Sky war game series exposes UK missile defence gap
Sky News coverage reveals unofficial war games and a new TV series testing how the UK would respond to a Russian attack, exposing significant defence gaps.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
The UK's preparedness for a potential Russian attack has been highlighted by two separate simulations, each exposing weaknesses in the country's defences and civil resilience.
An unofficial war game held at Bath University brought together dozens of public sector workers, bankers and utility firms to rehearse responses to a large-scale attack. Organised by a newly formed group, the National Civil Protection Centre, the exercise was not sanctioned by the government. Yet its popularity has led to calls for Whitehall to be more open with local authorities about what would be needed in a war. Participants were confronted with multiple casualties and escalating risks, forcing them to consider how to maintain continuity of government and existence.
Separately, a new television series from Sky has assembled former ministers and military chiefs to face a hypothetical Russian invasion. The fictional scenario, which features Michael Gove as a beleaguered Prime Minister, quickly reveals a stark reality: the UK currently has only one destroyer capable of shooting down a ballistic missile. This capability gap is described as a "huge hole" in the country's ability to protect its homeland. The series, inspired by a Sky News podcast, includes figures from the Labour Party and former Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon. Its creators hope it will trigger a wide national conversation about defence and resilience, and guard against the optimism bias that such an attack could never happen.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, mapped by channel. Ordered by how many channels carried each claim.
| Claim | Sky News |
|---|---|
| A war game simulation was not an official government exercise. | |
| Dozens of public and private sector professionals participated in the simulation. | |
| Many professionals want to take part in readiness training, indicating a demand for preparedness. | |
| Michael Gove played the Prime Minister in a Sky war game series. | |
| The level of participation was reported as indicating that central government should be more open with local authorities about war readiness. | |
| The Sky war game series brought together former ministers and military chiefs. | |
| The UK has severely limited missile defence, with only one destroyer capable of shooting down a ballistic missile and a major gap in protecting against missile attack. |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
This segment focused on the unofficial war game at Bath University, detailing the participation of civil servants, banks and utility firms. It stressed the event was not an official government exercise and used it to argue that central government should be more transparent with local authorities about war readiness.
- “An unofficial war game to test how local authorities, emergency services and the military might respond to an attack on the UK”
- “This event, run by a new organisation called the National Civil Protection Centre as well as other experts, is not an official government exercise”
- “the fact that so many professionals are wanting to take part illustrates how central government perhaps should be speaking far more openly with local authorities about what it means, what it takes to be ready for war”
This segment centred on the new Sky television series simulating a Russian attack, featuring former ministers and military chiefs. It highlighted the UK's limited missile defence capabilities and the human difficulty of leadership in a crisis, using Michael Gove and Nicola Sturgeon as key figures.
- “We currently have one destroyer capable of shooting down a ballistic missile”
- “There is a huge hole in our capacity to protect our homeland”
- “The new television series from Sky explores what might happen if Russia attacked the UK”
This segment covered the same Sky series as the previous show but in a more condensed form. It repeated the missile defence gap and the involvement of politicians, with a slightly sharper tone on the reality of the Russian threat.
- “We currently have one Destroyer capable of shooting down a ballistic missile just one”
- “There is a huge hole in our capacity to protect our homeland”
- “The new television series from sky Explores what might happen if Russia attacked the UK”
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.