Wish Me Luck

First broadcast in January 1988, Wish Me Luck is one of those quietly outstanding British dramas that rewards anyone willing to give it proper attention. Produced by London Weekend Television and running for three series until 1990, it told its story across 23 episodes, charting the dangerous wartime lives of civilian women recruited as undercover agents in Occupied France.

The opening series introduces us to two very different recruits: Liz Grainger (Kate Buffery), a married mother drawn into espionage almost by chance, and Mathilde ‘Matty’ Firman (Suzanna Hamilton), a sharp, outspoken East End factory worker with Jewish and French roots and a fierce desire to fight back. Their training in England soon gives way to the brutal reality of life behind enemy lines, where courage, quick thinking and sheer nerve are required just to survive another day. Back in London, Jane Asher’s coolly efficient Faith Ashley and Julian Glover’s morally conflicted Colonel Cadogan oversee operations for “The Outfit”, a thinly veiled version of the real-life Special Operations Executive.

What quickly becomes clear is that this is not a glossy adventure series. The tension is often quiet but relentless, and the emphasis is firmly on character. Liz’s transformation from cautious volunteer to hardened operative, (codename Celeste), is particularly well handled, while Matty’s (codename Aimee) arc is both compelling and devastating, culminating in one of the most harrowing sequences British television produced in the late 1980s. The first series, drawing heavily on the experiences of SOE agent Nancy Wake, benefits enormously from its authenticity, even down to dialogue lifted from Wake’s autobiography The White Mouse.

Series two shifts the focus slightly, introducing new agents Vivien Ashton (Lynn Farleigh) and Emily Whitbread (Jane Snowden) and exploring the growing emotional toll of the work. Liz now finds herself running operations, a role that suits her steelier wartime self but wreaks havoc on her personal life. This middle chapter arguably deepens the drama, dealing unflinchingly with divided loyalties, betrayal, pregnancy, mental collapse and the price paid by ordinary French civilians who shelter the agents. The moral choices become murkier, and the consequences far more painful.

The final series takes a broader view, dramatizing the doomed uprising of the Maquis du Vercors. With new faces such as Catherine Schell and Jeremy Nicholas joining the cast, the story builds towards a grim and bloody conclusion. Gone are any lingering illusions about heroic sacrifice being rewarded; instead, the series ends by underlining how courage and idealism were often crushed by brutal military reality.

The series also has notable actors such as Trevor Peacock, Warren Clarke, John Challis, Fiona Walker, Brian Pringle and Caroline John playing major roles, whilst Christian Rodska, Kevin Stoney and Helen Cherry appeared in single episodes.

Created by Lavinia Warner and Jill Hyem, who had previously worked on Tenko, Wish Me Luck sits comfortably alongside that series and Secret Army in its focus on strong, complex women under extreme pressure. Filmed on location in both England and France, it pays careful attention to social detail and atmosphere, making wartime Britain and Occupied France feel lived-in rather than romanticised.

Named after the wartime song made famous by Gracie Fields, Wish Me Luck is tense, thoughtful and emotionally draining in the best possible way. It may not be as widely remembered as some of its contemporaries, but it remains one of ITV’s finest contributions to serious historical drama – and well worth revisiting.