The 'Sandbaggers' are a covert special section of the British SIS (Secret Service), a team of special agents deployed undercover in hostile situations where the risks are high and being killed is an everyday hazard. Run by the single-minded Neil Burnside (Roy Marseden, Adam Dalgliesh in the PD James stories), the 'Sandbaggers' are led by the brash but conscientious Willie Caine (Ray Lonnen, Harry's Game). In a game of cat-and-mouse between foreign powers, the stakes are high and the risk of a Sandbagger being killed on an operation is very real. An ex-Sandbagger himself, Burnside must try to keep his operatives alive while contending with political machinations and governmental dictates.