Lies, Damned Lies and Politics:
a media column
From Planet 226
by Mike Parker
As an illustration of how powerfully the zeitgeist can either enhance or enfeeble a creative work, it’s worth considering the fate of S4C’s glossy political drama Byw Celwydd (‘living a lie’). In its first series early last year, it posited the premise of a Welsh government run by a coalition of the three opposition parties: the Conservatives, Plaid Cymru and Liberal Democrats (all in very thin disguise). Essentially, this was the deal that almost happened in 2007, before factions in each party scuppered it.
It was timely. As last May’s Assembly election loomed, the hot gossip was whether some kind of grand coalition might once again be on the table. All pointers suggested Labour would struggle to win outright. Byw Celwydd played an intriguing pre-election game of what if..?
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