Hasta la vista, baby: Branagh brings back Boris in This England' Prosthetics and a very good, very bad hairpiece': Kenneth Branagh's Boris Johnson transformation is something to behold in This England'.
by Cornelia Le Roux
23-01-2023 23:48
in Entertainment
Boris Johnson, left, and actor Kenneth Branagh playing the role of the former UK prime minister in This England'. Images: ADRIAN DENNIS / AFP and Showmax/ Supplied
Boris Johnson may have stepped down as British prime minister with the cheeky words Hasta la vista, baby! after he was ousted as Tory leader, but he has returned in a different on-screen guise. Now streaming on Showmax, This England stars the 2022 Oscar winner Sir Kenneth Branagh (Belfast, Dunkirk) as Johnson with the help of heavy facial prosthetics, a barelling hunch and a very good, very bad hairpiece!
--
According to Mail Online, a total of 42 complex prosthetic faces was especially made for Branagh. Makeup artist Vanessa White is quoted as stating:
There are so many pieces The only thing you see of Ken is his eyes and his chin, the rest is fake We had to tape him in, literally tape up the back of his neck, his head.
Kenneth Branagh, winner of the Writing (Original Screenplay) award for Belfast', poses backstage during the 94th Annual Academy Awards at Dolby Theatre on 27 March 2022 in Hollywood, California. Image: Mike Coppola/Getty Images/AFP ALSO READ: Oscars 2022: Complete list of winners from Hollywood's biggest night
--
This England': Boris a life-changing part' for Branagh Co-written and directed by BAFTA winner Michael Winterbottom (The Trip, In This World), This England blends dramatisation with real documentary footage of the tumultuous first wave of COVID-19 in Britain that engulfed Johnson during his first months as prime minister.
As per Radio Times, Branagh confessed that playing Johnson in the Sky series was a life-changing part for him.
Star-studded cast and rave reviews
In their five-star review, The Evening Standard calls This England, splendid television, history distilled on screen, saying, Watch it and weep .
Times (UK) has already praised Kenneth Branagh's barrelling, air-punching, at times uncanny Boris Johnson impression, while bloated with pouchy prosthetics and fat pads as well as the series' heart-breaking authenticity .
As Gabriel Silver, Sky's director of drama, described it: This England is a broad and deep factual drama about those tasked to shepherd a nation through the crisis - exposing humanity at its most scared, neglectful, ingenious, desperate, and hopeful
--
The rest of the cast includes Ophelia Lovibond (Minx) co-stars as Johnson's wife, Carrie Symonds, with award winner Andrew Buchan (Broadchurch, Industry, Andrew Parker Bowles in The Crown) as Matt Hancock. Emmy nominee Charles Dance (The Crown's Lord Mountbatten and Tywin Lannister in Game of Thrones) steps in as newspaper editor Max Hastings in episode 1.
Ophelia Lovibond and Kenneth Branagh in a scene from This England'. Image: Supplied This England': Much bigger than Boris Johnson much bigger than the actor Winterbottom approached Branagh about the project in late 2020. Despite the show's scope, Johnson is central to the story, and the challenge to portray this hugely divisive public figure without taking sides, became one of Branagh's biggest challenges.
As the actor himself put it:
It doesn't matter whether we do or not, because people who love or hate Boris Johnson will probably find that this corresponds to exactly what they feel about him.
For some, it will glorify him; for others it will have libelled him. They'll see what they see. But certainly, in the doing of it, the goal was decidedly not to bring any additional spin or commentary on something that was much, much bigger than Boris Johnson certainly a zillion times bigger than any actor.
ALSO READ: British PM Boris Johnson tests positive for COVID-19
Kenneth Branagh as former UK prime minister Boris Johnson in This England'. Image: Supplied ALSO READ: SA group gives 120 000 meals to NHS and the vulnerable - but now they need our help
The pandemic world Branagh had the following to say about the vulnerable state of the world that inspired the gripping pandemic drama series,
In that early part of the pandemic, which was such a vulnerable moment for the world, we didn't know quite what was coming, how fast it was coming, how deadly it was, what the real existential threat was to our lives or to our economic futures.
