Betrayal is ITV’s next big thriller – with Endeavour favourite Shaun Evans leading the cast alongside Vigil’s Romola Garai. And it’s finally arriving on our screens this month.
The broadcaster describes Evans’ character John Hughes as a “troubled operative in the clandestine world of MI5” — a man racing to stop a major threat to national security while trying to figure out his own life at the same time.
Meanwhile, his job is in jeopardy, and his marriage is on the rocks. Not the best head space to save the world.
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Here’s everything to know about the new drama, from the plot, cast, and start date.
What’s the plot of Betrayal on ITV1 and ITVX?
Betrayal centres on MI5 agent John Hughes — a man wrestling with his past while trying to stop the next major threat. Think James Bond, but on a more grounded scale.
John joined MI5 during the war on terror and once helped prevent some of the biggest terrorist plots on UK soil. Now in his mid-40s and married with two children, he’s finding it harder to adapt to the modern intelligence world as the nature of threats changes around him.
ITV’s synopsis reveals: “On a hunch, John meets Ehsan, a British Iranian man with links to the Manchester gangland who claims he has intelligence about a plot on UK soil.
“But, before he can share intel, Ehsan is executed by a lone gunman, and John impulsively kills the assassin in retaliation. This triggers a chain of events which puts John in direct collision with his superiors who are furious that he appears to have got involved in a Manchester gang turf war.”
Desperate to save both his career and reputation, John begins digging into Ehsan’s past — all while grappling with the emotional fallout of taking a life.
Who wrote Betrayal on ITV1?
The drama comes from award-winning playwright and screenwriter David Eldridge, best known for Our Hidden Lives and The Scandalous Lady W.
The script has been described as an “emotionally intelligent, thrilling and darkly funny thriller”.
David Eldridge said: “I’m thrilled be working with ITV and Mammoth Screen on Betrayal, an espionage drama rooted as much in the trials and betrayals of family life as in the bloody, dangerous business of spying.
“It’s also a pleasure to be collaborating again with Shaun Evans for whom I have created the show’s leading role — out of favour intelligence officer John Hughes.”
The pair previously worked together on The Scandalous Lady W.
Who plays John Hughes in ITV spy drama Betrayal?
Shaun Evans takes the lead as MI5 agent John Hughes. The Liverpool-born actor first gained attention as John Paul Keating in Channel 4 comedy Teachers alongside Andrew Lincoln and Navin Chowdhry.
He later appeared in Whitechapel and Silk before playing Glover in series one of Vigil in 2021.
However, he’s best known for his long-running role as Endeavour Morse in ITV’s Endeavour, which he played from 2012 to 2023.
In 2024, he portrayed John Sweeney in the true crime drama Until I Kill You, opposite Anna Maxwell Martin.
Who else is in the cast of ITV thriller Betrayal?
Romola Garai stars as John’s partner Claire, whose trust in him is strained by the secrecy and demands of his work. She’s known for Becoming Elizabeth, The Hour, and The Crimson Petal and the White.
Also joining the cast is Beyond Paradise star Zahra Ahmadi as Mehreen Askari-Evans, an ambitious operative newly transferred from MI6 who challenges John both professionally and emotionally.
Luther’s Nikki Amuka-Bird plays John’s superior Simone Grant. The Outlaws’ Gamba Cole, His Dark Materials star Omid Djalili, and Grantchester actor Matthew Tennyson also appear.
The supporting cast includes Unforgotten star Hayley Tamaddon, Protection actor Anthony Flanagan, Four Lives’ Paddy Rowan, Out There’s Waj Ali, Wolf Hall’s Karim Kadjar, and The Long Shadow actress Emma Cunniffe.
Sherlock’s Georgina Rylance appears alongside The Crown’s Ben Lambert, Doctors’ Julia Watson, and Black Doves actor Julian Wadham.
Newcomers Elham Karimpour, Aidan Rivers, Corin Silva, and Eliza Agrosoaie are also part of the ensemble.
When is the release date and next episode of Betrayal?
Betrayal will land as a boxset on Sunday, February 08, 2026.
If you prefer to watch weekly, episode one will air the same day at 9pm on ITV1. Episode two follows on Monday, February 09, 2026 at 9pm.
Episodes three and four will air the following week on Sunday and Monday.
Read more: 2026 dramas returning to our screens: What to watch from Line of Duty and Peaky Blinders to Rivals