Kenneth Branagh to play Boris Johnson in Covid-19 drama. It’s expected to be a bit-part

Last Updated: February 25, 2021By Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Branagh as Johnson: the likeness is terrifying.

When I heard that Kenneth Branagh was performing as Boris Johnson in a drama, I thought he had started a new career as a puppeteer.

It turns out I was mistaken and Branagh is himself portraying Johnson – although (one hopes) under heavy make-up.

It’s for a Sky drama, This Sceptred Isle. One images the title is ironic. It covers the early days of the Covid-19 crisis in the UK.

As Johnson was hardly visible at that time, one may safely conclude that the role is a cameo.

This may be a matter of relief to Branagh (less time in the prosthetics) and to his friends and family (less time having to look at him ‘in character’).

I did run into difficulty finding an image of the actor in the role.

Was it this?

No… This?

https://twitter.com/FrancisMaudeAdv/status/1364948247320608770

Maybe not. Ah! Here it is:

Note that I am not alone in believing that the role will be brief.

Some of the other comments on the social media are similarly cutting:

(Emma Thompson was Branagh’s first wife. He left her to have an affair with Helena Bonham-Carter.)

But this makes the best point:

People have lost friends and loved ones to the virus, and Johnson is directly responsible for the vast majority of those deaths.

It is indeed in extremely poor taste that a drama is being made about it – unless that film exposes Johnson and his government to the harshest possible criticism for their miserable failure to cope with the situation. It is a failure that continues to the time of writing.

But I expect it will be another arse-kissing whitewash. Let’s see Ken Loach do a version of this story instead.

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3 Comments

  1. Mark Cunliffe February 25, 2021 at 4:52 pm - Reply

    My immediate reaction to was similar to yours however I hear it’s by Michael Winterbottom who is no stranger to cutting satire. Here’s hoping he puts the boot in good and proper.

  2. El Dee February 25, 2021 at 5:42 pm - Reply

    I genuinely thought this was a joke. This is like going back to Trump being in power ie every day something that ‘you couldn’t make up’

    If this is to bring the government to account then fair enough. However I seriously doubt whether this will happen.

  3. Frank February 25, 2021 at 5:49 pm - Reply

    I’d also like to see a Ken Loach version of UK 2020. But who would broadcast it in the UK?

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