It’s November 1990 and Britain’s longest serving Prime Minster for more than 150 years is about to announce her resignation after almost 11 years in office. She has just been forced to face another ballot for the position of Conservative leader (illustrated here by an amusing bit of footage featuring John Sergeant) and her party ally Geoffrey Howe has just stepped down due to her European policy.
And so marks the political downfall of Maggie Thatcher, played by multi-BAFTA nominated actress Lindsay Duncan who starred as Servilia in the HBO/BBC series Rome, the subject of this TV film entitled Margaret which tells the story a woman who simply couldn’t keep up the fight after her time as British Prime Minister.
Thatcher – A Hate Figure or Political Revolutionary?
The name Margaret Thatcher drums up many images and polarised opinions. She is someone who was famous for her tough-talking persona (earning her the nickname the ‘Iron Lady’), her staunch approach to the trade unions, the introduction of the poll tax (and successive riots) and the 1982 Falklands War, all of which made her a hate figure amongst the politically active left-wing but viewed as a strong leader by her supporters.
This film is an intimate portrayal of a woman on the brink of ruin; a human story about Maggie behind the public persona as she loses her grip on the power she had strived to achieve. In her last days the Cabinet tell her that she must go before she is "humiliated" and she is being challenged by her long time rival Michael Heseltine.
The story is also complemented by flashes to 15 years previously showing Maggie challenging the then Conservative leader Ted Heath and how she rose through the ranks of the Tory party.
“A drama not a documentary” – says Margaret Writer Richard Cottan
It’s not the first time Thatcher has been documented on screen either through real-life footage or in fictional accounts but it’s one that is bound to confront your perception on the person it portrays. The toughest task however must be trying to make even the most hardened anti-Thatcherite feel any sympathy for her.
Screenwriter Richard Cottan said: “What I was trying to do was to take the downfall as the narrative spine of a more personal story. When writing the script the biggest challenge was deciding what to leave out. I'm sure there will be much debate about the blurring between fact and fiction but I consider this to be a drama not a documentary.”
An Impressive Supporting Cast for Margaret
The producers have managed to attract an exciting array of veteran actors to portray her closest allies and advisors including Ian McDiarmid (Emperor Palpatine from the Star Wars films) as Thatcher's husband Denis, Robert Hardy (All Creatures Great And Small) as her trusted second-in-command Willie Whitelaw, Philip Jackson (Poirot) as no-nonsense press secretary Bernard Ingham and Kevin McNally (Pirates Of The Caribbean and recently ITV’s Demons) as Kenneth Clarke.
The supporting cast also lists John Sessions as Geoffrey Howe, Michael Maloney (Notes On A Scandal) taking the role as Thatcher's successor John Major, Roy Marsden (The Palace) as Norman Tebbit, Casualty’s Nigel Le Vaillant as former Conservative Prime Minster Ted Heath and an appearance by the Queen played by Rosemary Leach.
Whether or not the content of Margaret and the human side of Thatcher will appeal to most people the prospect of seeing such an impressive display of talent on one screen is too tempting to miss.
Regardless of your personal opinions on the Thatcher government and despite being vilified by numerous comedians (namely Ben Elton) and countless rock bands over the decades she still remains as one of the most important political figures in British history and the reason why she is still the topic of TV shows almost 20 years later.

Pete Versus Life是Channel 4台的一部喜剧。它讲述了年轻体育记者Pete Griffiths的挣扎生活，Pete发现自己的心态不够成熟，无法应付生活中各种复杂问题，他真的希望自己的生活像体育一样有确定的规则。(文：life_is_good@YDY)
Pete Versus Life is a comedy drama series which follows the life of struggling young sports journalist Pete Griffiths. Pete finds himself lacking the emotional maturity of life needed to deal with life's more intricate problems and he often ends up wishing that life had clearly defined rules like those used in sport.

这是一部以真实故事为基础的虚构剧集，背景为编剧James Graham本人成长的一个诺丁汉郡矿业村。故事聚焦两起惊人的谋杀案，谋杀案导致本就分裂的社区彻底破碎，并引发了英国史上最大型的追捕行动之一。当地警局的Ian St Clair督察和伦敦警察厅的Kevin Salisbury，两人必须放下过去的竞争，共同侦破案件。人们普遍怀疑，这些死亡事件有可能激化了1980年代矿工罢工期间引发的历史性分歧，致使众多家庭破裂。

British television sitcom written by Caitlin and Caroline Moran

On a bare country road Vladimir and his friend Estragon wait in hope of salvation from a man called Godot. Their hope of salvation lies in Godot's arrival. While waiting they play games, entertain one another with vaudevillian tricks, question whether Godot will arrive and how they will benefit when he does. They are interrupted by the arrival of Pozzo (a land owner) and Lucky (Pozzo's slave). Pozzo questions their reasoning for waiting. Lucky performs a staggering burst of a monologue. Pozzo and Lucky exit, night falls and a young boy arrives and tells Vladimir and Estragon that "Mr Godot won’t come here today but he'll surely arrive tomorrow.” In Act two Pozzo returns but he is blind and Lucky is mute. Vladimir and Estragon continue waiting. Still determining to go, the tramps do not move.

“I cannot express how much this show means to me,” writes artistic director, Peter Reid. “It is undoubtedly the greatest show of the 20th Century and has revolutionised the fabric of theatre.”

Fanny只是一个穷困的乡下女孩， 迫于生计离开家乡来到了城市，并很快沦落于烟花流巷。但在她彻底踏上这条不归路之前，她曾与一位叫 Charles的青年陷入热恋，无奈Charles被他父亲送往他乡，Fanny只得独自留下，并为了生存而开始寻找更加富有、更有势力的依附者。尽管Fanny知道自己是在被人利用，但却并不以为耻，反倒貌似享受这种腐败生活 ……

十九世纪，著名教授解剖学博士托马斯·岩在当地大学给学生们教授新医学。但没人知道的是，托马斯·岩所用的解剖尸体竟然是通过他的助手莫里博士从盗墓者手中买到的。当这一事情被酒鬼Robert Fallon和 Timothy Broom偷听到之后，他们决定通过杀死当地的贫困居民供应新鲜的尸体，以卖给莫里博士好赚点钱。事有碰巧，当莫里博士发现自己一直暗恋的身份卑微的伦敦妓女珍妮贝利也成为Robert Fallon和 Timothy Broom的下一个目标时。他能够及时赶到并拯救自己心爱的女人吗？

2007 film directed by James Hawes

A British-born younger son of an immigrant family from Trinidad finds himself adrift between two cultures.