The programme tells how, against all the odds, Birgitte Nyborg Christensen (Sidse Babett Knudsen)—a minor centrist politician—becomes the first female prime minister of Denmark.

[1] Other main characters are Birgitte Hjort Sørensen as Katrine Fønsmark, a TV1 news anchor; Pilou Asbæk as Kasper Juul, a spin doctor; Søren Malling as Torben Friis, news editor for TV1; Mikael Birkkjær as Birgitte's husband, Phillip; and Benedikte Hansen as Hanne Holm, a journalist.

[10] The series has been broadcast in most European countries, as well as in the United States, Canada,[11] Mexico,[12] South Korea, Japan,[13] Israel, India, Australia,[14] and New Zealand.

However, as a result of a sequence of events following a closely fought general election, she finds herself a compromise candidate for the role of prime minister and wins, juggling a variety of interests among her collaborators.

She and her husband Philip Christensen separate, in part because of tensions arising from her job responsibilities and how it affects her family, including two children.

[18] In the fourth season, titled Riget, Magten, og Æren (The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory), Nyborg remains as foreign minister.

She has to navigate the implication of oil being found in Greenland, which threatens to derail her party's green agenda, sparks an international crisis with the US, China, and Russia; and pushes the government to the brink of collapse.

Season 1 starts with a general election that leads to a multi-party government that includes the Moderates, Labour and the Greens, supported by the Solidarity Collective.

The finale includes a snap election that ends with the Liberals forming a centre ground coalition with the New Right and the New Democrats, supported by the Moderates, with no involvement from the Freedom Party.

[22] Maggie Brown of The Guardian cited the strong female characters, originality and an ability to "uncannily forecast actual developments in Danish politics" as reasons for its success.

[25] The New York Times also offered praise, describing Borgen as a "bleaker, Nordic version of The West Wing" and saying it "finds a remarkable amount of drama and suspense in center-left alliances, pension plans, and televised debates.

The website's critics consensus reads, "Borgen returns after an extended hiatus with its emotional heft and political intelligence wholly intact, reasserting itself as the best kind of brainy escapism.

[37] DR1 produced a spinoff radio serial, Udenfor Borgen ("Outside the Castle"), to accompany the release of the television show.

"[41] On the other hand, Gillian Reynolds of The Telegraph gave the radio show a positive review, approving its complex treatment of the intricacies of the civil service.

[43] In September 2011, it was announced that NBC would produce a US remake of Borgen, with a pilot being developed by David Hudgins and Jason Katims of Friday Night Lights fame.