This article was originally published in The Dundee Courier on 23rd July 2016.
The Secret Agent: Sunday, BBC One
One Night in 2012: An
Imagine Special: Sunday, BBC One
Terrorist
cells. Suicide bombers. Russia flexing its muscles. Late 19th
century Britain was a dangerous place. Thank God we’ve come so far since then.
Adapted
from the novel by Joseph Conrad, The
Secret Agent is an alarmingly prophetic period thriller starring Toby Jones
as Verloc, a Soho sex shop owner who moonlights as an informer for the Russian
embassy.
Driven
by profit rather than any great ideological impulse, he earns an extra crust by
sharing fairly banal information about the anarchist gang whose trust he’s
earned. But his life becomes a waking nightmare when the embassy orders him to
commit an act of terrorism on the gang’s behalf, thus provoking the British
government into hard-line action.
As
explained by the Russian secretary, played with reptilian zeal by David Dawson,
“England is in need of a jolly good scare, an outrage that will summon this
country from its slumber. Then we unleash a law that will clamp down on the
anarchist threat.”
This
compelling three-part drama is full of such moments, when the prescience of its
storyline and themes smacks us full in the face. Granted, there are times when
writer Tony Marchant gets slightly carried away with this aspect, and
practically turns to the audience to scream, “Do you see?! Do you see what I’m
getting at?!” But given the overall strength of the piece, that’s forgivable.
The
bold antithesis of most Sunday night period dramas, The Secret Agent is mired in a clammy fog of impending
catastrophe. Jones is typically arresting as an essentially amoral, cowardly man
who nevertheless invites a kernel of sympathy. After all, he’s in the grip of
an appalling moral dilemma. If Verloc refuses his orders, the Russians will
sign his death warrant by exposing his true colours to every terrorist group in
Europe.
Ian
Hart also shines as a truly unsettling nihilist with a home-made bomb strapped
under his coat at all times. The crazed embodiment of a terror which can’t be
reasoned with, he’s driven solely by a desire to cause pain and chaos for its
own sake.
Given
the relentlessly horrendous state of the world, this impressive adaptation of
Conrad’s prophecy couldn’t be more relevant. Everything changes, everything stays the same.
Still,
it was nice of One Night in 2012: An
Imagine Special to remind us of that fleeting moment of national pride and
optimism engendered by Danny Boyle’s justly lauded Olympics opening ceremony.
An
in-depth documentary about the making of this triumphant event, it reinforced
the fact that no one expected it to succeed. We expected the worst, because we
always do in this country. It’s part of our national character. Disaster
beckoned. The knives were out. Britain was about to humiliate itself in the
eyes of the world.
Of
course, what actually transpired was a heartening, powerful and subversive
celebration of immigration, industrialisation, free healthcare and Britain’s
vast contribution to world-changing innovations and popular culture. But it was
ultimately a tribute to the everyday folk who shape British life.
Alongside
revealing contributions from Boyle and his team, the programme devoted just as
much time to the dedicated volunteers. They were the real stars of the
ceremony.
It
also revealed – quelle surprise – that Cameron’s coalition government were opposed
to the glorious NHS sequence. To his eternal credit, Boyle threatened to walk
if this tribute to one of our greatest institutions was cut. Thankfully, he
won. We all did.
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