A Laurie load of intrigue
There are secrets, scandal and a seduction in this look at the price politicians pay to reach the top of the greasy government pole.
An addictive four-part drama, Roadkill will have your eyes glued to the television with its moreish exploration of the Tory Party and its members.
The series opens at the end of a high-profile court case that the Machiavellian transport secretary Peter Laurence (the excellent Hugh Laurie) has just won. Peter has managed to wiggle his way out of a scandal by taking legal action against a prominent newspaper.
The pace is set from the start and you’ll need to be alert to keep up with writer David Hare’s razor-sharp storytelling.
It quickly delves into the whispers and secrets of Peter’s life. We learn of a daughter he didn’t know existed, another who’s well and truly off the rails and a ticking time bomb in the form of journalist Charmian Pepper (Sarah Greene), who is intent on revenge.
The minister who clawed his way up from working-class Croydon to the centre of British power is certainly hiding some skeletons. And hellbent on finding them is his boss, prime minister Dawn Ellison, played by Peaky Blinders’ Helen McCrory. Peter and Dawn’s tense and untrusting relationship may be filled with pleasantries but takes office politics to a whole new level.
The pair are propped up by their unelected special advisers Duncan and Julia (Iain De Caestecker and Olivia Vinall). Julia is the PM’s eyes and ears, while Duncan buries bodies for Peter, but the pair have their own connection.
There’s no shortage of twists and turns and, as the story unravels, we’re treated to an all-access tour of Downing Street, Westminster and the lives of its most prominent players.
“The story is about the price Peter is prepared to pay to get to the top position,” Laurie said. “And the price he forces everyone else to pay, principally his family.”
The Blackadder and House star added: “There’s a jaggedness and awkwardness to the characters that makes them more believable and intriguing. It’s a drama on the price of success in the political realm and what it demands of the people in that world. It’s pretty unforgiving.”