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The Best Episodes of The Sandbaggers

Every episode of The Sandbaggers ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of The Sandbaggers!

Binge this in 20h 0m•Peaking at 9.1/10

The Sandbaggers is a British television drama series about men and women on the front lines of the Cold War. Set contemporaneously with its original broadcast on ITV in 1978 and 1980, The Sandbaggers examines

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
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    The Sandbaggers Season 1 Episode 7 - Special Relationship
    9.1/10(73 votes)

    #1 - Special Relationship

    S1:E7

    Laura Dickens is the most qualified agent for a risky mission in East Berlin and Burnside has to double-deal to make sure her presence there won't pose other security risks as well.

    Director:Michael Ferguson
    Writer:Unknown

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  2. The Sandbaggers Season 2 Episode 1 - At All Costs
    8.8/10(63 votes)

    #2 - At All Costs

    S2:E1

    The head of the Bulgarian Secret Service asks to meet with Sandbagger Tom Elliott in Sofia, but Burnside doesn't like it and intends to give Elliott backup whether his bosses approve or not.

    Director:Michael Ferguson
    Writer:Unknown

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  3. The Sandbaggers Season 2 Episode 6 - Operation Kingmaker
    8.8/10(56 votes)

    #3 - Operation Kingmaker

    S2:E6

    When there's talk of getting a new 'C', Burnside decides to back Peele for the job, believing him more malleable than the other most likely candidate, whom Burnside once clashed with.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  4. The Sandbaggers Season 3 Episode 2 - To Hell with Justice
    8.8/10(58 votes)

    #4 - To Hell with Justice

    S3:E2

    SIS Director of Intelligence Edward Tyler meets a suspicious woman while on holiday in Malta, so Burnside secretly sends the Sandbaggers to keep an eye on him.

    Director:Peter Cregeen
    Writer:Unknown

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  5. The Sandbaggers Season 2 Episode 3 - Decision by Committee
    8.7/10(62 votes)

    #5 - Decision by Committee

    S2:E3

    On an airline flight back from Sri Lanka, Caine and CIA covert-action agent Karen Milner run into trouble during their stop in Turkey, and Burnside runs into bureaucratic opposition when trying to help them.

    Director:Michael Ferguson
    Writer:Unknown

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  6. The Sandbaggers Season 3 Episode 6 - Who Needs Enemies
    8.7/10(51 votes)

    #6 - Who Needs Enemies

    S3:E6

    When a rival for Burnside's job gets hold of a CIA document that describes Burnside as a divisive influence, SIS upper management contrives to promote Burnside ``sideways'' to Madrid.

    Director:Peter Cregeen
    Writer:Unknown

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    The 20 WORST Episodes of The Sandbaggers

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  7. The Sandbaggers Season 1 Episode 2 - A Proper Function of Government
    8.5/10(88 votes)

    #7 - A Proper Function of Government

    S1:E2

    The Sandbaggers may be sent to Vienna to keep tabs on a possible defector, while Burnside tries to get official approval to assassinate an African dictator.

    Director:Michael Ferguson
    Writer:Unknown

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  8. The Sandbaggers Season 2 Episode 4 - A Question of Loyalty
    8.5/10(58 votes)

    #8 - A Question of Loyalty

    S2:E4

    Sandbagger Mike Wallace runs afoul of the local SIS station while on a risky mission in Warsaw, and Burnside risks his own career to show him support by sending him on a subsequent mission to Stockholm.

    Director:Michael Ferguson
    Writer:Unknown

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  9. The Sandbaggers Season 1 Episode 6 - A Feasible Solution
    8.4/10(66 votes)

    #9 - A Feasible Solution

    S1:E6

    Caine and an agent fresh out of field school go to Cyprus on the trail of some missing rocket scientists while Neil lets his romantic guard down at home.

    Director:Michael Ferguson
    Writer:Unknown

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  10. The Sandbaggers Season 2 Episode 2 - Enough of Ghosts
    8.4/10(62 votes)

    #10 - Enough of Ghosts

    S2:E2

    Permanent Under-Secretary of State Sir Geoffrey Wellingham goes missing in Brussels and the Sandbaggers are dispatched to find him, for Burnside's sake as well as Wellingham's.

