| 1 | Peter | Guillam | Protagonist. Aka: Mr. Jacques, Adrienne Lessif, Marcel Lafontaine. |
| | | | Stasi - East German
Intelligence Service. |
| | George | Smiley | The spymaster. Aka: The Circus. |
| | Winston | Churchill | Prime Minister of U.K. |
| | Murphy | | Cousin of Peter's father. |
| | Mr. | Emile | Lover of Peter's mother. |
| | Markus | | Peter's uncle. Aka: Collins. |
| | Dolly | | Markus's friend. |
| | Bernie | | Dolly's companion. |
| | Jack | | Markus's colleague. |
| | Sandy | | The girl Peter falls in love with. Aka: Emily. |
| | Jim | Prideaux | One of Peter's colleagues. |
| | Control | | Smiley's boss. |
| 2 | Mr. | Denis | The new postman. Aka: Le General. |
| | Amoureuse | | Peter's Irish setter. |
| | Charles | De Gaulle | The President of France. |
| | A. | Butterfield | One of Peter's colleagues. |
| | Tania | | Butterfield's secretary. |
| | Catherine | | Isabelle's mother. Peter's companion. |
| | Yves | | The occasional laborer. |
| | Artemis | | The old grey horse. |
| | Bunny | | The secret service lawyer. |
| | Laura | | Bunny's colleague. |
| | Alec | Leamas | Peter's co-spy in Windfall Operation. Deceased. |
| | Bill | Haydon | The soviet double
agent. |
| | Elizabeth | Gold | Alec's love. Aka: Liz, Venus. |
| 3 | Percy | Alleline | One of Bill's boys. |
| | Bland | | One of Bill's boys. |
| | Esterhhase | | One of Bill's boys. |
| | Oliver | Lacon | Control's trusted ally at Treasury. |
| | Oliver | Mendel | A retired police officer. |
| | Christoph | Leamas | Sole heir of Alec Leamas. |
| | Karen | Gold | Sole daughter of Liz Gold. |
| | Millie | McCraig | Smiley's former agent. |
| 4 | Bernie | Lavendar | Gentlemen's tailor to the diplomatic corps. |
| | Josef | Fiedler | Mundt's rival. |
| | Hans-Dieter | Mundt | The man who killed Leamas. |
| 5 | Dagmar | | A Swedish journalist. |
| 6 | Stas | De Jong | Leamas's colleague. Head of Berlin Station. |
| | Pippa | | De Jong's wife. |
| | Barney | | De Jong's daughter. |
| | Loftus | | De Jong's dog. |
| | Karl | Riemick | The Doctor of the Kopenick. Aka: Mayflower. |
| | Connie | Sachs | A double agent at Moscow Centre. |
| | Manfred | Riemick | Karl's father. |
| | Helga | Riemick | Karl's mother. |
| | Doris | Gamp-Quinz | One of the female sources. Dr. Rapp's mistress. Aka: Tulip, Venia Lessif. |
| | Lothar | Quinz | Doris's husband. |
| | Gustav | Quinz | Doris's son. |
| | Lotte | | Doris's sister. |
| | Emmanuel | Rapp | The KGB-trained director of overseas operations. |
| | Brigitte | Rapp | Emmanuel's wife. |
| 8 | Pepsi | | Smiley's secretary. |
| | Daffodil | | One of the sub-sources. |
| | Violet | | One of the sub-sources. |
| | Petal | | One of the sub-sources. |
| | Sally | Ormond | Jerry's wife. |
| | Alwyn | Withers | The British Ambassador. |
| | Etienne | Jabroche | A colonel from the French Embassy. |
| | Leonard | | The counsel. |
| 9 | Joe | Hawkesberry | Paris's head of the station. |
| | Herbert | | A Circus driver. |
| | Ashley | Meadow | A doctor. Circus's friend. Aka: Frank. |
| | Harper | | Lowe's gay partner. Tulip's colleague. |
| | Lowe | | Harper's gay partner. Tulip's colleague. |
| 10 | Ingeborg | Lugg | A covert star debriefer. Aka: Louisa. |
| | Jeannette | Anna | A covert star debriefer. Aka: Anna. |
| 11 | Tabitha | | One of Bunny's colleagues. A lawyer. |
| 12 | Eleanora | Crail | The library funder. |
| | Mars | | A 2nd assistant librarian. |
| | R. Palme | Dutt | A young journalist and communist activist. |
| | Bert Arthur | Lownes | Owner of Lownes; the people's grocer. |
| 13 | Friede | | Jim's librarian friend. |
| 14 | Honore | | Peter's friend. |
