State of Play (2003– )

A thriller set in London, in which a politician's life becomes increasingly complex as his research assistant is found dead on the London Underground and, in a seemingly unrelated incident, a teenage pickpocket is shot dead.

Stars:

John Simm, Kelly Macdonald, Bill Nighy

16 wins & 10 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
John Simm	...	Cal McCaffrey (6 episodes, 2003)
Kelly Macdonald	...	Della Smith (6 episodes, 2003)
Bill Nighy	...	Cameron Foster (6 episodes, 2003)
Philip Glenister	...	DCI William Bell (6 episodes, 2003)
David Morrissey	...	Stephen Collins (6 episodes, 2003)
James McAvoy	...	Dan Foster (6 episodes, 2003)
Amelia Bullmore	...	Helen Preger (6 episodes, 2003)
Benedict Wong	...	Pete Cheng (6 episodes, 2003)
Marc Warren	...	Dominic Foy (6 episodes, 2003)
Rebekah Staton	...	Liz (6 episodes, 2003)
Polly Walker	...	Anne Collins (6 episodes, 2003)
Michael Feast	...	Andrew Wilson (5 episodes, 2003)
Johann Myers	...	Sonny Stagg (5 episodes, 2003)
Tom Burke	...	Syd (4 episodes, 2003)
Maureen Hibbert	...	Olicia Stagg (4 episodes, 2003)
James Laurenson	...	George Fergus (4 episodes, 2003)
Deborah Findlay	...	Greer Thornton (4 episodes, 2003)
Christopher Simpson	...	Adam Greene (4 episodes, 2003)
Sean Gilder	...	Sergeant 'Chewy' Cheweski (3 episodes, 2003)
Shauna Macdonald	...	Sonia Baker (3 episodes, 2003)
Rebecca Ryan	...	Karen Collins (3 episodes, 2003)
Charlie Ryan	...	Louis Collins (3 episodes, 2003)
Stuart Goodwin	...	Robert Bingham (3 episodes, 2003)
Patrick Brennan	...	Neil Woods (3 episodes, 2003)

Storyline

A thriller set in London, in which a politician's life becomes increasingly complex as his research assistant is found dead on the London Underground and, in a seemingly unrelated incident, a teenage pickpocket is shot dead.

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Plot Keywords:

politician | manchester | deception | friendship | forbidden love | 

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Taglines:

Sometimes you have to read between the lines

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Romance | Thriller

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Details

Official Sites:

BBC [uk]

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 May 2003 (UK)

Also Known As:

Den tredje makten

Company Credits

Production Co:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Endor Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

57 min 57 min (6 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Michael Kitchen was first offered the Bill Nighy role.

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Quotes

Stephen Collins: SPOILER:
[seated on the steps of Cal McCaffrey's house, as Cal is walking away]
Stephen Collins: You're no good to Anne now... Your name will be on the story... You'd know if you had them... Kids... They shoot the messenger... They just do

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Connections

Referenced in NCIS: Capitol Offense (2008)

User Reviews

Superb

The BBC haven't made a mini series as good since 'Edge of Darkness' in 1985. Although 'State of Play' doesn't quite match that seminal classic it is still superb. It is an oasis in a very large desert of quality programming from the once mighty BBC. Apart from the 2001 co-production 'Conspiracy' the BBC drama output is a poor shadow of what it used to be in the sixties and seventies.

The six episodes of 'State of Play' need close attention but once the plot gets going it is a roller coaster ride to the last few minutes of the last episode. The journalists, the politicians and the police prowl around each other as the conspiracy is unravelled. It is not just a driving narrative however, there are real people with real emotions caught up in the action. The six episodes allow several characters to become rounded and interesting. High praise indeed for Paul Abbott, the writer. It gripped from start to finish.

The acting is excellent. David Morrissey and John Simm as Stephen Collins and Cal McCaffrey play brilliantly off against each other as truths are eventually discovered. The last scene between them is corker. The journalists are the heroes but they are also flawed and troubled. All the actors playing the journos were great but I thought Kelly Macdonald as Della Smith was exceptional. Bill Nighy had some hilarious lines which he gave full justice to. Forget Hollywood star names, these are proper actors.

Apart from the human characters the other character that is well portrayed is London itself. London has many faces and the series brought several of those out. From nights by the Thames , to the bleak housing estates, to the pretty suburban streets, to the formality of Parliament, to the sounds and almost the smells of eight million people jostling together. All photographed atmospherically. As a Londoner it made me look at my city again.

I'll run out of superlatives soon, so I'll just say it is a great achievement by all the artists concerned. Apparently another series is being considered and hopefully that will be just as good.