''Ballot Monkeys'' is a 2015 British comedy series which appeared on

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

in the run up to the 2015 general election. The five-part series was set on campaign buses belonging to the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

, Labour Party, Liberal Democrats and

UK Independence Party The UK Independence Party (UKIP; ) is a Eurosceptic, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. The party reached its greatest level of success in the mid-2010s, when it gained two members of Parliament and was the largest par ...

featuring groups of mid-level party campaign organisers as each embarks on their respective election campaign. The series was written by

Andy Hamilton Andrew Neil Hamilton (born 28 May 1954) is a British comedian, game show panellist, television director, comedy screenwriter, radio dramatist, novelist and actor. Early life and education Hamilton was born in Fulham, southwest London. He ...

and

Guy Jenkin Guy Jenkin (born 27 April 1955) is a British film director and comedy writer who is best known for working together with Andy Hamilton on sitcoms and comedies such as ''Drop the Dead Donkey'' (1990–1998), '' Outnumbered'' (2007–2014), and '' ...

. Episodes were written and produced within hours of transmission, allowing the characters to react to recent real-world events.

Overview

The series cuts between the Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrat and UKIP buses. Apart from a brief phone call at the end of the last episode, these groups do not interact with each other. All scenes are shot inside or in the immediate vicinity of the campaign buses, and much of the humour comes from the candidates talking candidly in private about their party and campaign in ways that they would not do in public. In each party there are interpersonal conflicts between individuals.

Conservatives

In the Conservative group nominal leader Martin (

Hugh Dennis Peter Hugh Dennis (born 13 February 1962) is an English comedian, presenter, actor, writer, impressionist and voice-over artist who has appeared in the comedy double act Punt and Dennis with partner Steve Punt. He played Dr Piers Crispin in the ...

), a frustrated

one-nation conservative One-nation conservatism, also known as one-nationism or Tory democracy, is a paternalistic form of British political conservatism. It advocates the preservation of established institutions and traditional principles within a political democ ...

, clashes with the well-connected Baz (

Jimmy Akingbola James Olatokunbo Akingbola (born 7 April 1978) is an English television, theatre and film actor. Early life Jimmy Akingbola was born in London to parents of the Yoruba tribe who had emigrated from Nigeria. In 1996, Akingbola started at the A ...

), the latter of which openly supports what he considers to be

Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (; born 19 June 1964) is a British politician, writer and journalist who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He previously served as F ...

's inevitable rise to power and is far more willing to engage in more cynical campaign ploys. Women's issues consultant Siobhan (

Hattie Morahan Harriet Jane Morahan (born 7 October 1978) is an English actress. Her roles include Sister Clara in ''The Golden Compass'' (2007), Gale Benson in ''The Bank Job'' (2008), Alice in ''The Bletchley Circle'' (2012–2014), Ann in ''Mr. Holmes'' ( ...

) feels marginalised by both men. The group is completed by dim-witted and politically uninformed intern Ruby (Liz Kingsman), who the group is forced to employ as she is the daughter of a major party donor.

Labour

In the Labour group Jack (

Trevor Cooper Trevor Cooper (born 21 September 1953) is an English actor. Background Born 21 September 1953, Cooper studied law at Kingston Polytechnic and graduated with a master's degree in law from the University of Warwick. He taught for two years at Lon ...

), a long time party supporter, is confused and dismayed by how the party, politics and campaigning has changed. Social media organiser Conor (

Theo Barklem-Biggs Theo Barklem-Biggs (born 21 March 1990) is a British television and film actor from London. He has performed both comedic and dramatic roles. Career He made his debut television appearance in ''The Bill '' in 2008. He appeared in ''EastEnders, S ...

) continually suggests unhelpful online strategies, mostly to the chagrin of co-ordinator Christine (

Daisy Haggard Celia Daisy Morna Haggard (born 1978) is a British actress and writer. She is known for her roles in the BBC sitcoms ''Uncle'' and ''Episodes''. Haggard stars in BBC Three’s comedy-drama, '' Back to Life'', which she also created and co-wrot ...

