ent to Cameron, etc) there’s no equivalent to the status of the Presidency (except, of course, the Monarchy). The positive feelings and glorification of the institution›s history as well as the status-quo bias of the US policy process justifies a kind of mythic stasis – big projects of the staff like Sam’s Manhattan project for beating cancer, Josh and Toby’s tax-deductible tuition are ultimately stories about why these things didn›t happen. There are battles, some of which are won and some of which aren’t, but the status quo of the West Wing mostly remains the same – there have always been kings and knights on horses defending the realm and there always will be, they will be fighting
about gun control, gay rights, religion in government, today and tomorrow, and tomorrow and tomorrow. That the characters take sides in this eternal conflict without scoring any lasting successes (this only really applies to the Sorkin era, once he leaves they quickly bring peace to the Middle East) is arguably realistic in the context of a political system where paralysis is envisioned as a positive feature and so even failure can glorify the system. The ability of a British government to achieve change (and the expectation that they will which stigmatizes failure) combined with a lack of a long-term, static institution of the Prime Minister would make it difficult for a British West Wing to find the
same amicable atmosphere where characters sit around and talk about timeless issues in a consequence-free way. While none of this completely rules out the possibility of an optimistic and earnest show about British politics, it does make it easier to understand why The West Wing has only happened once in the US and not at all in the UK. The ‘royal court’ take on the West Wing would actually suggest we’ve had several films in the previous decade that had optimistic and positive portrayals of the British system, they were just all about the monarchy.
Where are they now? James Barber
James was an editor for Preview in 2007. Currently he is working as a trainee chartered accountant after graduating from the University of Bath last year.
Alex Parsons
‘A minimal-government liberal (admittedly with higher standards of ‘necessary government’ than most)’, Alex studied Politics, History and Physics at A-Level. He is currently a Masters student studying democracy and democratization at UCL. Alex writes for his own blog at www.smokefilledroom.co.uk
review magazine | march 2012
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