The Londoner: First Uncivil War, now the Fall Out

Brexit film may have Theresa-era sequel /  David Davis' MP appreciation society/ Jeremy Deller's fiery start/ Idris Elba sizes up Daniel Craig
AFP/Getty Images
7 January 2019

While the much-anticipated screening of Brexit: Uncivil War, the television drama, airs tonight, The Londoner hears that political editor Tim Shipman, the programme’s consultant whose book All Out War was used as a “source text”, has been approached to adapt his second book, Fall Out: A Year of Political Mayhem, as a television drama.

Fall Out, shortlisted for the Orwell Prize, deals with the period from Theresa May (far left) taking over in No 10 in July 2016 until after her ill-advised snap election in June 2017. That year has since been heavily scrutinised, not least because of the Prime Minister’s decision in October 2016 to trigger Article 50, which set the timetable for Brexit.

Frenzied interest in tonight’s film, starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Rory Kinnear and made by screenwriter James Graham for Channel 4, prompted interest in the rights of Fall Out by TV companies.

Says Shipman: “I’ve had a couple of approaches about stage rights as well”.

While a rattling read, it is hard to see any hero — or indeed anti-hero — like Dominic Cummings, portrayed by Cumberbatch.

Among the potential characters are Lynton Crosby, the snarling Australian political strategist behind the election campaign, and May’s chiefs of staff, Nick Timothy (left) and Fiona Hill, described variously as “the toxic twins” and “the gruesome twosome” because of their thuggish management style and hubris.

One reviewer said that “May herself is the closest this book has to a sympathetic character” even though she is “deeply weird”.

Perhaps Shipman could provide the role of the hero? Asked who he would like to play him, the prolific journalist — whose third book, again about Brexit comes out this year – shruggingly suggests the actor and comedian Peter Kay, because “I was once mistaken for him in the street”.

Stronger line-up

On Stella Creasy’s first day in Parliament in 2010 she was asked by a man at the door (who was politely greeting male MPs): “Who are you here to work for?” The Walthamstow MP told the Blood on the Tracks radio show that “like a pompous arsehole I said, ‘Oh, Walthamstow.’”

--

Look behind you! Perennial James Bond frontrunner Idris Elba posted an ‘awkward’ photo with current 007 Daniel Craig jokily glaring at him at the Golden Globes last night.

--

Dickie Arbiter, the Queen’s former spokesman, is flummoxed by the “media fixation” on the Duchess of Cambridge’s sister, Pippa Middleton. Arbiter asked why “for someone who upstaged her sister’s 2011 wedding she still gets a lot of publicity for doing nothing”. Unbridled, he continued that Pippa was born “with a silver spoon and married into a canteen of cutlery”.

Pippa Middleton at Prince Harry's wedding to Meghan Markle
Getty Images

Charcoal Hockney

Jeremy Deller, the Turner-Prize-winning artist, says that in an early job as a gallery technician he damaged the work of an iconic artist. “I burnt a Hockney,” he confesses. “I burnt a Hockney on the first morning.” Deller, who worked as a postman, driver and shop assistant before becoming an artist, then panicked (understandably, given Hockneys fetch as much as £70million), “I put it in the racks and didn’t tell anyone,” he told Desert Island Discs’ Lauren Laverne. “And that’s quite a good lesson, really: if you do something really wrong like that, just don’t tell anyone and see what happens”.

We need to talk about Kevin -- teenage angst on the runway

Am I bothered?: Noomi Rapace attends the Astrid Andersen show during London Fashion Week Men's
Getty Images for BFC

Swedish actress Noomi Rapace channelled her inner Kevin the Teenager at London Fashion Week Men’s wearing an oversized jacket and a strong look of “it’s so unfair”. She was among fashion fans who flocked to Covent Garden last night to watch the Fashion East Spring 2019 runway. Also present was new dad Skepta, celebrating the birth of his daughter, whose arrival he announced on January 3. The grime artist’s shift from his usual monochrome style to a tie-dye puffer jacket with pink furry cowl was notable, as was the presence of Arsenal defender Hector Bellerin in a PVC coat worn with bucket hat, sunglasses and no socks (despite the five-degree chill). Bellerin recently discussed his passion for clothes with newspaper Mundial, saying that fashion is “not something I take lightly, and I’m going to be open about it”. He wasn’t kidding.

Does my head look big in this?: Skepta at the Fashion East show
Dave Benett/Getty Images

SW1A

Of the myriad WhatsApp groups churning out gossip in Westminster, one favourite is “David Davis quotes”. The 20 MP-strong group regurgitate their favourite lines from DD (below). Among the finest: “I’m both arrogant and humble”, “You probably don’t know, I can’t drink orange juice. It’s poison to me. It’s my Kryptonite”, “In British political terms my second name is Lazarus”, “I have to accept my rumpled look”, “When I play sports, I never question the rules.” Asked for his heroes, he once cited: “Leonidas the Spartan or Horatius who defended the bridge of Rome.”

--

Ed Miliband may have lost the 2015 election, but his star still glows. “Are you famous?” a woman asked while he was out recording his podcast. “I used to be famous,” he replied. “I’m a politician. Ed.” The woman was overcome. “Oh my God, you’re Ed Miliband!” Miliband confided to his audience: “Actually, what I came for was a bit of fandom. It took some effort.”

Ed Miliband meets an adoring fan
NurPhoto via Getty Images

Quote of the Day

'There are limits to my knowledge'

Kwasi Kwarteng says he is "not privy" to discussions Theresa May might be having with EU leaders, despite being a Brexit minister

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in