The latest trailer forThis England, which details the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom and Boris Johnson’s first few months as Prime Minister, reveals more of Academy Award winnerKenneth Branaghas the failed leader. Released courtesy ofthe official Twitter account for SkyTV, the trailer also reveals that all six episodes ofThis England, formerly titledThis Sceptred Isle, will launch on Sky Atlantic and streaming service NOW on 21 September.
Co-written and directed byMichael Winterbottomand starring BAFTA® and Academy Award®-winner Kenneth Branagh,This Englandis based on Boris Johnson’s tumultuous first months as Prime Minister, and traces the impact on the country of the first wave of the Coronavirus pandemic. The drama takes us inside the halls of power, as Johnson (Branagh) grapples with Covid-19, Brexit, and his controversial personal and political life. Which, considering everything that has been released since, is something of an understatement.
The events in government are interwoven with stories from around the country, from the experts and scientists racing against time to understand the virus; the doctors, nurses and care-home workers on the frontline working tirelessly and heroically to contain and overcome it; and ordinary people whose lives were thrown into turmoil.
The trailer gives us a better idea of what to expect from the limited series, as Johnson is shown celebrating what appears to be the result of the 2019 election (in scenes rather reminiscent of the recent ‘partygate’ scandal which resulted in Johnson being fined for breaching his own rules), with Johnson and his wife Carrie (Ophelia Lovibond) shown enjoying a luxurious holiday while cabinet meetings and plans are put in place to attempt to curb the effects of the virus.
While all this is happening, a voice-over from Branagh is heard, with the actor (and possibly the series) giving Johnson far more gravitas than he deserves.
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This England Transforms Kenneth Branagh into Boris Johnson
This latest footage offers a more detailed look at Branagh as Johnson, with the actor finding a balance between his own voice and the mumbling, bumbling of the current (soon to be former) Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.The make-up on display is extraordinary,transforming Branagh’s Hollywood visage into Johnson’s more rounded, droopy face complete with bizarre splash of messy white-blonde hair. From far away, Branagh is the spitting image of Johnson, but when you get in close there is something slightly less…human about him. Which is really rather fitting.
Alongside Kenneth Branagh as Boris Johnson,This Englandalso starsElementaryandGuardians of the Galaxyactress Ophelia Lovibond as Carrie Symonds and Broadchurch and The Crown star Andrew Buchan as Health Secretary Matt Hancock (who was forced to resign after being caught kissing his aide Gina Coladangelo in his office, and thus also breaching his own rules). The rest of the supporting cast includes Tim Goodman as Stanley Johnson, Alec Nicholls as Sir Patrick Vallance, James Corrigan as Isaac Levido, Rachel Sophia-Anthony as Lola Aldenjana, Simon Kunz as Andrew Mills, Greta Bellamacina as Cleo Watson, and Simon Paisley Day as Dominic Cummings.
This Englandis set to be released on Sky Atlantic and streaming service NOW on 21 September, with details of the series’ release in further territories expected to follow soon.
