House of Saud: A Family at War
BBC Two
★★★★☆
Inside No 9
BBC Two
★★★☆☆
In September last year the news that Saudi Arabia had finally allowed women the right to drive was greeted with joy by activists — women will now be able to enjoy at least a couple of years at the wheel before robot cars take over. You might, of course, argue that this social reform was actually an economic necessity that also offered some vital good PR to the watching world. But, hey, it’s a start.
The third and final part of House of Saud: A Family at War set this and other progressive reforms by the dynamic crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, in context of a far bigger, and darker, picture. Social media is playing havoc with Saudi Arabia’s status quo, just as it is with everything, everywhere. About two thirds of the country is under 30, many wondering why women have been effectively living a life of slavery. A “demographic timebomb” has to be managed carefully.
For a series that has carefully allowed for a balance of voices, it essentially presented a picture of a kingdom mired in hypocrisy. There was also Prince Al-Saud, who used male escorts in London and who abused and killed his manservant; this blingy lunatic was found guilty and repatriated to his homeland. We learnt that the government uses social media, too, allegedly deploying “bots” that spread propaganda at 100,000 tweets a day. And that was before the film got on to the human-rights abuses.
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Among the crown prince’s less-heralded reforms, the programme suggested, is a new terror law that includes penalties of up to ten years in jail for insulting him, or even the death penalty if, it seems, you tweet the wrong opinions (this is denied by the Saudi ministry of justice).
A former CIA boss suggested that we should be rooting for the crown prince to keep his family in power: their collapse would be catastrophic for the region and the world. But Michael Rudin’s unsettling series has been one you would hardly imagine His Royal Highness enjoying — testament to its success. Isn’t it time we saw more of these kind of illuminating geopolitical investigations on the BBC?
The latest Inside No 9 was the most warped portrait of a marriage you’ll see. It began with an unhappy middle-aged couple, Harriet and Adrian (Nicola Walker and Steve Pemberton, both superb), discussing the renewal of their wedding vows in their suburban home and, as this show does so well, an entire backstory was conveyed in minutes — just a few looks and an economy of dialogue.
With its echoes of Roald Dahl’s Lamb to the Slaughter (even Walker’s jumper looked like something Susan George might have worn in Tales of the Unexpected), I was half-expecting Harriet to bump off Adrian using the crate of Pot Noodles he’d requested from the shops.
This was, however, a touch ghastlier than Dahl. If the kinky sex scene, played entirely straight as Adrian failed to rise to Harriet’s nursey seduction, felt oddly out of place for the series, the eventual twist, featuring something dark in his dark room, was almost too nasty. A bad taste is still lingering around my mouth, but I’d never say I’m not wedded to this most unpredictable of series — in sickness and in health.
james.jackson@thetimes.co.uk