Directed by Paul Seed, the serial was based on Michael Dobbs' 1992 novel of the same name and adapted for television by Andrew Davies.

The opening and closing theme music for the TV series is entitled "Francis Urquhart's March", by composer Jim Parker.

[1] The series details the conflict between British Prime Minister Francis Urquhart and a newly crowned king as well as the run-up to the general election.

At their first meeting, the King expresses concern about Urquhart's social policies, which he argues have led to greater problems for urban areas.

His underling, party chairman Tim Stamper, persuades her to divulge lurid details about the Monarchy to Sir Bruce Bullerby, the editor of the Daily Clarion tabloid, on the condition that the information is published after her death.

The King and his staff produce a public service announcement implicitly denouncing Urquhart's policies and covertly rally Opposition leaders to join forces against the Prime Minister.

While the royal scandal succeeds in hurting the King's popularity, the polls reverse when Conservative MP John Staines is arrested for sex with a minor.

David Mycroft, the King's closeted advisor and Chief of Staff at Buckingham Palace, has recently separated from his wife and has entered into a romantic relationship with another man.

The deadly explosion of a tower block, as a result of a tenant's tapping into the gas main, puts the King's arguments about social problems back into the public domain.

Urquhart announces his intention of having unemployed youth from the estates conscripted into the Armed Forces, re-enacting a form of peacetime national service.