This is the first series of Absolute Power, originally broadcast on BBC television in 2003. It comes after three series on BBC Radio 4.
This is an incredibly well-written, well-acted and artistically filmed programme. Stephen Fry and John Bird are as brilliant as ever, being both excellent actors and also very funny. The lesser-known actors are surprisingly good too, and every episode has a cameo or two to look out for, from people like Angus Deaton and Mark Lawson.
Charles Prentiss (Fry) and Martin McCabe (Bird) are partners of a top public media relations office in London. They entertain contracts from the government, the church, footballers, pop stars, comedians, historians and Nazis.
For people who have listened to the Radio 4 version, it is wise to be aware that Stephen Fry, John Bird and spin are the only things taken into the television version. It has new writers, new characters and a very different feel. The radio version is lighter and more joke-orientated, whereas the television version is deeper, more intelligent, more artistic and seems to have a little more oomph.
Whether or not this change from radio to television is good is a question of personal preference. Speaking personally, while I prefer the television version, I am glad that the radio version is still running between television series.
Let's move onto a few slightly negative points. The first is that the episodes are not all written by the same writer. The feel of each episode is, however, very constant, and the writers do well at matching each other's style. I got the impression that the actors, especially Stephen Fry, contributed a great deal to the scripts too, which adds another level of continuity between episodes.
The second point, which I found slightly jarring, was that the episodes finish often when you think they should carry on, when there is still more story that needs telling. This does add to the artistry of the episodes, but can be a little frustrating at times. This is, however, a fairly minor point at just two of the six episodes on the DVD.
The episodes are very deep, and contain far too many references for most people to be able to catch on their first viewing. If you want something to watch in the background, then this is not the DVD for you. It needs a surprising amount of concentration.
On balance, I think this is a wonderful DVD. I have seen it four times since I bought it, and am always finding new things. It was an effort to think of negative aspects of Absolute Power to balance the review. It is my favourite DVD I have bought this year.
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Production Year: 2004 - Comedy - Director: John Hay - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jimi Mistry, Kate Miles, Dougray Scott
Comedy - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: Tessa Peake-Jones, Buster Merryfield, David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst
Comedy - Director: Richard Boden, Mandie Fletcher, Martin Shardlow - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Hugh Laurie, Miranda Richardson, Stephen Fry, Brian Blessed, Tim McInnerny, Tony Robinson, Rowan Atkinson
Comedy - Director: Terry Jones, Terry Gilliam - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Carol Cleveland, Eric Idle, Graham Chapman, Terry Gilliam, John Cleese, Michael Palin, Terry Jones
I remember listening to some of this in a car once, I wholeheartedly agree with the author that this is a fantastic series. Also it didn't take him long to actually say that, which was nice.
Soho_Black 28.09.2005 13:59
I've seen a few bits of this on TV recently and it does look pretty promising.
Prentiss McCabe are the piranhas of the murky celebrity pond, chewing up reality show ... more
rejects and taking chunks out of newspaper editors - all in the name of PR.The PR agency run by Charles, the flamboyant puppet-master and Martin, the old school cynic...
Stephen Fry and John Bird star as spin doctors Charles Prentiss and Martin McCabe ... more
bringing the popular and satirical Radio 4 comedy Absolute Power to BBC 2. Written by media commentator Mark Lawson writers Andy Rattenbury (Teachers) and Guy Andrews (...
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![Absolute Power : Complete BBC Series 1 [DVD]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78488162.jpg "Absolute Power : Complete BBC Series 1 [DVD]")
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