__NOTOC__ ''Crisis Command – Could You Run the Country?'' is a

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's second flagship channel, and it covers a wide range of subject matte ...

role-playing interactive

drama documentary Docudrama (or documentary drama) is a genre of television show, television and feature film, film, which features Drama (film and television), dramatized Historical reenactment, re-enactments of actual events. It is described as a hybrid of docu ...

which was based on realistic scenarios and dramatised situations that Britain could face one day. All episodes were first aired in 2004. The programme gave three people the chance to run the country during a potential disaster. The crises included terror attacks on London, flood, plague and hostage taking. Viewers were able to make decisions interactively at the same time as the studio players. The programmes were filmed in real time and edited down to one-hour programmes. Each scenario was played once on BBC Two, and then redone with a different set of "Ministers" on

BBC Four BBC Four is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was launched on 2 March 2002

immediately afterwards. They receive advice from military, police and communication experts, but the final decisions are down to them alone. Presented by

Gavin Hewitt Gavin Hewitt (born 1951, Penge, London) is a British journalist and presenter, currently BBC News's News Editor. He was formerly its Europe Editor, a post he held between September 2009 to the autumn of 2014, and became News Editor to cover a wid ...

, ''Crisis Command – Could You Run The Country?'' was a test of confidence and the ability to prioritise and keep calm in a tense and rapidly evolving situation. It examined the dilemmas ministers face when dealing with crisis, and the hard decisions necessary to make to save lives. Against the clock, the participants were able to call upon three advisors: military advisor Lord Tim Garden, communications adviser

Amanda Platell Amanda Jane Platell (born 12 November 1957) is an Australian journalist. Between 1999 and 2001 she was the press secretary to William Hague, the then leader of the British Conservative Party. She is currently based in the UK. Personal life P ...

and emergency services advisor Charles Shoebridge.

Cast and crew

, host * Sir Tim Garden, military expert and co-host *

, communications expert and co-host * Charles Shoebridge, emergency services expert and co-host * Peter Burnell, inventor

Episodes

References

External links

* BBC television docudramas 2004 British television series debuts 2004 British television series endings Disaster television series {{UK-nonfiction-tv-prog-stub