First-look images released of Steve Coogan and Harriet Walter in Channel 4’s Brian and Margaret

First-look images released of Steve Coogan and Harriet Walter in Channel 4’s Brian and Margaret

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By Joe Molander
Wednesday, 2nd October 2024
In a TV studio, Steve Coogan looks at Margaret Thatcher, all of whom we can see is the back of her head
Steve Coogan as Brian Walden (credit: Channel 4)

Channel 4 has released first-look images for Brian and Margaret, a two-part drama following broadcaster Brian Walden’s 1989 TV interview with Margaret Thatcher, their last ever.

Steve Coogan (The Reckoning) stars as Walden, and Harriet Walter (Succession) as Thatcher. Walden was respected and feared in equal measure for his take-no-prisoners approach to interviews. Thatcher – hardly a teddy bear herself – was reputed to enjoy their sparring matches. That is, until the Prime Minister was coming to the end of her political career. The pair’s tense 1989 clash destroyed their friendship, and the two supposedly never spoke again.

Harriet Walter as Margaret Thatcher looks off-camera in a TV studio
Harriet Walter as Margaret Thatcher (credit: Channel 4)

The show is written by James Graham, based on Rob Burley’s autobiography Why Is This Lying Bastard Lying to Me?: Searching for the Truth on Political TV. The book is Burley’s account of spending the best part of three decades working as a political interviewer.

Brian and Margaret will air on Channel 4 in 2025.

  • Steve Coogan and Harriet Walter sit opposite each other in a TV studio
  • Steve Coogan sits with a group of people around a table, with a flipchart behind them and "THE WALDEN INTERVIEW" written on the wall in a professional-looking font, with "Brian Walden" written beneath it in printed handwriting
  • Steve Coogan and Harriet Walter sit opposite each other in a TV studio, a blue map of the world behind them
  • Harriet Walter sits at a desk, with a banner reading "STRONG AND FREE" and a campaign poster reading "VOTE FOR MARGARET THATCHER" on the wall behind her

All photography by Channel 4 

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Channel 4 has released first-look images for Brian and Margaret, a two-part drama following broadcaster Brian Walden’s 1989 TV interview with Margaret Thatcher, their last ever.