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Carolyn Martens
Carolyn Martens
Played By: Fiona Shaw
- "They all think we're having affairs before they think we're secret agents."
A member of MI6 and the leader of a secret task force she set up with the purpose of tracking down and catching the assassin known as Villanelle.
- Abusive Parents: Played with. She doesn't actually hurt Kenny but she says that she doesn't love him that much (to Konstanin's horror). She is shown to be emotionally distant, emotionally negligent and is domineering towards him that despite his gift for hacking which makes him employable. He is dependent on her emotionally and financially which makes him answer to her beck and call and doesn’t allow him to subvert her even if he objects to her actions. He also admits to being frightened of her.
- The Ace: She is famous for her heroism as a member of MI6.
- Batman Gambit: She spends the entirety of Season 2 playing Eve like a fiddle while letting Eve think that she's acting against her wishes.
- Beware the Quiet Ones: You wouldn't think at first glance that the quiet, 50-something woman who might have been your next-door neighbor would actually be a ruthless spymaster, would you?
- Big Entrance: One reviewer pointed out that Carolyn has an interesting variant on this, in that she has a habit of dramatically waiting in rooms which Eve is about to enter: there’s always a shot of Carolyn standing ominously in front of a fireplace or sitting at a table with her eyes closed, although Eve is the one who actually enters, usually nervous and flustered.
- Conditioned to Accept Horror: Potentially—has Carolyn become desensitized to violence and loss after decades with MI6? Or has she always been cool and lacking in empathy?
- Cool Old Lady: Both Eve and Elena think she is this for different reasons: Eve, because Carolyn was the first to believe her and Elena because she is her biggest fan.
- Deadpan Snarker: Emphasis on the deadpan, but she has a few drily humourous lines here and there.
- Dirty Old Woman: At times she gives the impression of being obsessed with sex. Also does anyone actually know what a "butterfly bead" is? Does anyone want to know? Thought not.
- Evil Counterpart: Amazingly, to Konstanin (and also a Distaff Counterpart). Both Konstanin and Carolyn are ruthless killers (when they need to be), ex-lovers, and secret agents. But Konstanin adores his wife and daughters and even Villanelle. Carolyn says that she was always careful not to love Kenny too much, to Konstanin's visible shock.
- Evil Mentor: Somewhat. She's more or less extremely unpredictable (which is a necessity in her job) but she will behave coldly and ruthlessly when she needs to.
- Expansion Pack Past: We know she had many missions across the globe, but we only ever really hear about her trips to Russia.
- Good Is Not Nice: Yes, Carolyn works for MI6 and is trying to bring down an international crime syndicate, but she is also more than willing to play hardball, even when it puts her employees (or even her family) in danger, and she can be downright cruel to her daughter, Geraldine, who she sees primarily as a waste of time.
- Hates Being Touched: Outside of her sexual escapades, seems to have an aversion to touch. When her daughter reaches out to hug her after Kenny's death, Carolyn flinches away and tells her not to do that. We never see her express physical affection with her children or her friends.
- Heartbroken Badass: She becomes this in Season 3 thanks to Kenny's death.
- Informed Kindness: Carolyn tells Geraldine that she understood Kenny and knew how to look after him. This is not supported by her behavior towards Kenny onscreen before his death, where Carolyn is portrayed as distant at best and abusive at worst.
- Iron Lady: Zigzagged. She is a no-nonsense leader when she's in London, but in Russia, she tangles with two of her former boyfriends and is clearly enjoying being back in Moscow. Several rounds of strong alcohol certainly help matters. However, when she and Eve visit the prison where Nadia is, she is back to her professional self.
- Kavorka Man: Certainly not ugly but definitely not an example of Silver Vixen either; she probably gets around more than anyone else on the show, including Villanelle!
- Married to the Job: Carolyn values her work above her lovers, her spouses, and even her children. She's had 3 husbands and numerous affairs, but now lives alone, her life devoted to her work.
- Never Mess with Granny: Although she is in her fifties, Carolyn is extremely competent and extremely experienced.
- Nice to the Waiter: She makes a point of learning the names of bartenders and servers at establishments she frequents and is always polite with them. It's a small thing, but it's one of very few signs that she actually cares about other people.
