''Ballot Monkeys'' is a 2015 British comedy series which appeared on

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

in the run up to the 2015 general election. The five-part series was set on

campaign bus A campaign bus (also referred to as a battle bus in the UK) is a bus used as both a vehicle and a center of operations during a political campaign, whether for a specific candidate, a political party, or a political cause. A campaign bus can als ...

es belonging to the Conservative Party, Labour Party, Liberal Democrats and

UK Independence Party The UK Independence Party (UKIP, ) is a Eurosceptic, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. The party reached its greatest level of success in the mid-2010s, when it gained two members of parliament (both through defect ...

featuring groups of mid-level party campaign organisers as each embarks on their respective election campaign. The series was written by

Andy Hamilton Andrew Neil Hamilton (born 28 May 1954) is a British comedian, game show panellist, television director, comedy screenwriter, radio dramatist, novelist and actor. Early life and education Hamilton was born in Fulham, West London. He was educa ...

and

Guy Jenkin Guy Jenkin (born 27 April 1955) is a British film director and comedy writer who is best known for working together with Andy Hamilton on sitcoms and comedies such as '' Drop the Dead Donkey'' (1990–1998), '' Outnumbered'' (2007–2014), and ...

. Episodes were written and produced within hours of transmission, allowing the characters to react to recent real-world events.

Overview

The series cuts between the Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrat and UKIP buses. Apart from a brief phone call at the end of the last episode, these groups do not interact with each other. All scenes are shot inside or in the immediate vicinity of the campaign buses, and much of the humour comes from the candidates talking candidly in private about their party and campaign in ways that they would not do in public. In each party there are interpersonal conflicts between individuals.

Conservatives

In the Conservative group nominal leader Martin (

Hugh Dennis Peter Hugh Dennis (born 13 February 1962) is an English comedian, presenter, actor, Impressionist (entertainment), impressionist and writer. He was a panellist in every episode of the comedy show ''Mock the Week'' (2005–2022) and is one half ...

), a frustrated

one-nation conservative One-nation conservatism, also known as one-nationism or Tory democracy, is a form of British political conservatism and a variant of paternalistic conservatism. It advocates the "preservation of established institutions and traditional prin ...

, clashes with the well-connected Baz (

Jimmy Akingbola James Olatokunbo Akingbola () (born 7 April 1978) is a Nigerian-British television, theatre and film actor. He rose to fame playing PC Neil Parker in '' Holby Blue'', and subsequently Antoine Malick in its parent series ''Holby City''. He has su ...

), who openly supports what he considers to be

Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (born 19 June 1964) is a British politician and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He wa ...

's inevitable rise to power and is far more willing to engage in more cynical campaign ploys. Women's issues consultant Siobhan (

Hattie Morahan Harriet Jane Morahan (born 7 October 1978), better known as Hattie Morahan, is an English actress. Her roles include Sister Clara in ''The Golden Compass'' (2007), Gale Benson in '' The Bank Job'' (2008), Alice in ''The Bletchley Circle'' (20 ...

) feels marginalised by both men. The group is completed by dim-witted and politically uninformed intern Ruby (

Liz Kingsman Liz Kingsman is an Australian comedian and actress. Career Comedy In the mid-2010s she was in the improv trio ''Massive Dad'' alongside Stevie Martin and Tessa Coates. She first performed her show ''One Woman Show'' in 2019, and later performed ...

), who the group is forced to employ as she is the daughter of a major party donor.

Labour

In the Labour group Jack (

Trevor Cooper Trevor Cooper (born 21 September 1953) is an English actor. Background Born 21 September 1953, Cooper studied law at Kingston Polytechnic and graduated with a master's degree in law from the University of Warwick. He taught for two years at Lo ...

), a long time party supporter, is confused and dismayed by how the party, politics and campaigning has changed. Social media organiser Conor (

Theo Barklem-Biggs Theo Barklem-Biggs (born 21 March 1990) is an English television and film actor from London. He has performed both comedic and dramatic roles. Career He made his debut television appearance in ''The Bill '' in 2008. He appeared in ''EastEnders, ...

) continually suggests unhelpful online strategies, mostly to the chagrin of co-ordinator Christine (

Daisy Haggard Daisy Haggard (born 1978) is an English actress and writer. She gained prominence through her roles in the BBC sitcoms ''Uncle'' (2014–2017) and ''Episodes'' (2011–2017). With Laura Solon, she co-wrote and starred in the BBC Three comedy-d ...

