# Secret Love (비밀) (South Korean TV series)
**Secret Love** (비밀; also translated *Secret*) is a 2013 South Korean television melodrama broadcast on KBS2 as a Wednesday-Thursday miniseries, starring [Ji Sung](https://www.edgepedia.org/ji-sung), Hwang Jung-eum, Bae Soo-bin, and Lee Da-hee[1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bq757vTgsJA). Produced by KBS Media as 16 episodes of about 70 minutes each[2](https://global.kbsmedia.co.kr/Guide/Data/guide_drama2019.pdf), it ran in Korea from 25 September to 14 November 2013[3](https://world.kbs.co.kr/service/contents_view.htm?board_code=music_drama&board_seq=270151&id=&lang=v&menu_cate=moviedrama&page=61) and became one of the year's notable ratings successes, rising from a 5.3% premiere to 14.6% by episode 6 while competing against SBS's star-heavy *The Heirs*[4](https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20131011046600005).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Format | TV drama miniseries, 16 episodes × 70 minutes, produced by KBS Media, production year 2013[2](https://global.kbsmedia.co.kr/Guide/Data/guide_drama2019.pdf) • [5](https://welcon.kocca.kr/en/directory/content/secret-love--9904) |
| Broadcast | KBS2 Wednesday-Thursday 21:55 slot; 25 September to 14 November 2013 in Korea[3](https://world.kbs.co.kr/service/contents_view.htm?board_code=music_drama&board_seq=270151&id=&lang=v&menu_cate=moviedrama&page=61) • [6](https://asianwiki.com/Secret_Love) |
| Main cast | Ji Sung as Jo Min-hyuk, Hwang Jung-eum as Kang Yoo-jung, Bae Soo-bin as Ahn Do-hoon, Lee Da-hee as Shin Se-yeon[1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bq757vTgsJA) |
| Creative team | Directed by Lee Eung-bok; written by Yoo Bo-ra from Choi Ho-chul's original screenplay[3](https://world.kbs.co.kr/service/contents_view.htm?board_code=music_drama&board_seq=270151&id=&lang=v&menu_cate=moviedrama&page=61) |
| Ratings | Premiere 5.3%; episode 6 reached 14.6% nationwide (Nielsen Korea), ahead of *The Heirs* at 10.5% and *Medical Top Team* at 7.0%[4](https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20131011046600005) |
| Awards | 2013 KBS Drama Awards: top excellence for Ji Sung and Hwang Jung-eum, supporting awards for Bae Soo-bin and Lee Da-hee; 2014 Asia Rainbow TV Awards excellence for TV modern drama[7](https://d.namu.moe/w/%EB%B9%84%EB%B0%80(2013%EB%85%84%20%EB%93%9C%EB%9D%BC%EB%A7%88)) |
| International release | English-subtitled episodes on KBS World TV from 9 October 2013; later streamed with subtitles on services such as Rakuten Viki and OnDemandKorea[1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bq757vTgsJA) • [8](https://www.viki.com/tv/20714c-secret) • [9](https://www.ondemandkorea.com/en/player/vod/secret-love-1) |
## Premise and characters
The story follows Kang Yoo-jung ([Hwang Jung-eum](https://www.edgepedia.org/hwang-jung-eum)), who has supported her boyfriend Ahn Do-hoon (Bae Soo-bin) for seven years through law school and the bar examination. On the day Do-hoon proposes, he causes a car accident that strikes Seo Ji-hee, and he abandons the wounded woman, who dies with her unborn baby. Yoo-jung takes the blame and serves five years in prison, while Do-hoon, now a prosecutor, gradually grows apart from her. Jo Min-hyuk (Ji Sung), Ji-hee's boyfriend, vows revenge on Yoo-jung, then discovers there is a different story behind the original crime and falls in love with the person he set out to destroy[5](https://welcon.kocca.kr/en/directory/content/secret-love--9904) • [10](https://drama.fandom.com/wiki/Secret_Love). [KBS World](https://www.edgepedia.org/kbs-world)'s synopsis frames the series as an exploration of people who live with secrets, which drive the four main characters' desires to find love and exact revenge[1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bq757vTgsJA). Cine21 describes it as a melodrama about a man who believed love did not exist and a woman betrayed by love[11](https://cine21.com/tv/info/?tv_id=4977).