Everyone felt that most people were doing the very best they could Although subsequently you might argue about whether that best was good enough, against the rush of events, much of it was reactive.
It was more about the cataclysmic effect of the rapidity, the ferocious rapidity at which things moved. We really weren't ready for the volatility, for the changing information and seeing that impact across the country, Branagh added
ALSO READ: 1.1m people infected with Covid-19 in England, daily cases top 60,000 for first time
From Branagh to Boris: Masterful combination of acting and makeup Just like Brendan Fraser, who transformed into the morbidly obese English teacher Charlie in The Whale with the heavy use of prosthetics, Branagh's physical transformation into Johnson took a combination of acting and extensive makeup.
Although they're of similar height, the actor explained that Johnson is a stockier individual than me, a sort of swift and, some would say, lumbering rugger forward. We all saw him take out that young schoolboy playing street rugby in Japan That's a sort of extreme example of a man who leans forward, who barrels rather. That's the impression you have he leads with the shoulders, head down.
Boris Jo
Most recent headlines
06/10/2025
France T l visions, France's leading broadcaster, has received the 2025 EBU ...
04/09/2025
Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), in collaboration with Dalet, has been a...
07/08/2025
July 8 2025, 22:30 (PDT) Tata Motors & Dolby Bring Dolby Atmos to Harrier.ev, R...
15/07/2025
Independent media outlets in Brazil and Colombia are invited to apply for a new programme aimed at strengthening the long-term resilience of journalism in the f...
15/07/2025
By Lucy Spicer
One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festival...
15/07/2025
Spotify une fuerzas con DiDi, la app l der en servicios de movilidad, delivery y...
15/07/2025
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
15/07/2025
L3Harris put its CORVUS-RAVEN counter-small UAS capability into the hands of soldiers at VANAHEIM, showcasing its ability to provide passive signal detect, enha...
15/07/2025
Netflix Viewing Up 13.5% vs. May, Represents 42% of Monthly Gain for Streaming
...
15/07/2025
SAN FRANCISCO and BENGALARU, India Sangeeta Chakraborty has been named chief revenue officer at Amagi, a cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) technology pro...
15/07/2025
As part of its mandate, the Advanced Television Systems Committee the U.S. organization tasked with developing advanced broadcast TV standards promotes ATSC 3.0...
15/07/2025
QuickLink, the leading global provider of multi-camera video productions and remote contributions, announces the launch of two innovative control panels Studi...
15/07/2025
Chris Kontopanos has joined leading high-quality microphone solutions manufacturer, DPA Microphones, as the company's new Regional Sales Manager for the Mid...
15/07/2025
Magnifi by VideoVerse, a global leader in AI-powered video automation, has launched a major platform upgrade built to simplify live and archival video editing f...
15/07/2025
Telestream, a global leader in media workflow technologies, will preview its latest innovations at IBC2025, Stand 7.B21. This year's showcase highlights how...
15/07/2025
IBC2025 is set to transform the onsite experience for its global attendees with the launch of a pioneering new feature: full integration of Amsterdam's GVB ...
15/07/2025
Music, sport and technology collided in spectacular fashion as ASB GlassFloor powered the debut of Beats N Buckets, Germany's first Basketball meets Hip-Ho...
15/07/2025
The Collectv, the Emmy award-winning broadcast solutions and workflows consultancy - and winner of Broadcast Tech's Team of the Year is delighted to announc...
15/07/2025
SipRadius, the expert in secure, low latency media transport, will showcase how broadcasters and media companies can take control of fragmented IP workflows at ...
15/07/2025
Appear, the global leader in live production technology, today announced its strategic partnership with beIN ASIA PACIFIC, a leading multi-platform sports media...
