The New Statesman

Weekdays at 11pm

New to G.O.L.D. this month is iconic 1980s comedy The New Statesman. Fresh from his appearance in another anarchic 1980s sitcom (The Young Ones), Rik Mayall expertly lampooned the kind of greedy, devious, dishonest and ultra right-wing politician caricature many people thought were running the country at the time.

Written by Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran, The New Statesman featured Alan B’Stard, a Conservative Party back bencher hellbent on using any means necessary to climb up the greasy pole of Westminster, as well as grabbing as much as he could in a time of notorious excess.

Along the way, he routinely defecates from a great height on his long-suffering PA, Piers Fletcher Dervish, his equally evil and vengeful wife Sarah, and anyone else who stands in his way.

A sitcom influenced and spawned by its political and socio-economic backdrop, The New Statesman stands the test of time.