The Palace

Okay, so a certain amount of belief has to be suspended to enjoy this, but that doesn't mean it's not good TV. There seem to be far too many comparisons to the West Wing. The Palace is basically a tongue-in-cheek dramatisation of a whole bunch of 'what-ifs'. And, if you can get over the initial premise and look a little deeper, there are quite a number of points here about male succession, the spilt between crown and parliament, staff loyalty, the duty of monarchy and so on. This has not just been thrown together - in fact by making all the characters fictional the writers have much greater license to look at and expose some of the more interesting facets of the UK constitution.

The main problem is that it falls between two stools. It's too silly for a Royalist drama, and not quite biting enough for black comedy. It would actually be much better off on Channel 4. ITV doesn't have much of a history of 'faintly subversive' so doesn't know what to do with it, and the critics don't know what to make of it.

I caught this, a couple of nights ago, and I thought it was great fun. It is kitsch, fluffy and seemingly unrealistic: just what you need after a hard day. There is the young King, who is basically a nice guy trying to do the right thing (but is a duck out of water really). There is the party hard brother, who is a scream; the pantomine villain older sister, who is determined to usurp little bro; and the gin swilling mother. That's just the family, the staff are even more bonkers, from the maids, to the king's assistant, who is supposedly colluding with a journalist to write a 'tell all book'; but you can tell she is developing one hell of a soft spot for HM. This is just good fluffy fun: you can see where the plot is going, but I didn't care because it was perfect glitzy escapism.

"The Palace" looks like one of those American post-adolescent dramas where beautiful young 20-somethings are scheming and screwing at every opportunity. Even the role of the queen, recently widowed, seems to have been written for Joan Collins.

Cheap, tawdry, and ridiculous though it is it makes amusing fluff, a pleasant diversion. If you want to laugh at young actors struggling a little too hard to look like they're taking themselves seriously and roll your eyes at the absurdity this could be a lot of fun. In fact, one has to wonder how much the creative staff for this silliness just saw the whole thing as a spoof. If anyone meant this show to be taken seriously it's an epic fail, but as a take-off on American dramas, it's really quite funny.

This couldn't be further that the mark. Cheap two star fantasy based on writers and royalists that seem to know skerries more than the low brown writers. Note to prosecution re4 actors, writers. This thumb is a disaster. Stopped twenty mins when I realized that it was the Royals Mets Corrie. Please. Don't do it. Spare yourself. Producers should be ashamed. I hope the actors go onto big and better nor getting experience without showreels. Got a better one? Good. Keep it. Don't keep this drivel there. Sorry to the writers, producers and staff. But this was one of those 'well we'd better'.

No. No. You shouldn't have. I'm sure you are all talented so let's put this down to bar decisions - which I'm sure we are all capable or - lesson.. don't do this again.

I don't know where to begin with how bad this show is, ITV has always struggled to compete in the drama stakes against the established quality of the BBC and the indie hipness of Channel 4, the unloved middle child with only the rare gem in the past decade. The palace however is a new low, From the poor acting and directing to the abysmal dialogue and plotting. ITV has never been well acquainted with reality in its Drama, (aside for when Paul Greengrass feels charitable towards the channel) the Bill is as about as far removed from actually policing in the UK as possible, But the Palace takes this to new depths, as it tries to depict the King actually having real power in what is largely a well paid ceremonial role. They have been many comparisons made to the West Wing, and while it is true they are both political dramas, its like Comparing Paul W.S Anderson to Steven Spielberg there both directors, And as with that comparison they really is nothing to compare one is superbly acted directed and brilliantly written by Aaron Sorkin.

If i was forced to watch this again i would seriously consider chewing through my own wrists to escape into what ever life is after this. If your desperate for British Political Drama buy House of cards on DVD, and if you like good Drama avoid the Palace like the Plague.