Supporting roles include Lee Deok-hwa as Chairman Jo Han-il, Jo Mi-ryung as Madam Hong, Song Min-kyung as Jo Min-joo, and Yang Jin-sung as Seo Ji-hee[12](https://thinkmoa.tistory.com/2660) • [13](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3215892/fullcredits/).
## Production and writing
The series originated in Choi Ho-chul's screenplay, which won the "Excellence Award" at the KBS One-Act Play Script Contest in 2012; Yoo Bo-ra joined to develop the full script[6](https://asianwiki.com/Secret_Love) • [3](https://world.kbs.co.kr/service/contents_view.htm?board_code=music_drama&board_seq=270151&id=&lang=v&menu_cate=moviedrama&page=61). Director Lee Eung-bok, previously associated with the *Dream High* series and KBS Drama Special single plays, took on an intense melodrama ("geokjeong melo") for the first time[14](https://www.edaily.co.kr/News/Read?mediaCodeNo=258&newsId=01203766602939464).
**A rookie-writer year.** Korean trade press grouped *Secret Love* with *Good Doctor* and *School 2013* as 2013 dramas written by newcomers who debuted through KBS's Drama Special single plays and then moved to terrestrial miniseries, noting that Yoo Bo-ra and Park Jae-beom delivered persuasive storytelling despite it being their first series[15](https://www.nocutnews.co.kr/news/1115149). W Korea's year-end review called the head-to-head contest between KBS's *Secret Love* and SBS's *The Heirs* the most symbolic moment of 2013 drama, and credited *Secret Love* to the combination of Choi Ho-chul's original story and Yoo Bo-ra's detail work[16](https://www.wkorea.com/2013/12/30/%EC%83%88%EB%A1%AD%EA%B2%8C-%ED%95%98%EC%86%8C%EC%84%9C-2/).
## Reception and ratings
The drama started quietly. Yonhap reported that with relatively little attention for its casting or writer, it premiered at 5.3% but competed on the strength of the story itself, with its fast pacing and gripping narrative praised despite the deliberately familiar love-and-revenge setup[4](https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20131011046600005). Episode 6 recorded 14.6% nationwide and 15.4% in the Seoul capital area, a personal best at that point, while *The Heirs* fell to 10.5% and MBC's *Medical Top Team* to 7.0%; under the TNmS gauge the same episode stood at 11.9%[4](https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20131011046600005). Hwang Jung-eum's performance drew particular praise[4](https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20131011046600005).
Although rising ratings prompted talk of an extension, the production ended the series at the planned 16 episodes[7](https://d.namu.moe/w/%EB%B9%84%EB%B0%80(2013%EB%85%84%20%EB%93%9C%EB%9D%BC%EB%A7%88)). KBS's own 2013 management evaluation listed *Secret Love* alongside *Good Doctor* as a drama that offered viewers fresh storytelling combining experimentation and craft, and among the year's KBS dramas that received favorable assessments from both audiences and critics[17](https://www.kmcc.go.kr/download.do?fileSeq=48073).
## Awards and music
At the 2013 KBS Drama Awards (December 31, 2013), Ji Sung and Hwang Jung-eum received the top excellence acting prizes for the series, and Bae Soo-bin and Lee Da-hee won supporting-acting awards[6](https://asianwiki.com/Secret_Love) • [7](https://d.namu.moe/w/%EB%B9%84%EB%B0%80(2013%EB%85%84%20%EB%93%9C%EB%9D%BC%EB%A7%88)). The following year *Secret Love* won the excellence prize in the TV modern drama category at the 2014 Asia Rainbow TV Awards[7](https://d.namu.moe/w/%EB%B9%84%EB%B0%80(2013%EB%85%84%20%EB%93%9C%EB%9D%BC%EB%A7%88)).
