The New Statesman (1987)

Rik Mayall's Alan B'Stard is a greedy, lecherous, ultra right-wing Conservative backbencher who wins the fictional seat of Haltemprice and treats Westminster as a personal cash machine. Where Yes Minister is subtle, this is pure cartoon villainy, and the fun is watching him survive scandal after scandal through blackmail and nerve. Written by Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran as a vehicle for Mayall, it ran from 1987 to 1994, mostly on ITV with two BBC specials, and won an International Emmy in 1988. Some of its targets are very much of the Thatcher era, but a politician who always comes up smelling of roses never dates.