Funeral in Berlin

British secret agent Harry Palmer is dispatched to Berlin by Colonel Ross to secure the defection of Soviet officer Colonel Stok. He links up with Johnny Vulkan, an old German contact who runs the Berlin station, and begins to assess the plan. Palmer remains skeptical about Stok's true intentions while watching for pitfalls.

Stok in the Soviet zone asks that Kreutzman, a West German criminal, oversee the defection. Palmer travels between sectors to coordinate moves and study the players. The arrangement sets up a high-risk border crossing.

Back in the western sector, Palmer meets Samantha Steel and grows wary of her. He spends the night with her, then has police verify her identity and uncover that she belongs to a spy network. To pressure Steel and secure control of the operation, he arranges for a burglary to plant forged passports in her flat.

Palmer negotiates with Kreutzman to bring Stok across the wall in a coffin for $60,000 and genuine documents meeting specifications. The plan relies on a discreet coffin crossing to hide the defection. Kreutzman's involvement ties the operation to organized crime.

Palmer returns to London to brief Colonel Ross, who is convinced the defection is genuine. Ross authorizes Palmer to return to Berlin to finish the deal, and Hallam provides the necessary Broum documents. Tension grows as document control becomes a central risk.

Kreutzman travels into East Berlin to oversee the defection operation personally. The coffin is prepared and staged at a Western border crossing, with a warehouse acting as the delivery point. The plan now hinges on Kreutzman's hands-on supervision.

The coffin is delivered to the Western warehouse for the staged burial and crossing. When opened, Kreutzman is found dead, signaling a fatal disruption of the plan. Vulkan appears, knocks Palmer out, and seizes the Broum documents.

Vulkan retrieves the Broum documents, while Samantha Steel and two Israeli agents steal them back from Palmer’s enemies. Palmer is blamed for the loss, complicating loyalties and suspicions on the ground. Berlin grows increasingly dangerous as suspicions spread.

Back in London, Ross explains that Broum murdered Vulkan at the war’s end and used that identity to blackmail Broum into working for him. He orders Palmer to kill Broum, but Palmer refuses to execute the assassination. The moral ambiguity of the assignment deepens.

Palmer meets Stok in West Berlin and learns the defection was a trap to eliminate Kreutzman. Stok notes that Vulkan supposedly knows the way to defect, hinting at further deception. The episode leaves Palmer wary of all sides.

The supposed Vulkan goes to Steel's flat, murders an Israeli agent, and retrieves the Broum documents. Palmer is blamed once again, and the integrity of the mission erodes further. The line between ally and enemy becomes increasingly blurred.

Broum meets Hallam, who realises Palmer substituted forged documents. Hallam presses to recover the real documents, and they move toward the Berlin Wall to slip into the East. The plan's tension escalates as loyalties fracture and the trap closes around them.

Broum kills Hallam in a bid to escape with the documents, but Israeli agents mistake Broum for Palmer and kill him. Palmer then hands the documents over to the Israelis, ending his direct involvement in the Broum scheme. The conclusion circles through double-crosses as ethics fade in the cold war shadow.

Back in London, Ross is satisfied that the dead 'Vulkan' will be treated as a martyr. Palmer refuses the promised bonus and leaves, signaling his disillusionment with the mission and the murky ethics of espionage. The defection saga closes with Palmer walking away from the perilous game.