The soundtrack included the title track "Secret" (비밀) performed by Iru, with lyrics by Tae Yoon-mi and composition by Kang Dong-yun and Seong Hwan, released on October 10, 2013[7](https://d.namu.moe/w/%EB%B9%84%EB%B0%80(2013%EB%85%84%20%EB%93%9C%EB%9D%BC%EB%A7%88)).
## International distribution
KBS World TV began airing English-subtitled episodes for international audiences on October 9, 2013, with first runs each Wednesday and Thursday at 22:00 (Seoul time)[1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bq757vTgsJA). KBS Media's program catalogs list the series as *Secret Love*, 70 minutes × 16 episodes, production year 2013[2](https://global.kbsmedia.co.kr/Guide/Data/guide_drama2019.pdf). The series later became available with subtitles on streaming platforms including Rakuten Viki, OnDemandKorea, and Apple TV[8](https://www.viki.com/tv/20714c-secret) • [9](https://www.ondemandkorea.com/en/player/vod/secret-love-1) • [18](https://tv.apple.com/ca/show/secret-love/umc.cmc.34rduhuaq6g02q31tm9e7m45).
## References
1. [Secret Love (비밀) trailer and synopsis, KBS WORLD TV (YouTube)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bq757vTgsJA)
2. [KBS Program Catalogue: Drama 2013–2014, KBS Media](https://global.kbsmedia.co.kr/Guide/Data/guide_drama2019.pdf)
3. [Cuộc tình bí mật (Secret Love), KBS WORLD Vietnamese program page](https://world.kbs.co.kr/service/contents_view.htm?board_code=music_drama&board_seq=270151&id=&lang=v&menu_cate=moviedrama&page=61)
4. ['비밀' 수목극 1위 굳히나…시청률 14.6% 최고치, Yonhap News (11 October 2013)](https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20131011046600005)
5. [Secret Love, WelCon Well-made K-Content directory, Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA)](https://welcon.kocca.kr/en/directory/content/secret-love--9904)
6. [Secret Love, AsianWiki](https://asianwiki.com/Secret_Love)
7. [비밀(2013년 드라마), Namu Wiki](https://d.namu.moe/w/%EB%B9%84%EB%B0%80(2013%EB%85%84%20%EB%93%9C%EB%9D%BC%EB%A7%88))
8. [Secret Love, Rakuten Viki](https://www.viki.com/tv/20714c-secret)
9. [Secret Love, OnDemandKorea](https://www.ondemandkorea.com/en/player/vod/secret-love-1)
10. [Secret Love, Drama Wiki (Fandom)](https://drama.fandom.com/wiki/Secret_Love)
11. [비밀 Secret (2013), Cine21 TV database](https://cine21.com/tv/info/?tv_id=4977)
12. [비밀 다시보기 회차정보·출연진, Thinkmoa](https://thinkmoa.tistory.com/2660)
13. [Secret Love (TV Series 2013) full cast & crew, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3215892/fullcredits/)
14. [KBS 수목극 4연속 부진, '비밀'의 어깨가 무겁다, Edaily](https://www.edaily.co.kr/News/Read?mediaCodeNo=258&newsId=01203766602939464)
15. [2013년, 신인작가들 일냈다!, No Cut News](https://www.nocutnews.co.kr/news/1115149)
16. [새롭게 하소서, W Korea (30 December 2013)](https://www.wkorea.com/2013/12/30/%EC%83%88%EB%A1%AD%EA%B2%8C-%ED%95%98%EC%86%8C%EC%84%9C-2/)
17. [2013 사업연도 경영평가보고서, Korea Communications Commission (KBS evaluation)](https://www.kmcc.go.kr/download.do?fileSeq=48073)
18. [Secret Love, Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/ca/show/secret-love/umc.cmc.34rduhuaq6g02q31tm9e7m45)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › International serial drama and telenovelas › East Asian drama series › Korean contemporary drama › Romance and melodrama series › Romance melodrama miniseries › Tearjerker melodrama series*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 18, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 18, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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