). The advice of American political strategy consultant Melanie (

Kathleen Rose Perkins Kathleen Rose Perkins (born November 15, 1974) is an American actress. Life and career Perkins was born in New Baltimore, Michigan, the daughter of Leonard and Donna Perkins. She graduated from Anchor Bay High School (1992) and enrolled in We ...

), who frequently attempts to secure a future job in the 2016 presidential election campaign, grates with her English colleagues.

Liberal Democrats

Liberal Democrat Kevin (

Ben Miller Bennet Evan Miller (born 24 February 1966) is an English comedian, actor and author. He rose to fame as a member of the comedy duo Armstrong and Miller, with Alexander Armstrong. He is known for roles as Angus Jeremy Bough in the '' Johnny Eng ...

), dismayed at the poor electoral prospects of his party, the last five years of

coalition government A coalition government, or coalition cabinet, is a government by political parties that enter into a power-sharing arrangement of the executive. Coalition governments usually occur when no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an ...

, and a recent divorce, suffers a nervous breakdown, showing increasingly erratic behaviour as the series progresses. Assistant Charlotte (

Esther Smith Esther Smith is an English actress best known for her work in the television series ''Uncle'', ''Cuckoo'' and '' Trying''. She is also known for originating the role of Delphi Diggory in the play ''Harry Potter and the Cursed Child''. Early lif ...

), tries to help, but party grandee Simon (

Michael Fenton Stevens Michael Fenton Stevens (born 12 February 1958) is an English actor and comedian. He was a founder member of The Hee Bee Gee Bees and sang the lead on the ''Spitting Image'' 1986 number 1 hit " The Chicken Song". He also starred in '' KYTV'', its ...

) repeatedly refuses to acknowledge that a problem exists.

UKIP

In the UKIP bus, communications manager Gerry (

Andy Nyman Andrew Nyman (born 13 April 1966) is an English actor, director, writer, singer and magician. He was nominated for a Laurence Olivier Award for his performance as Tevye in the 2019 West End revival of ''Fiddler on the Roof''. Early life and ...

), a UKIP supporter on purely

Eurosceptic Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies and seek refor ...

grounds, struggles to prevent political damage arising from offensive comments and behaviour of other UKIP members. This includes those of openly bigoted logistics manager Kate (

Sarah Hadland Sarah Hadland (born 15 May 1971) is an English actress. She is best known for her role as Stevie Sutton in BBC One's BAFTA-nominated comedy television series '' Miranda'' (2009–2015) and Trish in '' The Job Lot'' (2013–2015). Hadland appear ...

). The bus is driven by Obi (

Rhashan Stone Rhashan Stone (born November 3, 1969) is an American-born British actor and comedian based in the UK. He has had main roles in series such as ''Bodies'' (2004–2005), ''Mutual Friends'' (2008), '' Strike Back'' (2010–2012), ''The Smoke'' (201 ...

), a friendly and resourceful Somalian immigrant. Gerry and Obi strike up a friendship, bonding over a mutual love of

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera media franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and Cultural impact of Star Wars, quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop cu ...

, while Kate views him with suspicion due to his race. Gerry is forced to fire Obi after he learns he is an

illegal immigrant Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of that country's immigration laws, or the continuous residence in a country without the legal right to do so. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upward, wi ...

, and his replacement Mick ( Steven O'Donnell) is far more aligned with Kate's bigoted worldview.

''Power Monkeys''

A sequel series, ''

Power Monkeys ''Power Monkeys'' is a 2016 British political comedy series which appeared on Channel 4 in the run-up to and immediate aftermath of the 2016 UK EU membership referendum, and also lampooned the ongoing 2016 United States Presidential election camp ...

'' began airing on 8 June 2016. While retaining the same up-to-the-minute production style, the new series focuses more broadly on current events, such as the EU referendum or the American election.

References

External links

* – official website * * – official website {{2015 United Kingdom general election, state=collapsed British political satire 2015 United Kingdom general election Political satirical television series Works about elections Channel 4 comedy Television series set in 2015 British political comedy television series 2015 British television series debuts 2015 British television series endings 2010s British political television series 2010s British satirical television series Television series by Hat Trick Productions British English-language television shows