The White House Uncovered. Review on The West Wing

I must point out that as a ''Brit '' U.S. politics is something that I ,on the other side of the pond, hear so much about but ultimately know so little of. As for the White House , it`s like a well-known but seldom opened book for me, I know of it of course but nothing much about it. The'' West Wing '' has at least given me an insight into that Great American Institution.

Here ,we who are too poor ,too lazy,too miserly or too apathetic to get satellite or cable T.V. are enjoying series one on terrestrial television ,on Channel 4. After much hype and anticipation I waited for the first episode .It left my mind in turmoil! I knew that this series is supposedly excellent but it just hadn`t grabbed me. Worse,it had left me confused , irritated and annoyed by my lack of comprehension of the ongoing activities and roles of the personnel within the White House. I needn`t have worried! Now some 12 weeks into its run on C4,addiction has set in , this first series has me hooked! I`ve worked out who is who and who does what,roughly. I know something of the characters personalities and some of their idiosyncrasies.

It took me some time but now ''West Wing'' has joined the long list of U.S. imports that I wouldn`t want to miss. This debut series has shown what an outstanding drama it is - apart from the supporting evidence of all the awards it has brought along with it.

So what`s it about?(For anyone doesn`t know) For those of you who are not hooked yet, it`s based in the west wing of the White House.It`s supposed to depict the everyday work and routines of the White House staffers and the Oval Office workers. We are introduced to lots of characters and some excellent,well known faces have been picked to play them.There are the major ones like the President and his immediate staff and aides and tens of others that keep cropping up now and again.

Martin Sheen, for long one of my favourite actors of the modern era,plays President Josiah ''Jed'' Bartlet - a former governor,New Hampshire democrat and descendant of one of the original signatories to the U.S.constitution. He plays this role as an amalgam of Clinton,Bush and Carter or so he stated in a recent interview but of course,this is his second term as a U.S President for he played Kennedy in the T.V. film of that name!

He plays his president as no saint but reports in the U.S. are that many would have welcomed him as an alternative to Gore or Bush in the recent elections.His role is of a man who is decent at heart, exuding charisma and out to do the best for his country. He`s made out to be very human,able to care for and identify with the little people ''out there''and to recognize and empathise with their needs,fears and wants.

At times he`s made out to be quite irrational and boring - he`s an anorak regarding U.S.National Parks,their flora and fauna for instance!At other times he is so strong willed,having deep convictions and idealistic,with a fiery passion for his job.Not superhuman by any means - just flesh and blood like us all.

Aiding the President we have his immediate staff. Rob Lowe plays Sam Seaborn.I`ve never really liked him before this role especially as one of the ''brat pack''.Here he plays the Deputy Communications Chief and he comes into his own giving an excellent performance,being made out to be a bit of a wet at times and prone to gaffs.In episode one for example,he has sex with a woman who turns out to be a high-class part-time hooker. He is excellent as a typical crafter of appropriate political responses.

You`ll remember the craggy features and face of John Spencer if you know L.A.Law.Here he plays White House Chief of Staff Leo McGary who has much to cope with,for apart from his job he is a recovering alcoholic and drug abuser with a failing and ultimately broken marriage.He`s made out to be very confident and has the ability to keep in touch with the man in the street.

We have so many fine actors in the other roles.Amongst them are Richard Schiff,Bradley Whitford,Moira Kelly and Allison Janney. Janney in particular is a revelation to me as I knew so little about her abilities from previous roles.She plays one of the most visible of the members of the White House staff - the Presidents Press Secretary ,C.J.- who has to front the daily Press briefings and skillfully fend off questions posed,often about situations that she knows little or nothing about. There is a developing relationship between her and a senior White House reporter ,Danny Concannon,played by Timothy Busfield whom I seem to remember from, was it ''30 Somethings''?

Many top-class actors fill the lesser parts including Stockard Channing as the 1st Lady , Tim Matheson as the Vice - President and many others too numerous to mention.

Don`t feel that you will miss out if you can`t watch every episode.Although there are sub-plots running from episode to episode ,each week is basically self-contained with issues and problems encountered and sorted out by the end of the allotted hour.Some of them are minor like organizing a state dinner whilst others are truly major like the authorization for bombing Iraq!

We see the Machiavellian machinations involved in juggling diplomacy,the Senate,Congress,Big Business and all the asssociated pressure groups.We see the frantic activity surrounding the President,the focus upon ratings,polls and the media.We see the fears and failings of a few as well! The show is often witty,at times with a nice touch of dry humour that allows it to portray the characters as real people.I feel though that most of them seem to be celibate,for so far very little has been developed to show any life outside the job.

The series has been created by Aaron Sorkin .He wrote the movies ''A Few Good Men'' and ''The American President''.He is also responsible for the series ''Sports Night'' that I know little about except that it`s supposed to be very good and is highly successful.He has created a series with very believable characters and storylines,helped no doubt by his co-executive producers Thomas Schlamme and John Wells (ER).

Authenticity is assured by employing ex-White House staffers to contribute to the writing team. The stories they write are realistic,exciting and often tense, interspersed with humour, wit and poignancy. They are very slick.Issues tackled are as wide ranging as racial crimes and terrorism,health and gun-control. ''West Wing'' will run and run even though it contains no violence,no sex,no blood-soaked hospital scenes and no shoot-outs.There is no chance of becoming bored because there is so much activity packed into each episode. It`s a must-see in our household and is to be heartily recommended to you all.