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What do you reckon to Malcolm Tucker?

Started by BritishHobo, January 28, 2019, 09:08:24 PM

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magval

I've been watching through this from the Specials onwards and I've really loved the moments where he seems like a real person - defending his PA when he's been sacked, or getting uncomfortable when Nicola cries in his office and trying to console her.

Anyone familiar enough with the first six episodes that they'd recommend giving them another go? I'd really rather not see Chris Langham again and the opposition hadn't turned up by that stage so I'm not sure what's in it for me as I like that crew a lot. Not much appeal (though I do remember loving his choice of the word 'chutney' in an early scene.)

Cuellar

I really loved the first 6 episodes. Especially Chris Langham in them, sadly.

Malcolm: "Who's the only gay in the village?"
Hugh: "...Eddie Grundy"

Terri: "Well you could have fooled me"
Hugh: "Glen's SON could have fooled you! I'm so sorry Glen"

Countless funny deliveries/lines. When he pretends he knows how the Eastender's ending credit drums go and starts off alright but then goes all sort of high pitched and ascending rather than descending. Really makes me laugh. Shame.

Sebastian Cobb

Langham and the character of Hugh were great. I'm not going to let his grubby behaviour ruin them for me.

marquis_de_sad

Quote from: BritishHobo on February 01, 2019, 01:52:16 PM
Not to be a stick-up-the-arse, but I always hated the Tinky-Winky/funny Hitler walk bit - it's such a fucking incredible, unexpected moment, absolute fucking brilliant horrible climax to the whole stressful episode... and then they just inexplicably have him trail off into random comedy phrases. I don't get it.

I thought the Hitler bit made sense for someone of his generation. It's just off-the-top-of-his-head nonsense, which follows in a mad logical sequence from him referring to Olly as Tinky Winky.

QuoteFUCKING HUGH JUST WANTS TO SPEAK TO TINKY WINKY?!! WELL FUCK TINKY WINKY!!! FUCK YOU, TINKY WINKY!!! AUF WIEDERSHEN, PET! THE PARTY'S OVER! GOODBYE, YELLOW BRICK ROAD! WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT HITLER?! WELL, HE HAD A MOUSTACHE AND HE LIVED OVER THERE!! FUCK US ALL!!!!

He says "auf wiedershen" etc because he thinks his career is over, which leads to Hitler because German.

Quote from: Sebastian Cobb on February 01, 2019, 02:33:05 PM
Langham and the character of Hugh were great. I'm not going to let his grubby behaviour ruin them for me.

Yep. Can't let his misdemeanours steal Hugh Abbott and Roy Mallard away from me. If I did, it would do a massive disservice to the brilliant ensemble casts and crew that worked on those shows with him.

BritishHobo

I love the first six episodes. I guess it's a tough topic regarding Langham, but I do think it's a lovely performance from him. There's something really low-key about the whole thing that the show never captured again, which really makes them for me. Hugh standing around in varying grey places. Politics looks like a shit purgatory in that series and it works really well, I think.

Glad to see the Eastenders bit mentioned. One of my favourite weird little comedy moments. Impossible to capture.

imitationleather

Quote from: The Culture Bunker on January 31, 2019, 03:17:14 PM
He was a bit more "old school" Tory, wasn't he? Stewart Pearson was more representative of the new and shiny Tory party that Cameron was promoting.

To me Stewart Pearson seemed clearly based on that fucking bellend Steve Hilton.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Hilton

Just looking at him and his succession of t-shirts bearing slogans such as "GREAT" makes me puke and puke and puke and puke and puke and puke. Oh my, what a mess.

Sebastian Cobb

Quote from: BritishHobo on February 01, 2019, 05:30:02 PM
There's something really low-key about the whole thing that the show never captured again, which really makes them for me. Hugh standing around in varying grey places. Politics looks like a shit purgatory in that series and it works really well, I think.

'look I've got to go, I've got an egg on'.

There's a bit where Hugh asks Tucker if he ever gets lonely and Malcolm just shoots him a look of complete disgust.

vainsharpdad

I'm bored of this. I'm going for a Twix.

Sebastian Cobb

Quote
Sometimes I... you know, when you meet the real, the actual people... don't you, I mean, you just look at the little beady eyes and mean mouths sort of sneering, and... I mean, I know this is what they think people like me think so I hate thinking it, but I just find myself thinking they're from a different fucking species. You know, with their t-shirts and weird trousers and tabards and... Why do they wear clothes with writing on? And why are they so fucking fat?

So good.

Cuellar

Quote from: BritishHobo on February 01, 2019, 05:30:02 PM
I love the first six episodes. I guess it's a tough topic regarding Langham, but I do think it's a lovely performance from him. There's something really low-key about the whole thing that the show never captured again, which really makes them for me. Hugh standing around in varying grey places. Politics looks like a shit purgatory in that series and it works really well, I think.

