Tom Quinn (Spooks)

For the Succession character also portrayed by Matthew Macfadyen, see Tom Wambsgans.

Tom Quinn
Spooks character
Matthew Macfadyen as Tom Quinn
First appearance"Thou Shalt Not Kill"
Last appearance"Series 10, Episode 6"
Portrayed byMatthew Macfadyen
In-universe information
AliasMatthew Archer[1]
Steve Wilkes[2]
Davy Crockett[3]
Mr Anderson[4]
John Steadman[4]
David Ghetty[5]
Jack[6]
Mike[7]
TitleFormer Chief of Section D
OccupationFormer MI5 officer
SpouseChristine Dale[8]
Significant otherEllie Simm (former)
NationalityBritish (Irish descent)

Tom Quinn is a fictional character in the BBC espionage television series Spooks (called MI-5 in the United States), which follows the exploits of Section D, a counter-terrorism division of MI5. He is portrayed by British actor Matthew Macfadyen. In the first two series, Tom is the chief of Section D. The character was in the first and second episode of the third series but was decommissioned as a result of sabotaging an operation.

Series creator David Wolstencroft believed that writing Tom was the most fun, yet hardest to work on. During the second series, the producers were unsure whether Macfadyen would return for the third; because of this, Tom was originally killed in the second series finale. However, when Macfadyen decided to appear in the first two episodes of the third series, series writer Howard Brenton had to "unkill him." Reaction towards the character by fans were positive, though critics were mixed about Macfadyen's portrayal. Tom Quinn would later appear again as a cameo on the final episode of Spooks; his brief return was met with generally positive reactions.

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  6. ^ Sam Miller (director); Ben Richards (writer) (4 August 2003). "The Seventh Division". Spooks. Series 2. Episode 9. BBC. BBC One.
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