- Not So Stoic: Although most people think she's alarmingly cold in the wake of her son's death, she's shown to be heavily depressed and trying to avoid it.
- No Sympathy: Carolyn appears to know when she's supposed to be sympathetic, she's just incapable of actually appearing that way. Can't even comfort Geraldine after Kenny's death.
- Percussive Therapy: Playing in with Not So Stoic after episodes and episodes of Geraldine begging her mother to feel something, Carolyn briefly loses her cool and trashes the coffee table and its contents before cooly asking if "that was the sort of thing [Geraldine] was looking for."
- Power Hair: A powerful M16 agent with short dark hair.
- The Quiet One: She only has a handful of lines in each episode, sometimes she only speaks one or two lines in the scene she's in. She also never raises her voice at anyone but it's clear to the rest of the task force that whenever she opens her mouth it would be wise to listen to her.
- Quickly-Demoted Woman: Despite Carolyn's legendary badassery, she gets demoted fast in Season 3 due to Eve getting injured in the field and Aaron Peele's death.
- Really Gets Around: To Eve's shock. It comes out piece by piece that Carolyn has had (and in some cases, still is having) sex with Vlad, Konstantin, and the Nigerian ambassador as well as having had 3 husbands in the past.
- Renowned Selective Mentor: She chooses Eve and is a famed savior of the world.
- Saved The World: Carolyn is said to have done this on several occasions.
- Serial Spouse: Went through 3 marriages before she gave up on tying the knot.
- The Sociopath: Shows signs of it at times; superficial charm, above average intelligence, manipulative behaviour, lack of empathy and remorse, fantastic and uninviting behaviour with drink and sometimes without, sexual promiscuity. Still waiting on grandiose sense of self worth.
- The Spymaster: Is basically this for her secret task force, and she is essentially The Handler for Eve in general even to the point of meeting her in some pretty public places such as stores and butcher's shops to discuss work. She has also been mentioned to have cultivated one of MI6’s most valuable assets when she was a young agent in Moscow.
- Hints of Manipulative Bastard in how she plays Eve and Vilanelle both in S2.
- Stepford Snarker: Downplayed, but Carolyn is visibly affected when she admits to being careful not to love Kenny too much.
- The Stoic: Carolyn never shows much overt emotion.
- Tranquil Fury: Even when very angry with Eve, she remains outwardly calm and unflustered. She says being angry actually makes her tired and when Eve leaves the room she yawns.
- The Unapologetic: Views all her actions as pragmatic and necessary, so she never feels the need to apologize, even for hurting her children's feelings.
- We Used to Be Friends: Despite their differences, Eve and Carolyn were still friends throughout the series. But after she betrays Eve by having Villanelle (who also tried to be friends with her and even helped her in some cases) executed in the series finale, it's clear that their friendship and partnership is permanently damaged.
- Xanatos Gambit: Turns out to have been pulling one with the Rome operation in Season 2. She sends Villanelle to steal Peel’s data with Eve as her off-the-books handler, and tells Eve repeatedly that Villanelle is not to kill anyone. However, she does this knowing full well that Villanelle might kill Peel anyway, in which case things still work out in MI6's favor.
Bill Pargrave
Bill Pargrave
Played By: David Haig
Eve's colleague and closest friend, Bill is a weary MI5 security officer whose wife and newborn child have run him to the ground. When Eve proposes he join her in a secret assassin tracking unit with MI6, he discovers he may have some life left in him yet.
- But Not Too Gay: He doesn't have time to show any sexual interest in men because he's killed in that episode.
- Bury Your Gays: The episode where we find out Bill is bi? It's the same one he dies in.
- Deadpan Snarker: Probably the snarkiest member of the cast, aside from Villanelle and Carolyn.
- Fatal Family Photo: Sort of. The audience is introduced to Bill's lovely baby and some of his personal backstory. Of course, he doesn't make it to the next episode.
- Forgotten Fallen Friend: After his death in Season 1, Eve wants to avenge Bill but she more or less forgets about it in Season 2, to the point that when Kenny brings it up as a reason he doesn't trust Villanelle, Eve effectively fires him on the spot. Eve does bring her up a few times in the later seasons, including in the final episode, but it doesn't seem to deter her from working with and pining over Villanelle.
