Katinsky is, of course, Alexander Popov. However, his final moments are somehow less rewarding than those of Pashkin and Chernitsky, and this is mainly because Katinsky takes his own life before he can see justice.
Considering some of the explosive action at the end of Slow Horses season 2, Katinsky's death is relatively understated. After a tense exchange with Jackson Lamb, where the pair confirm Katinsky's status as Alexander Popov and the mastermind behind the major events of the season, Katinsky realizes he has been outplayed. Though Lamb refuses to kill him, he leaves Katinsky with a revolver and a single bullet, which he chooses to use on himself.
