Introduction
The Thick of It is a British political satire written and directed by Armando Iannucci. First aired in 2005 on BBC Four with two short seasons with a small cast focused on a government minister, their advisors and a party spin doctor. The Thick of It then aired two specials in 2007 which coincided with Gordon Brown’s appointment as Prime Minister with a larger cast who remained on the show for two more seasons aired on BBC Two in 2009 and 2012 respectively. Here, we’ll take a look at what makes this show so memorable and great.
Characters
The main character of the show and the true highlight is Malcolm Tucker (Peter Capaldi), a party spin doctor with a seemingly endless capacity for swearing and crude innuendos. Other members of the main cast include Ollie Reeder (Chris Addison) who is an inexperienced yet arrogant young policy advisor to both Hugh Abbot (Chris Langham) in the first two seasons and Nicola Murray (Rebecca Front) in the third and fourth season. Both Abbot and Murray are cabinet ministers who run the fictional Department for Social Affairs (or DoSAC). They also have to deal with bumbling civil servant Terri Coverley (Joanna Scanlan) and senior policy advisor Glenn Cullen (James Smith).
Each character has their own unique role and they all have a way of making an audience laugh. Capaldi steals the show with his perfect portrayal Malcolm Tucker, dealing with issues in every episode. Despite this, there really is no true hero of the show which is entirely by design. Iannucci’s vision for the show, a comical satire of British politics is both funny but frequently worrying. You can’t help but hope that the actual government has slightly more sense than the characters on the show. Despite often trying to make things better, self-interest and genuine idiocy often prevails, making for brilliant viewing.
Storylines and context
There are parallels between the events on the show and real life. The first season runs for three episodes and is the weakest as it feels like the show is still finding its feet with storylines in which not a great deal actually occurs, and the biggest plot points this season has to offer is Hugh’s multiple close calls with resignation from his position. Don’t let this deter you from this season however, as Capaldi as well as Langham and Addison still create great comedic moments.
The second season is similar to the first but does leave more of an impact on the viewer. This season focuses on the days before a cabinet reshuffle where Hugh Abbot is desperately trying to keep his job. This batch of episodes is more engaging as the consequences each character could face are more identifiable and definitely ramped up for the viewer. It also gives more of a shining light to characters like Glenn and Ollie as they navigate the political landscape they find themselves in with the two of them fearing for their jobs as the possibility of Hugh being replaced dawns on them.
Season two also features the show’s two specials, both running for an hour long. These episodes feel like a turning point for the show where the chaos is turned up a notch or two. The actors all seem to be on another level when compared to the previous episodes. Tucker, along with his right-hand man in No. 10 and fellow Scotsman Jamie Macdonald (Paul Higgins) create an unbelievably tense atmosphere in these specials. The first special, “Rise of the Nutters” revolves around party factions. It also helps the viewer understand the opposition characters more such as Peter Mannion (Roger Allam). The second special, “Spinners and Losers”, focuses on everyone in the party trying to better their position over one night. Following the Prime Minister’s resignation Malcolm makes any use of the night where his true mastery of spin is revealed.
Season three is the peak of the show when Nicola Murray is introduced as a replacement for Hugh Abbot. Rebecca Front is on top form in the role of the devoted yet fatally incompetent minister. Some of the show’s best gags are featured in this season such as Murray’s words in a simple interview being spun to indicate she is launching a party leadership bid, something she seemingly cannot crawl her way out of as her choices of words dig the whole deeper with everything she tells the press.
Malcolm is on full attack mode in this season and launches some of the best insults ever. Particularly when he refers to someone as “dead human skin” and referring to Ollie as the “beige Power Ranger”. Plot lines consist of party conferences gone wrong, communications lockdowns and the fear that the party could lose the election. Malcolm displays signs of genuine fear which otherwise would have been mistaken for his ruthless rage.
Season four revolves around the coalition government, based on the Cameron-Clegg coalition formed out of the 2010 general election. Malcolm’s party is now out of power with Nicola situated as leader of the opposition. We see a deeper dive into the other party with Peter Mannion placed in Murray’s old position. Episodes one to four switch the focus between the parties with each party having two episodes each. Episode five breaks this and focuses on Douglas Tickel, a nurse who commits suicide due to housing policies.
The show takes its most serious tone. Episode six shows an inquiry into the concept of leaking information to the press within the government. This was set up after Tickel’s medical records were leaked by Tucker to hurt the government. The government incriminate themselves by leaking jokes made about Tickel. This episode feels very meta and takes a stern look at the idea of spin and leaking and the role it plays in modern government. Malcolm later turns himself into a police station as the inquiry discovered he had leaked the medical records.
The last line of the show is particularly prominent as it’s Stuart Pearson, Malcolm’s opposite number who says the line. Following his dismissal from the party, the reserved and mild-mannered Pearson says “I’ve spent ten years detoxifying this party. It’s been a bit like renovating an old, old house. You can take out a sexist window here, a callous beam there, replace the odd homophobic roof tile, but after a while you realise this renovation is doomed. As the foundations are built on what I can only describe as a solid bed of c*nts.” For a character who spent the last two seasons spouting nonsense, he sure delivered a particularly clear description of British politics.
Something Iannucci does brilliantly is to never state which party is which. This also includes not mentioning which party characters are aligned with. The parties are only referred to as either the government or the opposition. A viewer with an interest in politics can determine which party is based on a real-life counterpart. Evidence points towards Malcolm being part of the Labour party.
The fact they are never clearly labelled allows a viewer to find both accolades and flaws for both parties. Real life political preferences are allowed to be moved to the side. They would have more of an impact on the viewer’s opinion and enjoyability of the show if the parties were clearly labelled.
Summary
The Thick of It is a very clever satire of British politics which does not hold back on making a mockery of its real-life inspirations. Some of the writing has aged poorly, likely not to be encouraged today. However, anyone with a slight interest in British politics will be sorely missing if they do not watch this show. Iannucci’s ability to make a viewer laugh whilst also frightening them by revealing the sheer level of incompetence which can occur within our government on a daily basis is something to be greatly praised for.
Overall rating: 9/10
Recommendation – Yes
