The Thick Of It

Fallout from last week's inquiry is inevitable, particularly when we saw Malcolm as we've never seen him before: hunted, on the run and lost for words. So, as the series ends, everyone at DoSac is feeling the pressure of the revelations into the Tickell debacle/tragedy.

Communications are clipped to nonexistent as the government's problems continue. In one last desperate throw of the dice, Malcolm (Peter Capaldi) sends shiny Dan Miller on a fact-finding mission.

A sad farewell to Malcolm Tucker

Alastair Campbell will be very happy to see the back of The Thick of It's Malcolm Tucker.

When all's said and done, what better way could there be for The Thick of It to end than with business as usual? After all, as the final series has progressed, the show has taken on an angrier tone, emphasising the sense that something in our political process is irreparably broken. Why should an inquiry make any difference, even if it did damn practically everyone involved? As we rejoin the gang, it's clear they've learned nothing. Discredited DoSAC is now a dumping ground for sundry government problems. This calls for another round of firefighting plus more of the customary obfuscation, petty points-scoring and casual workplace bullying. Any redemption? Any surprise heroes? Well, certain individuals come out of this finale better than others, but what really feels remarkable as this brilliant show concludes is how utterly compelling a series can be when it's peopled entirely by loathsome characters.

The Thick of It: lines of the week - episode seven

What was (probably) the last ever episode of The Thick of It was also one of funniest and most startling ever, and I'm missing the show already. Tell us your favourite lines from this brutal finale.

The Thick Of It to bow out in typically sweary fashion

Tonight's final episode of The Thick Of It turns the air blue as we say goodbye to its foul-mouthed regulars.

The Thick Of It series 4 episode 7 review

So. Farewell, then. Malcom Tucker. And farewell to perhaps the finest comedy series of the past decade.

Fans bid a final farewell to The Thick Of It

Simon Pia, former top spin doctor for ex-Scottish Labour leaders Iain Gray and Wendy Alexander, says he has noticed an increase in political press officers adopting the mannerisms of Tucker.

Though its fourth season has been its least impressive, Armando Iannucci's political satire will none the less go down as one of the best ever British comedies: sharp and cynical. Tonight, after last Saturday's excellent Leveson and Chilcot-inspired special, it finally bows out, with an instalment overflowing with delicious duplicity and inventive insults - not least from Malcom Tucker (the ever-wonderful Peter Capaldi) who gives Ollie Reader (Chris Addison) a hilarious dressing down.

The episode picks up with the Home Office having cut police numbers, which in turn has created a huge backlog of arrest paperwork. Cleverly, however, they've managed to shift the blame onto the Department of Social Affairs and Citizenship for the burgeoning queues at police stations. "I doubt there are any major criminals on the loose," says Phil Smith (Will Smith). "This is about paperwork; it's not Con Air." Elsewhere, Dan Miller (Tony Gardner), at Malcolm's suggestion, is sent on a fact-finding mission to a police station in an attempt to make the Government look unresponsive. To say any more about the plot would give too much away, but viewers can expect a climax that is as poignant as it is amusing.

Chris Addison: Fuckety-Bye To All That

And so at last we come to the end of The Thick of It. The very end.

The Thick of It: good news, minister, the show is over

The stars, writers and producers tell the story of the award-winning political satire which made a household name of spin doctor Malcolm Tucker and ends on Saturday.