- Jumped at the Call: He was already fully ready and willing to resign (and call Frank a dick-swab) for Eve's sake, and he doesn't hesitate when she invites him to the task force.
- Marriage of Convenience: Bill is in one of these because both of them wanted a child. It's even mentioned by Bill that his wife has her own "arrangements." Although they do have sex on occasion (when the conditions are right).
- Really Gets Around: Implied. It's pretty telling that an old colleague of his would call him an old tart. He then later explains that he lived in Germany for eight years and said yes to everything for five of them. Take from that what you will.
- Sacrificial Lion: His death serves as the moment that really commits Eve to finding and hurting Villanelle.
- Straight Gay: Much to the surprise of Eve, despite working with him for ten years. But while he doesn't advertise that he was actually bi, Bill didn't care if anyone knew.
- Undying Loyalty: When Eve is fired from MI5 Bill is the first to quit alongside her. Though he claims he just wanted an excuse to call his boss a "dick-swab," to which Eve beat him to it. And again when he decides to follow a dangerous assassin on his own when he sees that she was following Eve. Sadly, this got him killed.
Elena Felton
Elena Felton
Played By: Kirby Howell-Baptiste
Another one of Eve's colleagues in MI5. When Eve is recruited into the secret task force, Elena is the first to jump ship and join her—all for the opportunity to be close to Carolyn Martens, her idol.
- Ambiguously Bi: She has a bit of Ship Tease with Kenny, but also doesn't deny it when Eve says she has a crush on Carolyn.
- Deadpan Snarker: Maybe not quite at the level of Bill, but she's got some pretty good moments when it comes to the snark. She may possibly take on the mantle of snarkiest character after Bill's murder, however.
- Fangirl: Elena is one of these toward Carolyn, and she's a big enough fan that Eve straight up says that Elena had a crush on her.
- Hero-Worshipper: To Carolyn.Elena: MI6 Russia Desk. I'd nail a cousin to work with that woman. Stone-cold badass.
- Jumped at the Call: Eve only has to mention Carolyn's name to get Elena to resign from MI5 and come join the task force.
- Only Sane Man: After Bill dies, she's easily the most functional and levelheaded of the main characters.
- Put on a Bus: Doesn't appear in Season 2 because "she doesn't want to get murdered".
- Sassy Black Woman: Will tell Eve the truth, no matter what.
Kenny Stowton
Kenny Stowton
Played By: Sean Delaney
Kenny is a bonafide computer whiz and gamer, low on social skills but brilliant at what he does. Kenny works in the task force as their hacker and general information gatherer. He is also Carolyn's son.
- Basement-Dweller: Is implied to be this to Carolyn.
- Connected All Along: Downplayed. While the audience knows from the beginning that Kenny is Carolyn's subordinate, the real surprise comes from finding out that he is also her son.
- The Cracker: As a character, Kenny falls between this and Playful Hacker. He's lighter, nicer, and more moral than the average evil hacker, but his mission with MI6 means that he's also on too many serious missions to qualify fully as a Playful Hacker.
- Doing Research: This is basically his whole job for the task force.
- Love at First Sight: He falls hard the moment he meets Elena, and it completely freaks him out.
- Mission Control: When he's not researching Villanelle's activities and whereabouts, he serves as this for Eve when she's out in the field.
- Morality Chain: Tries to be this to Eve in Season 2, but she coldly and insensitively tells him to leave it.
- No Social Skills: According to his bio, Kenny mainly exists online and he rarely gets a chance to socialize. He is also desperate for the attention of the opposite sex.
- Non-Action Guy: Kenny basically lives behind a desk and solves problems from his computer.
Frank Haleton
Frank Haleton
Played By: Darren Boyd
- "Thank you for giving us your Saturdays. Turns out people are still murderous bastards on the weekend."
Eve and Bill's superior within MI5. Also, a mole for (who he thought was) the Russians. Also, a dick-swab.
- Alas, Poor Villain: Frank is an utter dickswab of course, but he didn't deserve to die at Villanelle's hands. He spends his last episode explaining his motives for turning mole and coming across as an utterly pitiable figure.
