Borgen

Sat Jan 19, 9-11pm, BBC4

By Phil Harrison Sun Jan 13 2013

Time Out Ratings

Mike Kolloffel

Series two, episodes five and six
The creators of ‘Borgen’ are, on occasion, making Birgitte Nyborg pretty hard to like. It’s a risk, but one worth taking – the last thing this superbly nuanced series needs is an unambiguous saint as its main focus. Tonight, Birgitte falls out with Green coalition partner Amir and duly subjects him to what he describes as ‘the worst experience of my life’. Once he’s suitably smeared and browbeaten, Birgitte reaches out. But can her tactics be forgiven so easily? There’s trouble at home too, with Birgitte’s kids showing the strain of their mother’s demanding job. This second series feels like a distinct improvement on the first – the characters have developed, the stakes have been raised and the drama is relentless. Fast becoming as unmissable as its BBC4 Saturday night predecessor.