Glad to see the Eastenders bit mentioned. One of my favourite weird little comedy moments. Impossible to capture.

Yeah absolutely, it's like when Jim Hacker became Prime Minister.

The completely ineffectual and totally inconsequential Hugh Abbott was brilliant. Sitting in ante room, nibbling bourbons.

Another of my favourite things about the first episode is Tim Bentinck (and briefly in the specials, where he does another good job).

"Get croissants, Danish pastries.... NO actually fruit. Get lots of fruit"

"I KNOW WHAT TRANSPORT FUCKING ENTAILS" followed by the first and maybe best Malcolm glower.

Sebastian Cobb

The whole cliff scene in spinners and losers is great.

'was the Cillit Bang guy not available?'

'there are lots of shades of grey, you know.'
'I know that, I'm looking at fifteen of them right now.'

ToneLa

Was there an original plan for season 2 before the nonce allegations?

chveik

Quote from: ToneLa on February 02, 2019, 08:54:44 PM
Was there an original plan for season 2 before the nonce allegations?

season 3 you mean

Old Nehamkin


magval

The original DVD release for series 1 and 2 was titled "The Complete First Series", but has since been fixed. So that confusion makes sense.

ToneLa

Quote from: magval on February 02, 2019, 09:16:15 PM
The original DVD release for series 1 and 2 was titled "The Complete First Series", but has since been fixed. So that confusion makes sense.

Aye I got into it well late, was over by the time I picked up the DVD

So uh. Me question...

thraxx

Quote from: The Culture Bunker on January 29, 2019, 07:00:47 AM
They do a similar kind of thing with Jamie. He's bawling someone out in a huge rage, turns round and bumps into a cleaning lady, to whom he offers a polite and sincere "I'm terribly sorry".

I love the 'reveal' of Jamie.  The realisation that there is not just one Malcolm, but in fact two and that maybe there is even dozens of them in every department of the government.  He also has one of my favorite insults, where he refers to someone as a 'ridiculous egg cunt', or words to that effect.

I loved Malcolm from his very first scene when he sacks the first minister.  The black-eyed, jaw-jutting grimace that descends on his face when the minister tries to fight back.

I've always felt that Malcolm can't even feel why he does what he does anymore, other than 1) he knows that he's brilliant at it, 2) he has grown to enjoy it.

Sebastian Cobb

One of my favourite Jamie bit is when he threatens Robyn with keyhole surgery (using this fucking key).

Just the way he's unable to get the key out in a fluid motion, struggling with it, like a real person would do.

BritishHobo

Quote from: thraxx on February 02, 2019, 09:31:51 PM
I love the 'reveal' of Jamie.  The realisation that there is not just one Malcolm, but in fact two and that maybe there is even dozens of them in every department of the government.  He also has one of my favorite insults, where he refers to someone as a 'ridiculous egg cunt', or words to that effect.

I loved Malcolm from his very first scene when he sacks the first minister.  The black-eyed, jaw-jutting grimace that descends on his face when the minister tries to fight back.

I've always felt that Malcolm can't even feel why he does what he does anymore, other than 1) he knows that he's brilliant at it, 2) he has grown to enjoy it.

Simon Foster, as Humpty Dumpty, sitting on his constituency wall 'like some clueless... egg cunt'. He's a marvel in In The Loop. Despite having seen that film so many times, I only recently became aware of this daft and brilliant little deleted scene: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CF2PbJsaW8

BritishHobo

#80
Fun to think about what drives Jamie, as well. I love when he goes off the fucking deep end for a bit in the specials when everyone looks to be 'going nutter', and then just calms down and carries on at the end like nothing happened. The bit where he just swans in and takes Clare Ballantyne into a side room like he's in control is lovely.

ToneLa

Assume it's NO!

I like the Fucker. Wonder who he's based off? Really effective little short-arse with a Napolean complex...

Cuellar

His extended riff on ramming an ipod up Olly's cock is also excellent.

And telling Cliff that his speech sucks cock so deep the bell end is wearing his appendix as a little hat. The way he stresses Bell end is brilliant.

Mister Six

Quote from: marquis_de_sad on January 31, 2019, 03:26:53 PM
He's a sort of Ken Clarke figure.

Yeah, a fundamentally decentish bloke who happens to have shit politics, largely because he's out of touch with anything outside his comfortable upper-middle-class upbringing. Which seemed dangerous at the time, when Cameron was heading up such a nest of snivelling, mercenary vipers. Skewering Labour as directionless and impotent (Nicola) and the Lib Dems as grasping, desperate quislings (that bloke, I forget) was fair enough. Why let the Tories off so lightly?

I also thought Nicola's reinvention as someone outright incompetent seemed off. She wasn't useless originally, was she? Just slightly unappealing and dull from a news perspective (glummy mummy).

kalowski

Quote from: Cuellar on February 02, 2019, 10:08:42 PM
His extended riff on ramming an ipod up Olly's cock is also excellent.
Because Olly says, "Mammy" if I remember correctly.

