Slow Horses S6 Ep4 Recap: A Shocking Death and Taverner’s Secrets

Spoilers ahead!

After last week’s episode, that escalated quickly! Episode 4 of Slow Horses delivers a shocking death, a kidnapping, and some disturbing revelations about Diana Taverner. And somehow, Jackson Lamb still finds time to insult everyone in sight.

A Night at the Bowling Alley

River and Sid stop at a bowling alley so Sid can contact Diana Taverner. But their pursuers aren’t far behind. After a shootout that leaves River wounded and an innocent employee dead, J.K. Coe arrives to help them escape. Unfortunately, the getaway nearly falls apart when Coe and River argue over who’s driving. Only the Slow Horses could turn an escape from assassins into a petty argument.

Jackson Lamb Goes Fishing

Lamb has a plan to uncover who’s behind the attacks on his agents. Using Reese Nesmith as bait, he arranges a meeting with Frank Harkness at a Shake Shack. Naturally, things go sideways when Reese decides to investigate on his own. Lamb manages to create enough public chaos for them to escape, but not before learning that Harkness is working for someone else.

Following Harkness leads them to Damien Cantor, the television executive who pressured Taverner into that humiliating interview.

Taverner’s Secrets Are Catching Up With Her

Meanwhile, Oliver confronts Taverner about the suspicious death of a Russian GRU agent in Kazan. It appears the killing was an unauthorized retaliation for Russian operations on British soil. And although Taverner denies involvement, she’s clearly running out of room to maneuver. Then comes a chilling phone call from Vasili, who reveals that he controls Cantor and knows about the Kazan killing. His demand? Sid Baker. In exchange for Sid, he’ll stop the attacks on the other Slow Horses.

Suddenly, Sid’s determination to contact Taverner looks increasingly dangerous.

A Shocking Loss

River confronts Sid about her loyalty to Taverner, especially after learning that Taverner secretly visited Sid in the hospital while everyone else believed she was dead. But Sid refuses to listen.

Meanwhile, Coe spots the Russian assassins and confronts one in a bathroom. What follows is a brutal knife fight When River arrives, Coe is dead. It’s a devastating loss for Slough House, made even worse when River discovers that Sid has been captured by the assassins.

Questions I’m Still Asking

• Why does Sid trust Taverner so completely, even after everything she’s learned?
• What exactly happened during Taverner’s secret hospital visit?
• How deeply is Taverner involved in the unauthorized killing in Kazan?
• Will Taverner sacrifice Sid to save herself and stop the killings?
• And how will Lamb react when he learns that Coe has been killed?

Final Thoughts

Lost and Found is a reminder that beneath the insults, absurdity, and dark humor, Slow Horses can be ruthless. Coe’s death is a genuine shock, and Sid’s kidnapping raises the stakes considerably. But the biggest question may be whether Diana Taverner is trying to protect MI5—or simply protect herself.

And with two episodes left, things are looking very bad for the Slow Horses.

You can also read Slow Horses at Bookshop.org

Slow Horses is streaming on Apple TV