Last night I found myself crying whilst ironing shirts. This was not because I live a life of tragic domestic drudgery (I rarely iron) but because I was watching an unexpectedly emotive BBC2 drama called Burn Up, starring my second-favourite Spooks-heartthrob Rupert Penry Jones (Matthew McFadyen remains no.1) and my third favourite Party of Five graduate Neve Campbell (1. Matthew Fox; 2. Scott Wolf).
Written by Simon Beaufoy (The Full Monty, Yasmin) in the smart political thriller mold of State of Play, flaunting high production values and glossy-haired stars, Burn Up is easy on the eye and tough on the tear-glands. It’s in two parts, with the second half on Friday evening, and you can catch up via the i-player here (available until 30th July).
Yes it’s heavy-handed and over-sentimental, yes there are a few too many unlikely coincidences. Burn Up‘s weaknesses are almost all clustered in the scenes between Penry Jones and Campbell, though it’s hardly her fault and far more to do with the unnecessary, creakily-scripted romance she ignites.
But it’s also full of the grubby political wranglings, greed and corporate evil-doers we love to hate; pits humanity in a tick-tocking race against time and makes a hero out of Marc Warren‘s enjoyably machiavellian Philip Crowley, a government advisor in the style of Alistair Campbell who navigates his way through Westminster, the White House and protestors’ apartments with irresistible panache.
In short, great TV.