). The advice of American political strategy consultant Melanie (

Kathleen Rose Perkins Kathleen Rose Perkins (born November 15, 1974) is an American actress. Life and career Perkins was born in New Baltimore, Michigan, the daughter of Leonard and Donna Perkins. She graduated from Anchor Bay High School (1992) and enrolled in Wes ...

), who frequently attempts to secure a future job in the 2016 presidential election campaign, grates with her English colleagues.

Liberal Democrats

Liberal Democrat Kevin (

Ben Miller Bennet Evan Miller (born 24 February 1966) is an English actor, comedian, and author. He rose to fame as one half of the comedy duo Armstrong and Miller. Miller is also known for playing the lead role of DI Richard Poole in the first two serie ...

), dismayed at the poor electoral prospects of his party, the last five years of

coalition government A coalition government is a form of government in which political parties cooperate to form a government. The usual reason for such an arrangement is that no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an election, an atypical outcome in ...

, and a recent divorce, suffers a nervous breakdown, showing increasingly erratic behaviour as the series progresses. Assistant Charlotte (

Esther Smith Esther Smith is an English actress best known for her work in the television series ''Uncle'', ''Cuckoo'' and '' Trying''. She is also known for originating the role of Delphi Diggory in the play ''Harry Potter and the Cursed Child''. Early lif ...

), tries to help, but party grandee Simon (

Michael Fenton Stevens Michael Fenton Stevens (born 12 February 1958) is an English actor and comedian. He is best known for being a founder member of The Hee Bee Gee Bees and the voice behind the ''Spitting Image'' 1986 number 1 hit "The Chicken Song". He also starred ...

) repeatedly refuses to acknowledge that a problem exists.

UKIP

In the UKIP bus, communications manager Gerry (

Andy Nyman Andrew Nyman (born 13 April 1966) is an English actor, director, writer and magician. Early life and career Nyman was born on 13 April 1966 in Leicester, Leicestershire. His first noteworthy performance was in 2000 as Keith Whitehead in '' Dead ...

), a UKIP supporter on purely

Eurosceptic Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies, and seek reform ...

grounds, struggles to prevent political damage arising from offensive comments and behaviour of other UKIP members. This includes those of openly bigoted logistics manager Kate (

Sarah Hadland Sarah Hadland is an English actress. She is best known for her role as Stevie Sutton in the BBC One BAFTA-nominated comedy television series '' Miranda'' (2009–2015) and Trish in ''The Job Lot'' (2013–2015). Hadland appeared as the Ocean S ...

). The bus is driven by Obi (

Rhashan Stone Rhashan Stone is an American actor and comedian based in the UK. He is best known for appearing in many comedy shows such as ''Desmond's'' and ''Mutual Friends''. Stone is also a stage actor who has performed in numerous productions for The Ro ...

), a friendly and resourceful Somalian immigrant. Gerry and Obi strike up a friendship, bonding over a mutual love of

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop-culture Cultural impact of S ...

, while Kate views him with suspicion due to his race. Gerry is forced to fire Obi after he learns he is an

illegal immigrant Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of the immigration laws of that country or the continued residence without the legal right to live in that country. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upwar ...

, and his replacement Mick ( Steven O'Donnell) is far more aligned with Kate's bigoted worldview.

''Power Monkeys''

A sequel series, ''

Power Monkeys ''Power Monkeys'' is a 2016 British political comedy series which appeared on Channel 4 in the run-up to and immediate aftermath of the 2016 UK EU membership referendum, and also lampooned the ongoing 2016 United States Presidential election camp ...

'' began airing on 8 June 2016. While retaining the same up-to-the-minute production style, the new series focuses more broadly on current events, such as the EU referendum or the American election.

References

External links

* – official website * * – official website {{2015 United Kingdom general election, state=collapsed British political satire 2015 United Kingdom general election Political satirical television series Television series set in the 2010s Works about elections Channel 4 original programming Television series set in 2015 British political comedy television series 2015 British television series debuts 2015 British television series endings 2010s British political television series 2010s British satirical television series Television series by Hat Trick Productions English-language television shows