In the final Ambassadors, and not before time, we meet Fergana. Every dictatorship has a Fergana – a spoilt, deluded vacuum related to the glorious leader. The president’s daughter is equal parts pop star, football manager and wine producer but don’t let that fool you – she’s 100% twat. Beautiful in that €3000 a night hooker way, she’ll never know any hardship of consequence although she’ll cause plenty. Tazbeks know nothing but hardship and there’s more this week with a rebellion in the North making headway prompting a swift and brutal response from the regime. Tanya’s brother is involved with the rebels and Interior Ministry guy still presses her about her relationshit with Neil. Nobody ever pops round to enquire after your health here do they?
The president’s daughter is equal parts pop star, football manager and wine producer but don’t let that fool you – she’s 100% twat.
The rebels are led by Yerzhan a former drug runner. But yesterday’s drug runner could be tomorrow’s Emperor and POD wants Britain to back the right horse. Keith and Neil are flummoxed. Get caught reaching out to the rebels and get your hand cut off. Don’t reach out and risk everything should the insurgency triumph. Catch plenty-poo.
Reach out and get your hand cut off. Don’t reach out and risk everything. Catch plenty-poo.
The presence of Foreign Office vetting man Mister Jackson (Tyres from Spaced) only aggravates matters. He implies that Squealey Nause is cheating on Keith with the doc at Bart’s putting her forward for the post, reduces Caitlin to tears and catches Neil out in a lie. The Tazbeks listening in on the wire can’t get enough of Mister Jackson. He’s a hard ass and that’s exactly how they like them.
In the end Keith decides to bite the bullet and sets up a secret meet with the rebels. He ends up shoved roughly in a barn with the French ambassador, something you would wish on no one. Allied with the French in a conflict situation? Non, merci.
Allied with the French in a conflict situation? Non, merci.
Squealey hears from Fergana that the president will bomb the rebels that very night. That’s bad news for Keith but at least Fergana got the Visa she needed to visit London for a breast augmentation. A flash of cleavage in front of Neil and Keith was all it took. International affairs may be turbulent but men are nothing if not predictable.
International affairs may be turbulent but men are nothing if not predictable.
Tanya however isn’t a Bush a Blair or a Hussein. She doesn’t have a president father to bail her out and when her bar gets trashed by Interior Ministry thugs it’s clear she needs to GTFO the country. Neil and Tanya get stopped at the checkpoint but fortunately the presence of Mister Jackson who is a rockstar to the Tazbeks waves them through. Osha fucks off to Westeros and Neil is alone but, notably, not shot.
Back in the barn British special forces, specifically Finchy from The Office, extract the ambassador. They are helping suppress the rebels which nobody told Keith about but he gets out in one piece and it’s as if he was never there, sucking up to the soon-to-be-crushed uprising. And appearances are really all that count in diplomacy.
Keith gets out in one piece and it’s as if he was never there, sucking up to the soon-to-be-crushed uprising.
Ambassadors turned out better than I expected. Rev can never be funny as it’s about the Church of England, something conceptually incapable of mattering. But diplomacy matters and this mixed the comedy and the drama well. I’d actually quite like this to get a second series. That’s what a generous guy I am.
The verdict: Rebel rebel, your face is a mess (after that SAS guy bust your occipital bone with his rifle butt).
Marks out of 10: 7.5