With the turmoil currently engulfing British politics, the writers of political thrillers haven’t needed to venture far for inspiration. Kenneth Branagh’s This England is merely the latest in a long line of films and miniseries that have taken their cue from the goings-on at Westminster in the last year or two.

But in much the same way that the Oliver Stones and Rob Reiners of the industry have found a rich vein of material in the presidential careers of John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, and Lyndon B. Johnson, the lives and times of some of Britain’s most prominent post-war Prime Ministers have also made for prime movie material. From Meryl Streep’s uncanny, award-winning depiction of Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady (2011) to Michael Sheen’s remarkable portrayal of Tony Blair in The Queen (2006) and The Special Relationship (2010), the dilemmas and controversies of the British high office have proved extremely fertile ground for storytellers.

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

Now another chapter in the history of British politics is due to be depicted on the big screen, with the Cold War thriller The Ghost of Harold Wilson now in production. Here’s everything we know.

The Ghost of Harold Wilson: The Plot

     BBC

He possessed neither the boyish glamour of John F. Kennedy nor the patriotic appeal of France’s World War II leader Charles de Gaulle. Still, Harold Wilson’s career survived that of both his contemporaries, and he became one of the very few British Prime Ministers to serve in the role twice. He was one of the first Prime Ministers from humble origins, as his father was a chemist, and his mother a schoolteacher. Wilson became Prime Minister for the first time in 1964 and cultivated his “everyman” persona with care, seldom appearing in public without his trademark briar pipe and raincoat.

Wilson presided over much of the dismantling of the British Empire. He succeeded in keeping the UK out of the Vietnam War and extolled the virtues of what he famously referred to as “the white heat of technology.” Wilson reaffirmed the UK’s place in what was to become the European Union and was also one of the few politicians to be referenced in a song by the Beatles (“Taxman”).

But Wilson was also the center of political controversy when he resigned without warning in 1976, citing exhaustion. While several of those who knew him testified to the truth of this, persistent rumors that Wilson was an agent in the pay of the Russians continued to swirl around his legacy, as did claims that a military coup was at one time contemplated to remove him from power.

The Ghost of Harold Wilson picks up the story immediately after Wilson’s resignation, as he seeks to set the record straight and extends an invitation to two young journalists to hear his side of the story.

The Ghost of Harold Wilson: The Cast

     Pathos Film

Playing Wilson is Shaun Dooley. Dooley’s extensive work in British television includes appearances in Broadchurch and Russell T. Davies’ 1980s drama It’s A Sin, as well as Netflix’s fantasy series The Witcher. If the early publicity photographs for The Ghost of Harold Wilson are anything to go by, Dooley’s transformation into Wilson will be worth watching, with Dooley capturing Wilson’s lonely, hangdog expression to a tee. As a fellow Yorkshireman, Dooley should have no problem emulating Wilson’s distinctive mode of speech.

Also starring is Fenella Woolgar as Lady Falkender, Wilson’s private secretary. Woolgar will be well known to sci-fi fans for playing Agatha Christie opposite David Tennant in Doctor Who. Her more recent screen work has included an appearance opposite Dame Judi Dench’s Queen Victoria in the period drama Victoria & Abdul (2017), regular appearances on Call The Midwife, and a role in Rupert Goold’s 2019 biopic of the life of Judy Garland.

The Ghost of Harold Wilson Makes History

     20th Century Fox

Aside from its historical subject, the production has already made history in another way. For decades, TV shows and films containing scenes set in the House of Commons were required to use a replica specially built by a British production company and subsequently retained and seen in dozens of dramas. It was this replica that, for example, was used for Meryl Streep’s speeches to Parliament in The Iron Lady.

However, after appealing directly to the Speaker of the House, the filmmakers received permission to film in the actual House of Commons. This is the first time such permission has been granted in history and a tip of the hat to one of the United Kingdom’s longest-serving holders of high office.

Release Date

The Ghost of Harold Wilson is currently in production. A release date has yet to be announced.