The head of MI5 a Russian agent? Yes, Prime Minister s1e8: One of Us, Foreign Office man to Jim
I’ve never believed in anything in my life. ibid. Sir Humphrey to Sir Arnold
Move two or three hundred thousand service personnel up to the north and you create masses of civilian jobs. Yes, Prime Minister s2e1: Man Overboard, Sir Humphrey
I need to know everything! How else can I judge whether I need to know it? ibid. Sir Humphrey to Bernard
The Employment Secretary is plotting against me! ibid. Jim to Sir Humphrey
Jim to Sir Humphrey: It’s envy you know. Dudley is consumed with envy.
Bernard: It’s one of the seven Dudley sins. ibid.
It cannot be in the national interest to ridicule the national leader. Yes, Prime Minister s2e2: Official Secrets, Jim
I don’t want a leak inquiry, I want to find out who did it. ibid.
Consciences are for politicians, Bernard. ibid. Sir Humphrey
Who would own the middle of the tunnel? Yes, Prime Minister s2e3: A Diplomatic Incident, Sir Humphrey to Jim, with Bernard
If humiliating concessions are going to have to be made, I’d rather the Foreign Secretary made them. ibid. Jim to Sir Humphrey, with Bernard
Memoirs alas are an occupational hazard. ibid. Sir Humphrey to Jim, with Bernard
He’s [previous prime minister] treacherous, malevolent and vile. ibid. Jim to Sir Humphrey, with Bernard
They’re coming here for the politics. This is a working funeral. ibid. Jim to Annie
If only his friends came to the funeral, we wouldn’t even fill the vestry. ibid. Jim to Annie
The French government never knows what French security is doing. ibid. French president
Bernard: What is actually happening?
Jim: Well nothing yet. Yes, Prime Minister s2e4: A Conflict of Interest
Ignorance is safety. ibid. Sir Desmond to Sir Humphrey
It is necessary to get behind someone before you stab them in the back. ibid. Sir Humphrey to Bernard
Secretary of the Treasury: We think it’s about time that the Governor of the Bank of England is known to be both intelligent and competent.
Sir Humphrey: Well it would certainly be an innovation. ibid.
Nobody knows who their counsellor is. Yes, Prime Minister s2e5: Power to the People, Jim to Bernard
This money isn’t like the rates; it’s spent on what people actually want it spent on. ibid. Jim to Annie
Once you create genuinely democratic local communities it won’t stop there. ibid. Sir Humphrey to Bernard
Since 1832 we have been gradually excluding the voter from government. ibid. Sir Humphrey to Bernard
No government is going to reform the system that put it into power. ibid. Sir Arnold to Sir Humphrey
I think we’re all agreed that the nation isn’t quite ready for total democracy. ibid. Jim to Sir Humphrey, with political adviser
Your speeches are nothing like as embarrassing as they used to be. Yes, Prime Minister s2e6: The Patron of the Arts, Sir Humphrey to Jim, with Bernard
Most government expenditure is symbolic. ibid. Sir Humphrey to Jim, with Bernard
We can’t really defend ourselves against the Russians with a performance of Henry V. ibid. Jim to cocktail party guests
What have I got the power to do? Yes, Prime Minister s2e7: The National Education Service, Jim
If he can’t ignore facts, he’s got no business being a politician. ibid. Sir Humphrey to Bernard
The only people who will like this idea are the parents and the children. Everyone who counts will be against it. ibid. Sir Arnold to Sir Humphrey
Honesty always gives you the advantage of surprise in the House of Commons. Yes, Prime Minister s2e8: The Tangled Web, Jim to Sir Humphrey, with Bernard
Talking directly to the French is regarded as prima facie an act of treason by the Foreign Office. ibid. Sir Humphrey to Jim, with Bernard
Nobody tells the truth about unemployment. ibid. Sir Humphrey, Ludovic Kennedy radio show after-chat recorded
Perhaps you should put out a press statement expressing sympathy for the unemployed. Well you might be joining them any moment. ibid. Bernard to Sir Humphrey
Nearly all prime ministers are dissatisfied with their successors, perhaps even more so if they come from their own party. Roy Jenkins, Gladstone, 1995
The main essentials of a successful prime minister are sleep and a sense of history. Harold Wilson
I was elected by the people of Australia as Prime Minister of Australia. I was elected to do a job; I intend to continue doing that job. I intend to continue doing it to the absolute best of my ability. Part of that job has been to steer this country through the worst economic crisis the world has seen in 75 years. Kevin Rudd
I’m the guy everybody wanted to live next door. They just didn’t want me to be prime minister. Neil Kinnock
If your only objective is to be popular, you’re going to be popular but you will be known as the Prime Minister who achieved nothing. Brian Mulroney
Is the country ready for a prime minister with ginger pubes? Spitting Image Election Special, John Cole reporting, ITV 1992
We’ve had 54 British prime ministers going back almost three centuries. And all of those prime ministers have something in common: they are all white. David Harewood, Will Britain Ever Have a Black Prime Minister? BBC 2017
What are the chances of Britain having a black prime minister? ibid.
Census: 40% of black people live in social housing. ibid.
He was tired … He was drinking … He was obsessed by the fear that everything was bugged … On March 16th 1976 Harold Wilson resigned as prime minister; he was just two years into his second term of office and still only sixty. His resignation stunned the nation. Extraordinary rumours began to circulate that some dark secret had forced him from office. Secret History s4e5: Harold Wilson: The Final Days, Channel 4 1996
Heath called an election; Wilson entered the contest as underdog. In a dramatic finish Wilson won by a whisker. ibid.
Gossip about Harold Wilson and Marsha Williams’ relationship had long provided temptation for Wilson’s opponents. ibid.
He’d been monitored by his own security service MI5. ibid.
Wilson maintained his links with Russia. ibid.
In 1963 the Labour leader Hugh Gaitskell died of an unusual liver disease. ibid.
There had been a spate of burglaries at the homes and offices of his staff and himself. ibid.
Wilson was becoming paranoid. ibid.
He was a broken man. ibid.
I’ve never seen a campaign like it in forty years of reporting politics. The frontrunner Boris Johnson successful as a mayor, less so as a minister. And his rival Jeremy Hunt, the former health secretary who took on the junior doctors. Panorama: The Race for Number Ten, Jon Pienaar reporting, BBC 2019
Friends and enemies call him [Boris Johnson] irrepressible for a reason. ibid.
He and Boris Johnson both come from privileged backgrounds. ibid.
Brexit is the huge challenge facing the next prime minister. ibid.
David Cameron and the missing billions. The former prime minister promoted his friends’ controversial investment schemes. We reveal the truth about Lex Greensill’s dodgy deals. How UK taxpayers could lose hundreds of millions. And how David Cameron pocketed a fortune. Panorama: Cameron and the Missing Billions, BBC 2021
This is a story of a former British prime minister and a dodgy scheme that could cost investors billions. ibid.
This used to be the headquarters of Greensill Bank until it went bust earlier this year. The bank’s offices and the homes of its former bosses have been raided by police. Billions of savers’ cash looks to be lost. ibid.
The bank was part of a British-based investment company – Greensill Capital. ibid.