30 September 2026

A war of finely crafted words

Dominic West is at his best as a charming, remorseless, Etonian shagger

Does Dominic West ever tire of being cast as charming, remorseless, Etonian shaggers? Does his reputation in the public imagination ever rankle? Does he read each fresh script in bed with a mistress, perhaps on a Roman getaway, and not see the irony?

I hope not, because he’s hella good at it, and kicks off this new series, War, with a fresh adultery. He’s Morgan Henderson and he’s a tech entrepreneur, and clearly a good one, the kind of unicorn-breeder that fills John Healey’s very sweetest dreams. We first see him at an awards do, celebrating the success of his UK-based social media company, which apparently has not only displaced its American rivals in market capitalisation but has aslo done so through “different” and far more ethical algorithmic methods. And so, perhaps in recognition of this triumph of national service, throughout his acceptance speech (“I’m up here tonight because of you”) there’s a girl in a golden dress gazing lustily at him. She follows him to his hotel with two words – “I’m Flora”. Alea iacta est, or whatever it is they say at Eton for the die being cast.

“Rich man shags” could be a bit “dog bites man” as a premise, but there’s a sting in the tail: Flora is no innocent seductrix: she’s an agent provocatrix. She’s been dispatched by Morgan’s wife, who has been smelling infidelity for some time now, with the goal of taking an incriminating pillow selfie with her husband. And Morgan’s wife is not just any wife: she’s Carla Duval, the world-famous actress, played by Sienna Miller, the world-famous actress.

Once the divorce papers are served (on the red carpet no less), we’re launched into a courtroom drama, waged by law firms with compound family names, which one partner confidently calls “the biggest divorce trial in British legal history”. But it’s also a courtroom drama with layers of deception – Carla’s legal team can’t admit that they were aware of Flora’s role, or face accusations of entrapment, while Morgan’s team are racing to understand Flora’s true motives. For his part, Morgan insists he has no plans to see Flora again, but we sense that she has other ideas about that. From here, the war is on (though the show’s title is advertised everywhere as “WAR”; I’m not sure why Sky have chosen to style it in all-caps).

Dickens was the first to see how much drama you can string out of a court case, and this is a true Jarndyce vs Jarndyce epic, only much better looking. Like Dickens, War has aspirations of social panorama: the main subplot involves Johnny, a washed-up law graduate from working-class south London who is trying to talk his way into a job in the Magic Circle. He winds up something of a go-between, trapped between the two ruthless firms. But his presence opens up a younger social scene, leavening the glamorous Mayfair material.

Also like Dickens, War is aware of the need for gargoyles and comic side-pieces. There is a fun pair of gormless, bitching interns, desperately offering themselves for the most humiliating jobs and trying to sneak into meetings. Angus, a posh smug friend of Johnny’s posh girlfriend, is wonderfully played and, later, wonderfully punched. Pip Torrens, spindly and bald, plays a marvellously sinister attorney who is genuinely called “St John”.

And War pulls off the trick of recruiting British comic actors into dramatic roles. Miles Jupp and Nick Mohammed play their parts as straight as they can, but both have such congenitally funny faces they can’t help but make you laugh.

This is seriously good TV. London looks splendid, the suits seem bespoke, everyone’s flats are vast and the dialogue is fantastic. The name “Alanda” does rather “sound… like an airline”. When Johnny’s girlfriend describes “one of those wanky plays that people only see so they can say they’ve seen it”, I knew exactly what she was talking about. “Did you see yesterday’s Daily Express?” Morgan asks his lawyer at one point; “Do I look like a man who saw yesterday’s Daily Express?” his lawyer asks right back.

From what I hear, to work for a big law firm is to enter a hell of sleepless nights and savage incentives. Much better to pretend that it’s to join the cast of the sharpest and most opulent play you can imagine.

War
Sky

[Further reading: The Wargame is Michael Gove’s fantasy alternative universe]