Bingo Fury

Quote from: gilbertharding on January 31, 2019, 04:04:24 PM
Was there another line, referring to him being compelled not to wear a tie, about him looking as if he'd just been released from custody?

One of my favourite bits from The Thick of It is where, on the commentary, they all lay into Miles Jupp for being in the back (or front) of almost every shot corpsing.

Jupp did provide one of my favourite tiny moments, though, with his thoroughly delighted laugh at the conference delegate's "I'm sweatin' like a fat lass."

BritishHobo

Quote from: Mister Six on February 02, 2019, 10:46:28 PM
Yeah, a fundamentally decentish bloke who happens to have shit politics, largely because he's out of touch with anything outside his comfortable upper-middle-class upbringing. Which seemed dangerous at the time, when Cameron was heading up such a nest of snivelling, mercenary vipers. Skewering Labour as directionless and impotent (Nicola) and the Lib Dems as grasping, desperate quislings (that bloke, I forget) was fair enough. Why let the Tories off so lightly?

I also thought Nicola's reinvention as someone outright incompetent seemed off. She wasn't useless originally, was she? Just slightly unappealing and dull from a news perspective (glummy mummy).

Aye, the dislike for her in series 3 felt a natural extension of people hating politicians just for being politicians - she was unremarkable so there wasn't really any positivity to balance it out. But series 4 went for the fucking throat with her and she was suddenly the most useless person in existence. Watching it back with Ed Miliband in mind makes it seem a bit more natural, as he got the same kind of absolute decimation over quite inconsequential things, but the show seems less interested in exploring the media that make that situation happen than it is just playing up Nicola being the shittest person ever. Apart from that slimy bloke in the chop outfit.

BritishHobo

Does Malcolm ever give any specific political views? I saw someone yesterday comment on an article about Brexit and say they miss Malcolm Tucker, because he would eviscerate this situation. But would he? He never popped up in the show to give Frankie Boyle rants about things the Tories did or whatever, that wasn't what his character was for. He was a very inward-looking character obsessed with tiny details and fuck-ups by his own party that would get in the way of them keeping power.

ToneLa

Quote from: BritishHobo on February 03, 2019, 10:26:46 AM
Aye, the dislike for her in series 3 felt a natural extension of people hating politicians just for being politicians - she was unremarkable so there wasn't really any positivity to balance it out. But series 4 went for the fucking throat with her and she was suddenly the most useless person in existence. Watching it back with Ed Miliband in mind makes it seem a bit more natural, as he got the same kind of absolute decimation over quite inconsequential things, but the show seems less interested in exploring the media that make that situation happen than it is just playing up Nicola being the shittest person ever. Apart from that slimy bloke in the chop outfit.

I thought she was played as a fundamentally non-terrible person, just a bit out of her depth (becoming leader was definitely part of this) as her party and DoSAC is so fucking toxic. I mean, things like her kid going to a comp and the bullying scandal - she breaks down in tears and even Malcolm semi-feels for her, and things like the I AM BENT photoshoot are the fault of her advisers and the scummy press. She was slagged off as glum and sour and all that, while her department was drowning in self-created shit (like Olly "losing" data and finding it later and keeping it secret)

Mannion, I really like. Common sense, and he has ethics. I found it interesting he went to Nicola and said - going against his party's wishes - he'd never use her family life against her. And she thanks him. And then everyone else gets involved, making these two more or less decent people (Mannion had an affair or something, so decent is malleable) turn on eachother.

I think the Nicola arc is someone out of their depth plunging deeper into the abyss. Did she even want to be leader? She didn't even want to head up DoSAC! I think the scene where Malcolm promises she could move on in a term was telling - it wasn't for her; it was to fix her family life, her daughter returning back to her original school, especially as Malcolm's plan  had collateral damage (the head teacher). And of course, that just never happened - she never got out.

I think an explicitly political allegorical reading of the show is sort of missing the point a bit though. I think they leaned on what was going on for inspiration, without trying to "say" something specific. Hasn't Capaldi both said Tucker was and was NOT based on Campbell? Hah, remember him saying it was based on Weinstein.



Twed

Nicola was sort-of nice, but definitely a careerist who was just in the way. She had no chance of being able to achieve usefulness in her position (she was a candidate for that position because she's ineffectual) but her goals were selfish anyway - getting rich as part of a think tank in America. She also destroyed Glen's career prospects to save her own, more important career.

Mannion made less sense as a character for me, because (as others mentioned) he's a fat-cat Tory but also incredibly likable. Him being out of touch and out of his depth with technology and social issues was great, but he was also just too lovely. We were on his side too often, which was difficult to reconcile with him being the most powerful Tory politician in most of his scenes.