15/07/2025
Company marks 15 years of innovation at the show
Broadpeak, a leader in streaming and monetization at scale, will return to IBC (Hall 1, Stand F83. RAI, Amster...
15/07/2025
New software solutions extend trusted timing measurement across broadcast, venue, and professional AV applications
Hitomi Broadcast, the market leader in audi...
15/07/2025
SHENZHEN, China Telycam has added control options for its portfolio of pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) cameras with a new plug-in for Elgato's Stream Deck family of con...
15/07/2025
MELVILLE, N.Y. Chyron said its Chyron LIVE cloud-native live production solution has successfully completed the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Foundational Technical...
15/07/2025
PHILADELPHIA The Xumo streaming platform joint venture between Comcast and Charter has announced the nationwide launch of a new line of Xumo TVs from Westinghou...
15/07/2025
LONGMONT, Colo. DPA Microphones said Chris Kontopanos has joined the microphone solutions provider as its new regional sales manager, Mid-Atlantic....
15/07/2025
NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION IN OR INTO OR TO ANY PERSON LOCATED OR RESIDENT IN THE UNIT...
15/07/2025
Audiences and ad dollars are moving to streaming - media organizations are evolving to meet them there....
15/07/2025
U&GOLD has acquired the broadcast rights for Fawlty Towers: The Play (1x120'). Recorded during the show's run at the West End with its original cast, Fa...
15/07/2025
Live From MLB All-Star 2025: FOX Sports Aims To Capture Chatty Players on the Fi...
15/07/2025
Live From MLB All-Star 2025: From Live Event Coverage to Studio Shows, MLB Netwo...
15/07/2025
Live From MLB All-Star 2025: FOX Sports' Francisco Contreras and Tom Lynch o...
15/07/2025
Live From MLB All-Star: FOX Sports' Production Is Bigger Than Ever in Steamy...
15/07/2025
Live From MLB All-Star: FOX Sports Director Matt Gangl and Producer Pete Machesk...
15/07/2025
TV SIM builds for the future with high efficiency transmitter from Rohde & Schwa...
15/07/2025
News Corp Authorizes New $1 Billion Stock Repurchase Program and Intends to Acce...
15/07/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Announces the Start of Production of Los secretos de l...
15/07/2025
Harmonic's Hybrid, AI-Powered and Live Sports Streaming Innovations are Key ...
15/07/2025
The well-known and well-loved 4099 has been completely revamped. It features amazing CORE+ technology, which eliminates distortion and extends dynamic range, a ...
15/07/2025
Comscore Partners with HyphaMetrics to Launch Advanced Person-Level Audience Mea...
15/07/2025
Peak audiences of over half a million tune into both Kerry v Tyrone and Donegal ...
15/07/2025
PROTON Announces Production Facility Expansion Ahead of IBC2025 posted: 15/07/2025
Proton Announces Production Facility Expansion Ahead of IBC2025
Alongs...
15/07/2025
Submissions for NVIDIA's Plug and Play: Project G-Assist Plug-In Hackathon a...
14/07/2025
The Royal Moroccan Air Force hosted a C-130 award ceremony with L3Harris Technologies President of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Jason Lambert a...
14/07/2025
UK launch set for September, following on from recent US and Germany releases
London - UK, July 14, 2025 - Nielsen, a global leader in audience measurement, da...
14/07/2025
SHENZHEN, China Telycam has added control options for its portfolio of pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) cameras with a new plug-in for Elgato's Stream Deck family of con...
14/07/2025
The awards are open to IBC2025 show exhibitors and offer a valuable platform for companies to raise awareness for the new products and solutions they will be la...
14/07/2025
Clear-Com is excited to announce a significant expansion of the award-winning Arcadia Central Station with new software updates. Together, these releases dram...
Hasta la vista, baby: Branagh brings back Boris in This England' Prosthetics and a very good, very bad hairpiece': Kenneth Branagh's Boris Johnson transformation is something to behold in This England'.
