The Wargame uses AI-generated footage to simulate Russian missile attacks on UK soil in shocking new Sky TV documentary series 'this is not real, but it could be'

Date:
Mon, 21 Sep 2026 12:02:00 +0000

Description:
The Wargame on Sky TV is adding a biting sense of realism to Russia developments in the news this week but critical scenes have been created using AI.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter For years, major governments around the world have routinely conducted wargames and simulation exercises
to test their military readiness, crisis response, and supply chain resilience. For the first time ever, we're about to watch one.

Based on its hit 2025 podcast of the same name, Sky TV has developed
four-part docuseries The Wargame , exploring how a fictitious UK cabinet
made up of former MPs from multiple parties could responded to completely made-up threats, and an eventual attack, from Russia. Here's how it works.
Our cabinet (listed below) will face an escalating simulated crisis,
beginning with the suspicious murders of two RAF soldiers. While the Russian side, and any international players, are being given instructions by producers, every decision we see from the UK side is being made in the
moment. Latest Videos From TechRadar Watch full video here:

With four episodes dropping nightly on both Sky and NOW from September 21, I won't sugarcoat it: The Wargame is an absolutely terrifying watch. If you've ever seen anything like Threads , When the Wind Blows or the BBC 1966 film
The Wargame , it's the same sense of impending dread... just from the other side of the table.

But don't get me wrong this might just be the most important piece of television of the 21st century. As the UK's War Book is being redrafted in real time to advise the public on how best to be prepared, consider that Sky TV is granting us an important head start You may like Sky to adapt spine-chilling podcast The Wargame in immersive new docuseries Experts
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We can no longer bury our heads in the sand over just how unprepared the UK is, and AI is one of the main reasons we'll be able to realize this. The Wargame is the most important TV show you'll stream in your lifetime just be prepared The Wargame | Official Trailer | Sky - YouTube Watch On Before we drill deeper into what we're watching, here's our full list of players and their assigned roles: Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more.
Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from
us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. Prime Minister: The Rt Hon. the Lord Gove PC Deputy Prime Minister: The Rt Hon. Nicola Sturgeon PC Defence Secretary: The Rt Hon. Dame Penny Mordaunt DBE PC Home Secretary: The Rt Hon. the Baroness Harman KC PC Foreign Secretary: The Rt Hon. Jim Murphy PC Attorney General: The Rt Hon. the Baroness Warsi PC Director of Communications: The Baroness Hazarika MBE Chief of Defence Staff: General Sir Richard Barrons KCB CBE National
Security Adviser: The Rt Hon. the Lord Kim Darroch KCMG Intelligence Chief: Christopher Steele Nato Secretary General: The Rt Hon. the Lord Robertson KT GCMG PC US Secretary of State: Anthony Scaramucci As you can see from the above trailer, Sky has been incredibly upfront about its use of generative AI visual effects to create scenes showcasing Russian missiles hitting numerous UK targets. This is normally the part where I'd do my "AI is unnecessary in the creative arts, why couldn't they have just used CGI instead" tirade, but actually, I'm glad that this decision was made.

Why? Not only is there a poetic irony of using AI to depict missile attacks mere weeks after the global public was told that there's a 10% that AI could kill us all within the next decade, but its use feeds into a wider point that The Wargame is trying to make. We've become so used to a certain type of 'peacetime life' and concerned ourselves with other issues (such as AI) that we've lost any kind of resilience we've ever had since World War II.

While the exact military capabilities of the UK are made up, seeing just how weak and unprepared we are if direct conflict was to strike our shores will hopefully be a wake-up call to anyone watching. As Sturgeon tells us, these choices are often like picking between "bad and worse," and it's nice to see our politicians slightly more humanized, even if the docuseries doesn't fill me confidence as to how international conflict could be handled. What to read next Why AI is a matter of national security The Westies uses no AI to create 1980s New York in new MGM+ crime drama C-suite executives need to upskill themselves to really understand the threats

With a fake COBR-style boardroom, military ops room and press room all in
use, it does feel as though this is the closest we'll ever get to an all-politician version of Big Brother . But fake TikTok clips from real-life influencers capturing their reactions to the fictional breaking news brings the effects straight back home.

But what do our players hope we take away from watching? "Governments have
to, of course, hope for the best, but prepare for the worst. And that's not just about defence spending," Sturgeon said at the show's launch event. "There's a whole debate about preparedness of the population and some really basic things that we're just not at the races of, in terms of being prepared for even a fraction of this unfolding.

"So, getting rid of the optimism bias that this won't happen, to starting to think seriously about the prospect of this possibly happening." Deep breaths, people. Today's best Sky TV subscription deals Sky TV 15 /mth View at Sky Sky TV + Kids 32 /mth View at Sky Sky TV + Cinema 35 /mth View at Sky Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds.



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/streaming/sky-tv/the-wargame-uses-ai-generated-foota ge-to-simulate-russian-missile-attacks-on-uk-soil-in-shocking-new-sky-tv-docum entary-series-this-is-not-real-but-it-could-be


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