It takes a lot of things to become a spy: gumption, tenacity, quick wits, street smarts, discretion, and a heck of a good cover story. This is something the cast of AMC’s The Night Manager knows all too well. The tale of Jonathan Pine, discreet hotel night manager turned unintentional spy to take down the world’s most esteemed businessman for arms dealings, is one of the most exciting spy capers we’ve seen in ages. So, naturally, we had to know what sort of cover the cast would create for themselves if they one day woke up and realized they were a spies.

Luckily, Hugh Laurie, Olivia Colman, and Elizabeth Debicki were all game to play—unfortunately our time with Tom Hiddleston got cut short, but we can only imagine his cover would be equally as good as the likes of, say, Twinkle Leakie. (Watch the video to see which of the stars would call themselves that.) Or maybe he’d just tell people he was Tom Hiddleston, international film and TV star, and call it a day. Surely no one’s going to mess with someone with that resumé, are they?

Of course, for all the fun and games we had with the cast, that doesn’t take away from the blistering brilliance of AMC’s adaptation of the John le Carré novel. The miniseries—which premieres tonight (Tuesday, April 19 at 10PM)—updates the central conceit only so far as to bring it into the 21st century: the rest of that suspenseful le Carré magic is alive and well. To say this is some of the best espionage drama we’ve seen this year would be an understatement. It’s up there in the all-time category, so check it out after you’re done giggling over the video above.

And to hear more of the cast’s thoughts on this adaptation, be sure to check out the rest of the interview below:

And for more silly business, check out the cast playing the game “Misunderstood Mastermind or Just Plain Bad Guy:”

Image: AMC

Alicia Lutes is the managing editor of Nerdist. Find her on Twitter (@alicialutes).