    Director:Peter Cregeen
    Writer:Unknown

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  11. The Sandbaggers Season 2 Episode 5 - It Couldn't Happen Here
    8.4/10(57 votes)

    #11 - It Couldn't Happen Here

    S2:E5

    In the wake of the assassination of one U.S. senator, the Sandbaggers are assigned to bodyguard another, while Burnside gets wind of a traitor in the British cabinet.

    Director:Peter Cregeen
    Writer:Unknown

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  12. The Sandbaggers Season 3 Episode 1 - All in a Good Cause
    8.4/10(60 votes)

    #12 - All in a Good Cause

    S3:E1

    CIA Head of London Station Jeff Ross asks for Burnside's help when Ross' marriage is in trouble, but then Burnside starts to suspect that the KGB and MI5 have an interest in that marriage as well.

    Director:Peter Cregeen
    Writer:Unknown

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  13. The Sandbaggers Season 1 Episode 4 - The Most Suitable Person
    8.3/10(72 votes)

    #13 - The Most Suitable Person

    S1:E4

    Sandbagger One Willie Caine goes to Gibraltar to investigate the murder of an SIS agent, and potential new Sandbagger Laura Dickens goes to Morocco to get more clues in the case.

    Director:Michael Ferguson
    Writer:Unknown

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  14. The Sandbaggers Season 1 Episode 5 - Always Glad to Help
    8.3/10(68 votes)

    #14 - Always Glad to Help

    S1:E5

    Dickens is assigned to find out where an Arab sheik's sympathies lie while Burnside clashes with Deputy Chief Matthew Peele and the Ministry of Defence over a covert scuba-diving operation.

    Director:David Reynolds
    Writer:Unknown

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  15. The Sandbaggers Season 3 Episode 3 - Unusual Approach
    8.3/10(59 votes)

    #15 - Unusual Approach

    S3:E3

    'C' orders Burnside to go on a working holiday in Rhodes, and while he's gone, Ross asks Caine for some risky backup in the USSR, but as Acting D.Ops., Caine would have to send Wallace.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  16. The Sandbaggers Season 3 Episode 7 - Opposite Numbers
    8.2/10(52 votes)

    #16 - Opposite Numbers

    S3:E7

    Burnside is opposed to an East-West arms treaty being negotiated in Malta, so he and the Sandbaggers conspire to scuttle the talks by encouraging a Soviet double agent to defect.

    Director:Peter Cregeen
    Writer:Unknown

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  17. The Sandbaggers Season 3 Episode 4 - My Name Is Anna Wiseman
    8.1/10(56 votes)

    #17 - My Name Is Anna Wiseman

    S3:E4

    Burnside tries to get approval to plant a woman in the Soviet Union as a long-term double agent, but he neglects to mention that her real mission is short-term human rights propaganda.

    Director:Michael Ferguson
    Writer:Unknown

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  18. The Sandbaggers Season 1 Episode 3 - Is Your Journey Really Necessary?
    7.9/10(83 votes)

    #18 - Is Your Journey Really Necessary?

    S1:E3

    Alan Denson threatens to quit the Sandbaggers after a rough, unauthorized mission near the Soviet border, so Burnside applies pressure to Denson's fiancee

    Director:Derek Bennett
    Writer:Unknown

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  19. The Sandbaggers Season 1 Episode 1 - First Principles
    7.7/10(108 votes)

    #19 - First Principles

    S1:E1

    Neil Burnside, the Director of Operations for Britain's Secret Intelligence Service, objects to sending his best agents, the Sandbaggers, on a mission into Russia for Norway's Secret Service.

    Director:Michael Ferguson
    Writer:Unknown

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  20. The Sandbaggers Season 3 Episode 5 - Sometimes We Play Dirty Too
    7.6/10(49 votes)

    #20 - Sometimes We Play Dirty Too

    S3:E5

    When a British intelligence source is killed in an accident in Prague, Caine is sent in to find out what really happened while Wallace and Burnside look for clues at home.

    Director:Peter Cregeen
    Writer:Unknown

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Best Episodes Summary

"Special Relationship" is the best rated episode of "The Sandbaggers". It scored 9.1/10 based on 73 votes. Directed by Michael Ferguson and written by Unknown, it aired on 10/30/1978. This episode scored 0.3 points higher than the second highest rated, "At All Costs".