Roadkill: Episode 2

 "You think you're too popular to be sacked."

It's odd. There's a lot going on here, the plot is nice and intricate- very  State of Play, still- and there's some nice social commentary, if a bit broad brush, particularly into the Tory psyche. The cast is excellent. But something isn't quite clicking with me, and I'm unsure what.So much happens. Arch-privatiser Peter shows us the other side of his libertarianism with his very sensible thoughts on prison reform (and, privately, drug law reform), but the PM slaps him down. Sensible, humane criminal justice policy may be de rigueur in the rest of Europe but for some reason it's not how Tories, or perhaps even the British as a whole, roll.

We move on to a facinating scene in which Margaret hands some documents to Peter's former barrister- an alternative way of the truth coming out if, as seems possible, Charmian is either dead or incapacitated after being hit by a van following a very interesting and revealing evening in Washington DC. This nicely parallel's Peter's crash at the end when Duncan tells him (having done a swtcheroo of DNA, interestingly) that the myserious young woman in pison is indeed his daughter. Meanwhile, Peter's acknowledged daughter manages to uncover the fact he has a girlfriend and is delightfully pragmatic about the way she handles it.

And there are lots of other little revelations and, indeed, character moments. On the surface it all seems very good, and Hugh Laurie in particular is superb. And yet I'm not sure I feel invested in any of the characters. It's a clever script, but seems more about ideas than people. I'm not sure that should necessarily matter enormously in a political drama, but this seems to be structured, with dramatic beats, as though it should.

Let's see how this goes.

The Crown: Season 2, Episode 10- Mystery Man

“You are a mystery man to me.”

It’s a bit of a jump forward to 1962, and this episode covers two years of time, but then again this is the last outing with this wonderful cast. I think we would be churlish to begrudge them at least one episode where, although there’s no swinging as yet, it is at least beginning to feel like the Sixties.

This is, as ever, a dense and thought-provoking episode, hinging on the Profumo scandal but not so much about it as riffing on it. Most obviously, there’s the unresolved question of whether the “mystery man” photographed at one of Stephen Ward’s parties is Philip or not, his increased absences at house parties and the like, and the question of whether he is playing away. It’s left ambiguous, even after the wonderfully acted confrontation scene near the end when the Queen shows him the locket he saw in his case all those years ago- and we still are left none the wiser. This kind of ambiguity is probably wise.

We also get a good sense of how social mores are changing- the satire boom is in full swing and Beyond the Fringe (if you haven’t seen it, do so; it’s extraordinary) mocks the establishment in new ways, and Macmillan’s humiliation as he watches it in stage is nicely juxtaposed with the pompously conservative, snobbish and implicitly homophobic prosecution speech at Stephen Ward’d trial, leading to his suicide- exactly the kind of vicious arrogance that needed doing away with. It was this, rather than particularly Macmillan, that needed to be swept away.

Speaking of Macmillan, this series has not been kind to him. I’m no Tory, but I’d say he’s the best peacetime Tory prime minister of the twentieth century- moderate, sensibly centrist in his opinions, a steady hand with colonialism. Yes, his resignation was more due to being fed up with it all than his ill health, but I’ve no doubt six years as PM is exhausting. The Queen’s rant at him for being a quitter here is uncalled for, but I suppose the point is that she doesn’t have the luxury of resignation. It’s an interesting scene to include.

We end with a new royal birth and a kind of deconstructed mise en scene as Cecil Beaton takes another photograph to end a second superb season. I’ll be blogging the next season very soon indeed.