The new season of the Golden Globe®-nominated miniseries The Hour,
The ’50s may be drawing to a close, but Freddie (Ben Whishaw, Skyfall), Bel (Romola Garai, The Crimson Petal and The White), and Hector (Dominic West, The Wire) are as intense as ever when it comes to the news, as is the new Head of News, Randall Brown (Peter Capaldi, The Thick of It).
But there’s more going on than the news they broadcast, including the characters’ becoming embroiled in cover-ups, corruption, love affairs, sexual intrigues, and the resurgence of Mosley’s fascism.
In Part 1 (tonight)…
A year has passed since The Hour was unceremoniously taken off air. Freddie has been fired, Bel fought to stay, and now all eyes are on the new Head of News, Randall Brown, as a force for change. Meanwhile, Hector’s decision to ignore his marital problems with Marnie has drawn him deep into the glamour of Soho club, El Paradis, where he’s reunited with an old friend, police Commander Laurie Stern. Laurie warns Hector to be careful about whom he associates with; the establishment’s owner, Raphael Cilenti, may be charming, but he’s embedded in a growing vice trade, and Hector has eyes for his most prized possession, lead showgirl, Kiki Delaine.
In the newsroom, nuclear hysteria is growing and Randall’s insistence that The Hour cover the government’s new civil defense manual meets resistance from Bel, who thinks the real story is the growth of crime. In the midst of this heated discussion, Freddie reappears. He’s Randall’s new addition, designed to stir up the team — and it looks as if it might just work. Despite ongoing friction, Bel harnesses Freddie’s maverick enthusiasm to cover the crime story, and when Hector brings them an unexpected tip-off, the trio find themselves with a potential scoop, but is it enough to outdo new ITV rival program, Uncovered? Meanwhile, Hector’s dalliance with Kiki takes a dark turn, as a violent meeting sparks repercussions, which will send him teetering perilously close to the edge of scandal.
And in Part 2 (next week)…
Bel bristles as newlyweds, Freddie and Camille, steal the limelight at a party hosted by Hector and Marnie, but it’s Hector who’s the greatest victim of the evening when two policemen arrive to arrest him on suspicion of assaulting Kiki Delaine. At the police station, Laurie counsels Hector that his best hope is for Marnie to confirm his alibi, but she seems doubtful about his innocence, and it’s Bel who promises Hector she’ll get him out.
Freddie returns home from the police station to find local landlord, Norman Pike, sniffing around his house with the news that Camille has been the victim of a racially-motivated attack. It doesn’t take Freddie long to track down the culprit, a young fascist named Trevor. Ever the journalist, Freddie spots an opportunity to confront Trevor in a different fashion, persuading him to be interviewed about his views on The Hour. Meanwhile, Bel has a tough job keeping Hector’s arrest secret from Randall, who’s expecting an imminent visit from the Board. Bel’s desperation leads her to Soho, into a confrontation with Cilenti. While Bel struggles to prove his innocence, Hector comes to question whether he’s strayed too far from his career and marriage. Is this one allegation he can’t charm his way out of? And if Hector didn’t hurt Kiki, then who did? As the clock ticks to the board members’ visit, Bel knows she has to stop Freddie’s fascism interview from straying too far into controversy, while keeping Hector out of the firing line.
Stay tuned for what’s coming up in Parts 3-6…
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