Between Iraq and a Hard Place

At the moment, with the world being in the state its in, the only positive thing that the current world instability offers, is to provide endless material for the great social satirists.

Bremner, Bird and Fortune is one of the best sources of satire that is currently shown on Television (with the demise of Spitting Image long ago). From George W. Bush to Tony Blair, Prince Charles to the NHS. Nothing is safe.

If you can appreciate satire without getting all bent out of shape about partisanship, then this show is for you!

The impressionist Rory Bremner and comedians Bird and Fortune take a look at the history of Iraq through a series of sketches, monologues and jokes. They begin with the formation of Iraq by the British in the early 20th Century, through the bombing of villages to control the tribes, the establishment of a king in the area through to the modern day trade meetings with Saddam Hussein.

I really enjoy comedy that has teeth so sharp that they gleam. There is so little of it on that you must pounce to get it when you have the chance. Rory Bremner's topical TV spots are must sees because they rarely get repeated simply because the jokes have moved on very quickly. This special was of course very topical and it seemed to have one simple aim - to show just how absurd the whole situation around Iraq is.

To do this they simply present historical fact. They of course have jokes and humour which naturally show events in the light they themselves view them, but basically the essence is a matter of public record. The downside of this is that it isn't as funny as their series (Bremner, Bird & Fortune) can be but it more than makes up for it by being very interesting. I really didn't know whether to laugh or cry at some parts. The jokes are very sharp and barbed and are mainly very funny. The impressions are spot on as always and dialogue incredibly well written --Bremner'' impression of Saddam as bemused by America and Britain constantly changing their minds about him is my favourite (put across in a spoof of This is Your Life!).

The history is fascinating (and all true - the only note to make that where actions are put on the UK and America sometimes other parties were also heavily involved as well). Starting with the creation of Iraq by constant border movements of the Empires and going into British invasions (several) the history highlights how hypocritical we are today. Who were the first people to bomb the Kurds? asks Bremner - the UK sanctioned by Churchill who was then a minister. He also quotes Churchill in a speech to the house supported the use of poison gas on villages to quell the tribes (just like Saddam does). This moves through later invasions and the establishment of a hand-picked King in the 50's through to modern day.

We all know something is up with the oil so the show only mentions it once (by listing all the positions the Bush administration hold with major oil companies), so respect for not focusing on the easy target. It also details how the UK Government sent David Mellor along with Dick Cheney in the early 80's to discuss trade with Saddam while he gases his own people. They also detail how both arms were sold to Iraq and that the West also provided credit for them to do this. Most revealing is the fact that, while Bush et al would have us believe that Saddam and Bin Laden are in the whole terror thing together, they are actually enemies and have fought in the past (Bin Laden offering to go in and remove Saddam from Kuwait in the early 90's - however Bush seems to forget this when he speaks! Like Bremner says, the two are just like (I leave out names for legal reasons) the wife and mistress of a famous football manager - they both hate each other, they just like the same guy.

Overall this isn't as funny as you'd hope simply because the truth is painful even when told as a joke. For much of the show I was gripped by the facts and the jokes alike. Anyone who is aware should watch this. Add to this the many other hypocritical stances taken by US/UK at the moment (why are we ignoring S. Korea? What about some of our allies who have human rights records as bad as Iraq - no war there? Etc) and the whole thing is as sharp as barbed wire but a lot funnier and more interesting.

Each week Rory Bremner, John Bird and John Fortune review the latest happenings in politics and the wider news through monologues, sketches and impressions. No target is too easy or too sharp and they regularly expose a lot of truth behind the news through their sketches.

The downside of this is that occasionally I can watch a whole episode and only laugh four or five times. This is especially true of late where Iraq has been in the air, meaning that BBF attack the Bush/Blair approach to great effect – but it's often hard to laugh at that stuff. Most of the time they are hilarious and it is a thing of wonder that anyone is doing satire anymore, never mind finding a programme that does it consistently well.

Bremner is a superb impressionist and his voices are perfect. He exaggerates his subjects habits to great effect, to the point that some in the public eye have deliberately tried to change the thing that Bremner has picked up on. Over the years he has had many great characters – Ian McCaskil being one from years ago but also his Des Lynam and, at the moment, his Robin Cook is a hilariously exaggerated joke! Adding Bird and Fortune to the mix was a stroke of genius as they really add layers to the show. They don't do impressions but they do do great monologues and interviews that are absurd and hilarious.

Satire is not a big audience draw as it requires the audience to have a good knowledge of the news and political events, which sadly few have. However this series is consistently brilliant and is one of the few satires on TV. The writing is wonderful and the impressions are spot on. The addition of the sheer absurdity of Bird and Fortune just makes the programme much better. The downside of the satire is that it isn't always funny – often it's just plain depressing. Sometimes they expose the absurdities of politics so very well that you don't know whether to laugh or cry!