Written by David Hare. There was something old fashioned about this drama going by the first episode.
It reminded me of two BBC dramas from 1990. House of Cards shown on BBC1 and Blood Rights which was shown on BBC2. That latter marked Christopher Eccleston's television debut but otherwise has been totally forgotten.
Peter Laurence (Hugh Laurie) is a high flying Tory politician with lots of skeletons. He won a libel case but it seems something murky was involved in the victory. The journalist Charmian Pepper changed her testimony on the witness box.
Laurence's jubilant mood does not last long. He might have once fathered a mixed race daughter. The PM (Helen McCrory) offers Laurence a cabinet promotion that was not the job he expected.
Laurence is surrounded by people who are intent on betraying or humiliating him.
To chime with the old fashioned scenario. Laurence seems to be modelled on disgraced politician Jonathan Aitken who lost a libel case in the late 90s mixed with Nigel Farage. Laurence has a regular radio show of the kind Farage used to do.
The weak point was Pepper. The world's most unconvincing financial journalist. Shocked to find herself sacked for costing her employer a fortune.
For some reason I found the whole newspaper scenes, the journalist angle and the legal issues surrounding the libel case implausible. To think Hare wrote the award winning play Pravda.
The main drivers were Laurie and McCrory which wants me to see how this drama turns out.