The series received widespread critical acclaim. Adam Sisman, le Carré's biographer, wrote in UK daily newspaper "The Daily Telegraph", "It is more than 20 years since the novel was published, and in that time two film companies have tried and failed to adapt it, concluding that it was impossible to compress into two hours. But this six-hour television adaptation is long enough to give the novel its due." He added, "And though Hugh Laurie may seem a surprising choice to play 'the worst man in the world', he dominates the screen as a horribly convincing villain. Alert viewers may spot a familiar face in the background of one scene, in a restaurant: John le Carré himself makes a cameo, as he did in the films of "A Most Wanted Man" and "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy". But he is on screen only for an instant: blink and you'll miss him."