The Hunt for Tony Blair
The Hunt for Tony Blair is a one-off episode of The Comic Strip Presents..., a British television comedy, which was first shown on Channel 4 on 14 October 2011. The 49-minute film was written by Peter Richardson and Pete Richens and presented in the style of a 1950s film noir. It stars Stephen Mangan as the former British prime minister Tony Blair, who is wanted for murder and on the run as a fugitive from justice. The film received its world premiere at the Edinburgh International Television Festival in August 2011. It first aired on Channel 4 on 14 October 2011; it received a mostly positive reaction from reviewers, and was nominated for a BAFTA award (Best Comedy Programme 2012) and the British Comedy Awards (Best Comedy Drama 2011). Plot summary Using film noir low key lighting and unbalanced frame compositions, along with visual and narrative tropes whose sources include John Buchan's novels and Alfred Hitchcock's films, and Hollywood productions The Fugitive and Sunset Boulevard, the film imagines former British prime minister Tony Blair as a fugitive on the run from the police after having been accused of a series of murders. These include the killing of his former Foreign Secretary Robin Cook, although he is also implicated in the death of his predecessor as Labour Party leader John Smith. Determined to clear his name, Blair escapes from 10 Downing Street; but he is a man with no friends willing to give him sanctuary, while the fervent media demand his capture. Whilst on the run, he commits a series of vehicular manslaughters which he describes as "unavoidable". He is pursued across a fog-bound London by Inspector Hutton and his sergeant, who are helped in their investigation by Peter Mandelson and Gordon Brown. Blair is eventually aided by Margaret Thatcher, a Norma Desmond-like recluse (parodying the 1950 film, Sunset Boulevard), who promptly seduces him. But it gradually emerges that Blair may be innocent of the crime he is accused of committing. Cast Stephen Mangan as Tony Blair Catherine Shepherd as Cherie Blair Robbie Coltrane as Inspector Hutton James Buckley as Sergeant Rik Mayall as Prof Predictor Nigel Planer as Peter Mandelson Ronni Ancona as Barbara Windsor Ross Noble as Socialist Tony Curran as Robin Cook Morgana Robinson as Carole Caplin Harry Enfield as Alistair Jennifer Saunders as Margaret Thatcher John Sessions as Tebbit Ford Kiernan as Gordon Brown Peter Richardson as George W. Bush Background The return of The Comic Strip Presents... for a one-off episode was announced in June 2011 by Channel 4's Head of Comedy Shane Allen, who described the film as having an "irresistibly hilarious script from the godfathers of modern comedy". It was also revealed that Mangan would feature in the role of Blair, while Jennifer Saunders would play former Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Speaking about the forthcoming film, Jay Hunt, the television channel's Chief Creative Officer said: "Comic Strip defined comedy for a generation and it's a real coup to have the team back tackling