The Thick of It

2005-05-19 · First series of the satirical comedy sees newly appointed Minister for Social Affairs, Hugh Abbot, grappling with life in government.

S01 E01 · 2005-05-19 · 30 min

Episode 1

Hugh Abbot is the Minister for Social Affairs and he's facing a policy crisis; his 'Snooper Squad' idea has been vetoed which leaves him with just forty minutes to come up with a new policy.

S01 E02 · 2005-05-26 · 30 min

Episode 2

Hugh enlists the help of a focus group to help him make a decision between two policies.

S01 E03 · 2005-06-02 · 30 min

Episode 3

An empty London flat threatens the future of a potential Housing Bill. Dan Miller is getting plenty of media-attention for his work on the bill, which is creating a degree of envy.

2005-10-20 · Dark political comedy set in the corridors of British government

S02 E01 · 2005-10-20 · 30 min

Episode 1

Something goes terribly wrong at a ministerial visit to a factory – only Malcolm can help, but will he?

S02 E02 · 2005-10-27 · 30 min

Episode 2

There's a reshuffle in the offing and the PM's new 'blue skies' advisor is making trouble...

S02 E03 · 2005-11-03 · 30 min

Episode 3

Someone sends an email they shouldn't have, while Hugh lies to a Select Committee...

2009-10-24 · Dark political satire from Armando Iannucci set in the corridors of British government with Nicola Murray taking over the ministerial role nobody seems to want.

S03 E01 · 2009-10-24 · 30 min

Episode 1

Reshuffle day at Number 10. When the job at the Department of Social Affairs and Citizenship is turned down by everybody else, there is no option but to promote unknown quantity Nicola Murry to the Cabinet. The downside is she is very keen, has a husband who works for a company that has government contracts, has an 11-year-old about to go to a private school and is about to face the media at a crucial by-election poster launch. Something will have to be done.

S03 E02 · 2009-10-31 · 30 min

Episode 2

Nicola Murray MP has only been secretary of state for just over a week, but already there is press speculation on how long she will last. And now someone at the Department of Social Affairs and Citizenship has completely wiped the immigration records of 170,672 people. Who's going to get the blame, who will have to break the news to Malcolm and how will Nicola get through lunch with the staff of the Guardian without revealing the scale of the latest disaster?

S03 E03 · 2009-11-07 · 30 min

Episode 3

Nicola Murray is stuck in an Eastbourne hotel bedroom with nothing but a laptop, a printer and a tiny kettle while she and Olly try to finish her speech for the annual party conference. It's not going well. But Glenn has brought in his secret weapon - Julie Price, tragic widow, people's champion and regional photo opportunity. Is this the breakthrough they need, or the start of a tug-of-Julie with Malcolm Tucker?

S03 E04 · 2009-11-14 · 30 min

Episode 4

The civil servants at DoSAC are preparing for a visit from the DoSAC shadow minister Peter Mannion. For Mannion and his team, this informal pre-election briefing is a good opportunity to measure up for new curtains. For Terri Coverley, this principally means putting on a bit more make-up. For Nicola Murray, it is simply another distraction on a day when nothing seems to be going right. All she really wants to do is get Glenn and Olly to kick-start the Fourth Sector Pathfinder Initiative. And then she gets a call.

S03 E05 · 2009-11-21 · 30 min

Episode 5

After weeks of trading bitter blows in the press, DoSAC minister Nicola Murray MP and her shadow Peter Mannion MP are invited onto BBC Radio 5Live for a debate on Richard Bacon's late-night phone-in programme. Director of communications Malcolm Tucker and opposition PR guru Stewart Pearson decide to listen in the comfort of their respective offices, but when some breaking news threatens to make things difficult for the politicians, the programme quickly turns into a phone-in like no other. Malcolm and Stewart are left no choice but to start getting their people over to the studios.

S03 E06 · 2009-11-28 · 30 min

Episode 6

With the Prime Minister away at a summit in Spain, Malcolm Tucker is left at home to mind the shop. Just as Nicola Murray is about to launch her Fourth Sector Initiative to the media, the media decide that what they really want is someone to launch another leadership contest. Does Nicola have what it takes and, if she does, can Malcolm take it away from her before she does any damage?

S03 E07 · 2009-12-05 · 30 min

Episode 7

Nicola Murray and her team are desperate to find a major sports personality to be the face of DoSAC's new Healthy Choices campaign. Malcolm's away on holiday and doesn't want to be disturbed, so they take advice from Steve Fleming, who's back on the scene as the PM's new fixer. Is Steve really as nice as he seems? Everyone knows Malcolm never takes holidays, so what's he up to now?

S03 E08 · 2009-12-12 · 30 min

Episode 8

As the election looms and the Opposition eye the prize, the word around the Westminster Village is that Malcolm Tucker is running out of both options and friends. He may have bitten off more than he can chew with Steve Fleming, but when an offer of help appears from an unlikely direction, Malcolm starts to set his finest trap yet.

2012-09-08 · More government embarrassment, coalition rows, policy U-turns and frantic spin-doctoring in Armando Iannucci's masterful political satire.

S04 E01 · 2012-09-08 · 29 min

Networked Nation

Peter Mannion, the Secretary of State for Social Affairs, gets told to launch his Coalition partner Fergus's new 'Networked Nation' policy at a school.

S04 E02 · 2012-09-15 · 28 min

New Advisor

With Glenn gone, Nicola Murray is busy breaking in her new policy advisor, Helen Hatley. When Helen is accidentally photographed holding notes from an ideas meeting, Nicola is understandably angry.

S04 E03 · 2012-09-22 · 29 min

Thought Camp

Stewart Pearson is running 'Thought Camp' at a remote country house hotel, as the perfect way to re-engage the party with the creative cloudscape.

S04 E04 · 2012-09-29 · 29 min

Hear 2 Hear

With Nicola safely on a train to attend the party's Here 2 Hear in far-flung Bradford, Malcolm is free to launch his latest plot.

S04 E05 · 2012-10-06 · 29 min

The Leak

With Nicola Murray and Peter Mannion both on the back foot after the unravelling of the key-worker housing sell-off policy there's inevitably going to be a scramble for the moral high-ground.

S04 E06 · 2012-10-13 · 59 min

The Inquiry

The government, opposition and civil service are called before Lord Goolding's inquiry.

S04 E07 · 2012-10-20 · 29 min

The Final Reckoning

Dan Miller gets sent on a fact-finding mission to the local cop-shop to press the flesh.