HAVING never before seen this highly thought-of political satire, jumping headfirst into the special episodes was perhaps a silly idea. And since indulging in the first six instalments, I can announce that it is best the early ones are digested before a delicious Specials dessert.

For the uninitiated, The Thick of It is today’s Yes Minister with an Office approach and an enormous potty mouth to boot.

That may be somewhat over-simplifying Armando Iannucci’s glorious but under-watched creation, but without going into the finer details of the Prime Minister’s media relations boffin Malcolm Tucker and his pant-wetting diatribes, that’s all you’re going to get.

Sorry.