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Douglas is Cancelled

A news anchor makes a sexist joke which goes viral and implodes his life, in a dynamite new drama from Steven Moffat.

Look to the British press in recent history and it’s easy to think there has been more drama off screen than on screen.

Phillip Schofield, Huw Edwards, Rolf Harris, Jimmy Savile…

Now fuelled by the obsession with social media and clickbait, Douglas is Cancelled draws inspiration from such scandals in a dazzling 4 part ‘comedy-drama’ from writer Steven Moffat (Sherlock, Doctor Who, The Time Traveler’s Wife, Jekyll).

Douglas is Douglas Bellowes (Hugh Bonneville), a respected broadcaster of Live At Six, whose life implodes when a rogue tweet from an obscure account refers to a sexist joke he made at his cousin’s wedding.

For TV producer Toby (Ben Miles) there is still time to minimise the impact, but first he must get his head around what happened. And what united front they will present to the public “once we’ve decided on the facts.”

Douglas insists he can’t remember the joke itself.

So determined to control the narrative is Toby that he disputes Douglas’ version of events, despite not even being at the wedding itself.

“We’re journalists we’re never there. Having opinions about things we didn’t witness is the entire point of our existence.”

Nevertheless, with the possibility of the public losing trust in such a high-profile anchor it’s a PR disaster on the brink of an abyss.

“Your voice is what makes famous people dead!” Toby insists.

But Douglas’ day is about to get a lot worse when wife and newspaper editor Sheila (Alex Kingston) learns of the news. She eats stories like this for breakfast, but now one is on the homefront and she proceeds to tear strips off her husband, adding, “Please delete these messages, I work with people who hack your phone!”

While Douglas seeks to dismiss the joke and tweet, more tabloid-fuelled claims will follow around the family living room from Sheila. “A newsreader’s arse can push a war off the front page!”

Sheila is also concerned about her husband’s younger co-host Madeline (Karen Gillan), with good cause, who presents a facade of support for Douglas, whilst tacitly manoeuvring behind the scenes….

Even Douglas’ doddery agent Bently (Simon Russell Beale) can’t seem to come up with a plan of attack other than an apology press release, and parting company with his client. Ouch.

Through it all Douglas is perhaps the most level-headed of Moffat’s delicious characters, but knee-deep in forces beyond his control, he can but only watch his career slip away from him.

Hugh Bonneville is outstanding in this role, as the blinking, trusting, old-school presenter being torn to shreds by those who feign his best interests at heart.

Alex Kingston, perhaps best recognised as Doctor Who‘s own River Song, is mesmerising in a cyclone of a role as wife and tabloid editor. Scenes with her self-absorbed PA Helen (Stephanie Hyam) could doubtless be ripped straight from Ab Fab were they not Moffat’s creation.

Ben Miles is ruthless as producer Toby, constantly trying to navigate from a position of neutrality and seizing upon “an opportunity to get ahead of the facts.” Just wait for a scene with ‘comedy writer’ Tom (Joe Wilkinson).

Karen Gillan is match-fit for the ambitious Madeline, whose role in all of this, I suspect, won’t be clear until the finale.

The real star of Douglas is Cancelled is Moffat’s script. The dialogue is ripping, rapid-fire brutal and darkly hilarious. It rests so wickedly on its ensemble, it could almost work on stage were it not on screen. The music also evokes feelings of Succession.

If this is truly where modern media is at in 2024 we are probably all doomed. Otherwise, enjoy this from the cheap seats as a glorious takedown behind the scenes of TV. Unmissable.

Douglas is Cancelled 8pm Sunday December 1 on ABC (all episodes on iview)

9 Responses

  1. Just got through this series… and I can see both sides of the critical story. It is exceptionally slick, with barely a moment wasted, which is always a good sign. Some of the performances are fantastic (especially Bonneville, Miles & Kingston). Gillan’s icy performance will be polarising and I’m still on the fence about it. Overall, I liked the tone… But Bonneville & Co. delivered sufficient comedy to proceedings. Beale as Douglas’ bumbling agent was way over the top silly, while – excluding that fantastic initial zinger involving – Wilkinson & Nick Mohammed, they detracted from the series as a whole.

  2. I watched this in one block. It was blistering in its takedown of old guys in places of power thinking they can get away with absolutely anything. Brilliant script and brilliant performances.

  3. Thank you David for the tantalising review of what sounds like could be a promising mininseries.

    For clarification: the ABC TV guide is showing a start time of 8:02 pm (not 8:45 pm as currently listed above) next Sunday, 01 Dec.

  4. Interesting. I was tempted to give this a look mid-year when it actually was “new”, more because the reviews had been so mixed than any other reason (there are some scathing 1 star reviews around). Clearly, it’s going to be a divisive series, based on one’s thoughts, age, gender, etc… Feels to me like it’s trying to do too much, so some targets will be hit, while others won’t. At only 4 episodes, it looks like it will be worth the binge once it hits iView.

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