Smiley's People. Poster of the 1982 TV series and cover of the 1979 book
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Smiley's People
John le Carré, 1979
TV series vs book
Simon Langton, 1982

George Smiley is called out of retirement when one of his former assets, an émigré general, is found murdered. In tidying up loose ends for the Circus, his former employer, he discovers a clandestine operation run by his nemesis, Karla, for his own personal benefit. Smiley is able to use this irregularity against Karla, forcing him to defect to the West.


Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. Poster of the 1979 TV series and cover of the 1974 book, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
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Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
John le Carré, 1974
TV series vs book
John Irvin, 1979

George Smiley, deputy head of the British Secret Intelligence Service, is forced into retirement in the wake of Operation Testify, a failed spy mission to Czechoslovakia. Veteran British agent Jim Prideaux had been sent to meet a Czech general, having been told the general had information identifying a deep-cover Soviet spy planted in the highest echelons of the British Secret Intelligence Service.


Bleak House. Poster of the 1985 TV series and cover of the 1853 book
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Bleak House
Charles Dickens, 1853
TV series vs book
Ross Devenish, 1985

The generous John Jarndyce and his two young wards Richard and Ada, are all caught up, like Lady Dedlock, in the infamous case of Jarndyce vs. Jarndyce, which will make one of them rich beyond imagination if it can ever be brought to a conclusion. As Tulkinghorn digs deeper into Lady Dedlock’s past, he unearths a secret that will change their lives forever, and which is almost as astounding as the final outcome of the Jarndyce case.


The Woman in Black. Poster of the 1989 movie and cover of the 1983 book
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The Woman in Black
Susan Hill, 1983
movie vs book
Herbert Wise, 1989

In 1925, London solicitor Arthur Kidd travels to the coastal market town of Crythin Gifford in North East England to attend the funeral and settle the estate of Alice Drablow, a reclusive widow. Upon his arrival Kidd meets Sam Toovey, a local land owner who is unsettled to hear of the Drablows.


Emma. Poster of the 1996 movie and cover of the 1815 book
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Emma
Jane Austen, 1815
movie vs book
Diarmuid Lawrence, 1996

Emma Woodhouse has a rigid sense of propriety as regards matrimonial alliances. Unfortunately she insists on matchmaking for her less forceful friend, Harriet, and so causes her to come to grief. Through the sharp words of Mr. Knightley, and the example of the opinionated Mrs. Elton, someone not unlike herself, Emma’s attitudes begin to soften.


The Holcroft Covenant. Poster of the 1985 movie and cover of the 1978 book
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The Holcroft Covenant
Robert Ludlum, 1978
movie vs book
John Frankenheimer, 1985

Noel Holcroft’s late father – who was a general in the Wehrmacht and once close to Adolf Hitler – left behind a fortune supposedly to make amends for his wrongdoings. But more than forty years later, Noel finds himself embroiled in a web of conspiracies involving the children of two of his father’s Nazi colleagues, a mysterious organisation supposedly devoted to ensuring the Nazis never again come to power, and a woman who may be Noel’s downfall or his only hope.