- Dead Guy on Display: Frank is found at his safe house after Villanelle chopped his knob off and dressed his corpse in one of the dresses she bought Eve. It was likely this was done to send Eve a message.
- Groin Attack: Villanelle chops his todger off. Fortunately for Frank, it was post-mortem.
- I Have a Family: He pleads to Villanelle that he has children. Villanelle is predictably unmoved, at first thinking he was trying to barter his children.
- It's All About Me: Frank is very selfish. Although he's remorseful for helping the Twelve and had understandable reasons for doing so, he's still lost in self-pity, incredibly ungrateful to Eve and Elena after they saved his life and only seems to think about how things are affecting him. The whiny way he says about the Twelve, "They know everything about me" is very telling.
- Jerkass: Let's just say there's a reason everyone thinks he's a dick-swab. As a boss, Frank is incompetent, condescending and cold and in the face of danger and adversity, his authoritative demeanour quickly cracks to reveal the cowardly Manchild within. See below.
- Manchild: He's emotionally immature, petulant, whiny and basically just a weak, pathetic man. After Eve and Elena save his life and even take him for dinner at a roadside cafe, he actually whines about not having the sauce he wants for his chips!
- The Mole: He was being paid to leak confidential information to persons whom he believed were agents of the Russian SVR.
- Obstructive Bureaucrat: He really didn't want Eve to investigate the murders she was convinced was the work of a single assassin, to the point where he lied about the existence of evidence that disproved her theories. Possibly because he was working for people other than MI5, who may not have wanted anyone to investigate further.
- Pet the Dog: He has kids whom he loves but as Eve says, you have to feel sorry for them, having to put up with a Jerkass like him for a father.
- Protagonist-Centred Morality: Frank is a petty dick, but it's also not very nice to watch Eve and Bill laughing over the fact that they didn't realize his wife had died.
- Rewarded as a Traitor Deserves: He was a mole for Russian intelligence - or so he thought; he was actually reporting to the Twelve, but the minute it looked like Frank was getting found out, the Twelve sent Villanelle after him and, when he didn't die the first time, tracked him to the safe house where she managed it. Gruesomely, but, in her words, "nicely".
- Undignified Death: One which he definitely didn't deserve.
Jess
Jess
Played by: Nina Sosanya
Eve's new boss, another recruit of Carolyn's.
- Brutal Honesty: Jess always says what she thinks.
- Cunning Linguist: An Informed Attribute as we've never seen her use it (yet), but she speaks Arabic.
- Deadpan Snarker: Has her moments. "I think Charles lost his touch in Afghanistan (beat) As well as his leg.
- Pregnant Badass: She is pregnant, but her badassery is alleged rather than seen, especially as it occurs mostly a convenient excuse on Eve's part to keep her out of the field in Budapest.
- Put on a Bus: As a result of Eve's team being disbanded in Season 3.
Hugo
Hugo
Played By: Edward Bluemel
Eve's new co-worker.
- Disney Death: At the end of Season 2, he seems to be shot by Villanelle's people, and begs Eve to stay with him when she finds him. She ignores him and that's... the last we see of him in that season.
- Evil Counterpart: He's a Replacement Goldfish to Kenny, but unlike Kenny, he's very smooth and kind of a dick.
- Foil: To Kenny, being socially gifted, confident and aloof, as opposed to Kenny's dorky demeanour.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Eve doesn't like him at first due to his arrogant and somewhat sexist demeanour but when she gets to know him, she realises he's actually quite a nice guy beneath it all.
- Put on a Bus: A throwaway line in Season 3 reveals that he survived being shot, sued MI5, won, and left. Noticing a pattern with members of Eve's team?
- Upper-Class Wit: He's a Cambridge and Eton graduate who often comes out with smooth one-liners.
Mo Jafari
Mo Jafari
Played By: Raj Bajaj
A promising young agent working at MI6 with Carolyn Martens.
- Beleaguered Assistant: As Carolyn's protégé he must always report to her, even if that means staying by her side while she's in a bathtub or when she's having a hangover.
- Servile Snarker: He quips about the unusual situations his job (and boss) put him in.
