BBC1 and Netflix's The Serpent spoilers in full

Tahar Rahim Jenna Coleman The Serpent
(Image credit: BBC)

New eight-part TV series The Serpent is already tipped as a 2021 one-to-watch. But if you can’t wait for the real life crime drama’s debut on BBC1, you’re in luck.


We’ve rounded up a series of clips and spoilers below!

How to watch The Serpent on Netflix

Here's the thing: The Serpent is on Netflix — but not necessarily where you live. If you're in the UK, you're good to go. If you're not in the UK, well, you might have to do a little something extra.

That's why the cool kids know about using a VPN with Netflix. It lets you rout your internet traffic through a specific set of servers in a specific country. Problem solved.

Except for one thing: Which VPN provider to use? We've long been fans of ExpressVPN. It's affordable, it's easy to use, and it's secure.

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ExpressVPN is one of the easiest and affordable ways to watch what you want from anywhere you want to watch it. Plus it'll help keep your network traffic away from any prying eyes on public networks.

It's also a great way to watch The Serpent on Netflix UK.

The premise of BBC1 and Netflix’s The Serpent

The Serpent is based on the crimes and killings committed by con artist Charles Sobhraj on the Asian "Hippy Trail" in the 1970s.

Posing as international gem dealers Sobhraj and his girlfriend, Marie-Andrée Leclerc travelled across Thailand, Nepal and India in 1975 and 1976, becoming the chief suspects in a series of murders.

The couple continually evaded arrest until Herman Knippenberg, a junior diplomat at the Dutch Embassy in Bangkok, helped track down Sobhraj, who had become Interpol’s most-wanted man.

The complete guide to 70s serial killer drama The Serpent

The stars of The Serpent

Tahar Rahim stars as multiple murderer Charles Sobhraj, Jenna Coleman plays Sobhraj’s girlfriend and accomplice Marie-Andrée Leclerc. Billy Howle and Ellie Bamber play Herman and Angela Knippenberg, the couple determined to bring them to justice.

The Serpent also stars Tim McInnerny, William Brand, Nicole Beutler, Amesh Edireweera, Mathilde Warnier, Grégoire Isvarine and Stuart Bowman.

MORE: Tahar Rahim interview: 'The Serpent' star talks about playing serial killer Charles Sobhraj

The Serpent clips and trailers

The Serpent short trailer

The Serpent full trailer

The Serpent long clip: Sobhraj and Leclerc fly to Hong Kong on a forged passport to make a gem deal

BBC spoilers for the first two episodes of The Serpent

The Serpent Episode 1

Charles Sobhraj (Tahar Rahim), Marie-Andrée Leclerc (Jenna Coleman) and Ajay (Amesh Edireweera) flee Bangkok for Nepal, where they scour the iconic hippie streets for victims.

After Sobhraj loses the group’s money in a card game, tension rises in the gang until Leclerc overcomes her crisis of conscience to deliver Sobhraj his next prey. The group flees on a frenzied trip around Asia, leaving destruction in their wake.

In March 1976, Nadine (Mathilde Warnier) helps Herman (Billy Howle) and Angela (Ellie Bamber) to accumulate evidence by taking undercover photos of the suspects and their private apartment...

The Serpent Episode 2

Chiang Mai, September 1975. French backpacker Dominique (Fabien Frankel) is befriended by Sobhraj (Tahar Rahim), drugged and taken back to his apartment, where Sobhraj and Leclerc (Jenna Coleman) promise to nurse him back to health.

By the time Dominique realises the terrible things happening in the apartment, he is trapped.

In March 1976, Nadine (Mathilde Warnier) and Remi (Grégoire Isvarine) tell their chilling story to Herman (Billy Howle), Angela (Ellie Bamber) and Paul (Tim McInnerny). It dawns on Herman that the man he is pursuing may be connected to many more than two deaths. As Herman starts to piece together Sobhraj’s crimes, Nadine walks into terrifying danger.

Elaine Reilly
Writer for TV Times, What’s On TV, TV & Satellite Week and What To Watch

With twenty years of experience as an entertainment journalist, Elaine writes for What’s on TV, TV Times, TV & Satellite Week and www.whattowatch.com covering a variety of programs from gardening and wildlife to documentaries and drama.

 

As well as active involvement in the WTW family’s social media accounts, she has been known to get chatty on the red carpet and wander into the odd podcast. 

After a day of previewing TV, writing about TV and interviewing TV stars, Elaine likes nothing than to relax… by watching TV.