A Very English Scandal

Hugh Grant stars in this 3-part miniseries that looks at the political scandal that brought down Jeremy Thorpe in the mid 1970s.

Thorpe lives a freewheeling life as a member of Parliament in 1960s London. He eagerly pursues young men on the QT for one-nighters while maintaining his work in Parliament. He's part of a small circle of old Oxford students who share like sexual tastes and who can keep secrets.

When Thorpe meets young Norman (who works as a stable boy) he falls into a long-term, on-and-off-again relationship. The trouble is that Norman is a tad unstable and a big drama queen. Thorpe stupidly writes letters (it's the early 1960s), which Norman keeps. When Thorpe grows tired of Norman and tries to throw him over, the young man begins to make threats.

Norman grows more and more unstable and wanders around the country, falling in and out of relationships. Every now and then he sends a threatening letter (blackmail really) to Thorpe. As Thorpe becomes politically more successful, it becomes more and more important to shut Norman up.

Thorpe marries and has a son. He seems the very soul of a solid family man. Only a few know his secret past. Eventually Norman goes to the police and blurts out his accusations more than a decade after the fact. He starts babbling to anyone who will listen about how Thorpe used him. Desperate, Thorpe instigates a plan to kill Norman, but it gets botched and eventually the loose ends catch up with Thorpe when Norman files suit against him for attempted murder.

Grant is absolutely superb as the devious Thorpe. Over the 3-parts of the series he runs the gamut from randy man about town to serious husband and father, and finally to grim middle-aged man facing a serious threat. Ben Whishaw is also excellent as the loony Norman whose life is almost hysterically out of control.

Others in the cast that stand out are Alex Jennings as Peter, Patricia Hodge as Mrs. Thorpe, Adrian Scarborough as Carman, Michele Dotrice as Edna, Eve Myles as Gwen, and Monica Dolan as Thorpe's wife.

Beautifully done with a sharp sense of British wit and charm. Directed by Stephen Frears.

I quite remember the Jeremy Thorpe scandal as it was reported in the American press in the 70s. This Very English Scandal played out for almost a decade and a half.

What I found fascinating among certain things was the difference between how Jeremy Thorpe was treated and how Oscar Wilde was over a half century earlier. Wilde, not in Parliament and not likely to get into government was cast to the wolves once his homosexuality was exposed. Thorpe on the other hand as you will see throughout the film had the establishment ranks close behind him.

Thorpe was the leader of the Liberal Party, a tiny remnant of what it once was before Labour in the 20s overtook it to be Great Britain's second party. It had a dozen seats or so left, but in a closely divided House of Commons could coalesce with one of the majors and make a government happen.

This was what Jeremy Thorpe was trying to do. But at some point in the mid 60s he met a young stableboy later renamed Norman Scott and the two of them had quite the affair. After a while Thorpe tired of him and the two broke it off amicably. At least Thorpe thought so, but Scott who went on to be a male fashion model was a flighty sort. He had trouble holding a job and was constantly badgering Thorpe for help, most discrete help. Thorpe helped a lot over the years , but Scott's demands grew more incessant and soon Thorpe was musing out loud about wanting to get rid of him permanently.

Some of the few in the Liberal Party who knew tried to help. But at this point for a while I thought I was watching a British version of I Tonya. What a crew he was gathered to help their leader out. Talk about the gang that coudldn't shoot straight literally.

Hugh Grant is Jeremy Thorpe, the very picture of establishment privilege. Ben Whishaw is Norman Scott for whom the weight of the United Kingdom seems to be falling upon him. The two complement each other beautifully in their roles.

As for what happens, the establishment protects Jeremy Thorpe, but it comes at a very big price.

Hopefully in this more enlightened where just today an openly gay Governor of one our states was just inaugurated gay audiences can look at this and see how far we've come.

Jeremy Thorpe has quite the story.

I never relized Hugh Grant had this amazing ability as an actor. This true story account along with the remarkable cast is spellbinding. The story takes the viewer on the full range of emotions from tragedy to humor. Simply brilliant!

Luckily I was able to watch this all the way thought from start to finish in one sitting. At just under 3 hours, quite an easy feat. Hugh Grant and the superb writing of Russel T Davies made it easy and the time passed like nothing, that to me means it was entertaining, which it was.

Hugh Grant puts in a really good performance, well supported by Ben Whishaw, Michele Dotrice (Some Mothers Do Ave Em), Alex Jennings and Adrian Scarborough.

I enjoyed every minute of it and laughed more than once even though this is not billed as a comedy, the way it was written told a very serious story in quite an amusing way.

There were a few sad moments, but even these were told in an amusing way, not so much funny, but not at all serious or sad, which could be taken as a criticism by some.

Every time I saw the hat, I either laughed or smiled, you will have to watch to know what I mean, for me it symbolised the Hugh Grant characters whole attitude of the time.

A very entertaining BBC mini series and highly recommended.

An easy 9/10.

Great casting, stellar acting. Hugh Grant is what seems to happen when a handsome rom/com darling is able to season and hone his abilities within his craft. I believe him to be a revelation here and have become an even bigger fan. I he receives the accolades deserved for this performance. The timing and nuance were a treat. Enjoy!