Dear Diaries

‘HAD Alan Clark never published his diaries, he would have disappeared into obscurity as evidence of Enoch Powell’s aphorism about all political careers ending in failure.

In this scene, Alan Clark is played by a homosexual actor

Nor would he have been mourned by many in public life – he was arrogant, an appalling snob, a racist, a serial adulterer, a terrible constituency MP and no better as a member of Government.

But the very qualities that made him such an odious figure in many ways in real life – his disregard for hoi polloi and his consequent lack of discretion - also make his diaries such an entertaining read.

Last week’s first episode of the BBC adaptation (starring John Hurt as Clark) attracted BBC4’s biggest audience ever – just over a million people - and made it the most watched digital channel at the time.

The series will be repeated for viewers without access to digital TV on BBC2 later in the year, but those who cannot wait should tune in at 10pm tonight to watch Clark swooning over the ankles of the Iron Lady herself…’

Posted: 22nd, January 2004 | In: Big Brother TV Comment | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink