Quiz, ITV ★★★★★
Afew minutes into this glossy retelling of the Coughing Major scandal, I began to suspect one or two of the protagonists may have phoned a friend in the casting department.
I certainly don’t remember Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? host Chris
Tarrant looking as fresh-faced as the gleaming Michael Sheen.
Major Charles Ingram and his wife Diana must have been equally delighted at being portrayed by the aesthetically blessed Matthew Macfadyen and Sian Clifford.
As for the TV executives, most were unrecognisable from the faces I bumped into at parties and awards shows. Watching the flashback
scenes of the National Television Awards, I was half-expecting Ant & Dec to show up played by two 6ft male models.
Some might say such airbrushing and buffing is hardly in the same league as the deception perpetrated by the Major and his crew.
Others may argue that the Ingrams didn’t really do anything wrong.
After dangling that million-pound carrot, what did ITV expect?
Alongside the cracking performances, the sharp script, the rollicking pace and the joyful nostalgia, that’s the real pull of this drama: just how guilty were they?
After this first episode I’m 50:50. I can’t wait to see how it plays out over the next two nights.
What I’d really like to do though is speak to Diana’s brother, Adrian, who collated data and developed elaborate spreadsheets to work out the best way to get through to the contestant phone line.
Well, if anyone can help me book a Sainsbury’s delivery slot, he can.
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The real pull of this joyful drama is: just how guilty were they?