If you haven’t heard of The Thick of It then I wouldn’t be surprised. Despite the modest success of the film spin off, In the Loop, and the critical adulation that has been heaped upon it, Armando Iannucci’s terrific political sitcom has failed to make its way across the Atlantic until recently. But, as the fourth season is set to begin over in the UK, Hulu announces that they will stream the new episodes of the show only a day after they air across the pond.
For those not familiar, The Thick of It is set inside the British corridors of power and focuses on the fictional goverment department DoSAC (Department of Social Affairs & Citizenship), where the hapless employees are overseen by the fiery spin doctor Malcolm Tucker, who attempts to right all their political blunders. It is an impressively sweary satire and has become famous for its stunning verbose vocabulary and amazing putdowns which are usually delivered by Tucker himself, a character brilliantly realised by Peter Capaldi.
This new season reflects the British government at the moment with the two parties usually in opposition being formed into a coalition, meaning they have to now work together. It’s setup which has the potential to generate some great comedy and inspired Malcolm moments.
For those who are unfamiliar/know nothing about British politics, you don’t have to worry, the stories that the writers and Iannucci come up with are situations any politician could be faced with.
The first three seasons of The Thick of It had actually debuted not so long ago on BBC America after Armando Iannucci’s similarly styled and themed (but noticeably tamer) show Veep, became a reasonable hit for HBO.
It initially aired on BBC America and was widely (and quite rightly) criticised for bleeping out the swearing, something which disables both the comedy and doesn’t leave much of the dialogue. The exclusive rights were then picked up by Hulu in July, finally arriving in completely untouched and in full sweary glory.
For those who haven’t yet seen it I fully recommend that you sign up to Hulu and check it out. For already established fans of The Thick of It, the first episode 0f Season 4 will be available on September 9th with all the episodes available for streaming by October 21st.
Below you can find a brief trailer for the new season as well as a little taste of Malcolm Tucker, which really is NSFW.
Source: Deadline
