Written by Steven Moffat
Directed by Ben Palmer
Madeline: "To clarify, I don't believe in women's rights because I don't believe there is any such thing. I believe there are human rights and denying isn't a reason to join a movement, go on a march and write a book. It's an act of war. It's a reason to retaliate, so don't fuck with me."
I think this year might really be a good year for Steven Moffat. First he came back to Doctor Who and gave us the excellent Boom (we've still got upcoming Christmas special Joy To The World to look forward to) and now this provocative miniseries centring on cancel culture.
If there's a writer who might have a tiny insight into this topic, maybe it's Steven Moffat. His days on Doctor Who often sprung an ire among some fans, in particular his depiction of women. That's been a criticism that has followed Moffat beyond his time running the best show ever and it's definitely something that obviously fueled this miniseries too.
Our main characters are two co-anchors of a Live At Six News show. You've got middle-aged and experienced Douglas Bellowes (Hugh Bonneville) and the younger but savvier, Madeline Crowe (Karen Gillan). They're a dynamic team with chemistry, both on and off the camera but one incident would change their whole relationship during this four part series.
The incident being a joke that Douglas told at a wedding. A joke he claimed not to remember but has gained online traction regardless of Twitter being unaware of the actual joke itself. Of course, the fact that it was said was enough to cause ripple effects to everyone that Douglas was connected to. This included his newspaper editor wife, Sheila (Alex Kingston) and their political activity daughter, Claudia (Madeleine Power), the latter of whom was one of the weaker written characters until the last episode.
Throughout the series, Sheila along with Douglas's sleazy producer, Toby (Ben Miles), tone deaf comedy writer, Morgan (Nick Mohammed) and ineffectual agent, Bently (Simon Russell Beale) all try to band together in order to save Douglas's career. However, it's the idea to do a rehearsal interview before Douglas has to be interviewed by Kirsty Wark at the Hay Festival that really upped the ante for this series.
The first two episodes had that set up feel about them but then the third episode was mostly flashbacks. You could see how much of an influence that Douglas had on Madeline at a young age along with two different encounters before she became his co-anchor. The interview scene in the hotel room between Madeline and Toby made for some genuinely uncomfortable viewing and that's putting it mildly.
The final episode did centre on the rehearsal interview between Madeline and Douglas and without being hyperbolic, both Karen Gillan and Hugh Bonneville do give career best performances here. The fact that Douglas not only remembered exactly what he said but the fact that he tried every subterfuge to get away with it was bad enough. Madeline might have been motivated a bit by revenge and disappointment in creating Douglas's downfall but given that the line was about her, it wasn't difficult to see why she did the things she did.
- Every episode had a mid credit scene involving a cab driver named Tom (Joe Wilkinson) trying to think of ideas for a TV show. Madeline was his last fare.
- Madeline idolised Douglas since she was seven. Amy Pond idolised the Doctor at that age too. I'm just saying.
- The finale flashback revealed that Madeline wasn't attacked by Toby but used his sleazy behaviour against him to secure her job.
- I loved the bathroom scene with Madeline and Sheila where they're informing each other on their relationship with Douglas. I also just got a kick out of seeing Karen Gillan and Alex Kingston acting again with each other.
- Kirsty Wark did appear but it was Madeline being interviewed at the Hay Festival, following Douglas being ousted from his job.
- Chronology: Very much in 2024, with various flashbacks to Douglas and Madeline's respective pasts.
Hats off to Steven Moffat but I think he really cracked it with Douglas Is Cancelled. In a lot of ways, this could've horribly wrong and been extremely tone deaf but he legitimately struck the right balance as witnessed by both Douglas and Madeline's characters throughout. Sublime performances by Hugh Bonneville and Karen Gillan and has become one of the best shows in 2024.
Rating: 9 out of 10
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