9:00 pm, 10:15 pm BBC1

by Alison Graham, Radio Times, November 30, 2002

Guy Drop The Dead Donkey Jenkin's cartoonish fictional romp casts Jeffrey Archer as a James Bond figure, a man of immense intellectual and sexual powers, who was responsible for the greatest British triumphs of recent years.

Damian Lewis flings himself into the role, turning Archer into the epitome of suave sophistication. Lewis is, in fact, the best thing about Jeffrey Archer -- The Truth. He even manages to make Archer a likeable and sympathetic figure, despite his utterly outrageous claims.

We begin in 2009 as Archer dictates his life story to a comely young female ghostwriter. He's completely shameless, claiming to have thought up most of the Beatles' best songs, while inventing the mobile phone and engineering England's 1966 World Cup triumph.

Mary Archer (Polly Walker) is portrayed as a serene and saintly figure, wafting around in floaty hostess gowns and rescuing small furry creatures before returning them to the wild. But, according to Jeffrey Archer -- The Truth, there were two great loves in his life -- Margaret Thatcher (Greta Scacchi, obviously having a whale of a time) and a surprising member of the royal family.

Jeffrey Archer -- The Truth is completely bonkers, particularly towards the end, but it's amiable nonsense. It may not be a spectacularly funny whole, but it has some funny moments and some smart lines. Still, its humour is very broad -- too broad to be sharply satirical.

Caption: Damian Lewis and Greta Scacchi star as Jeffrey Archer and Margaret Thatcher in Guy Jenkin's fictional romp.