Danes bring home the bacon

The words 'Danish political drama' don't immediately inspire confidence, but having just watched the final episode of the superb Borgen one can say that this Scandinavian offering is one of the finest television series of recent years, and one that brings shameful comparison to the smug, formulaic retreads delivered by British TV.

Of course, the setting, at once familiar yet subtly strange, does help - for some reason drama often seems better in a foreign language - and for political nerds like myself the contrasts and comparisons between the Danish and British systems are of interest; but the real strength of the series is the depth of characterisation. The protagonist Birgitte Nyborg transforms from the gauche minor-party leader struggling to find a dress that fits her for an appearance in a TV debate, to the power-suited first female Prime Minister whose dedication to her office sees her sacrifice her family and closest friends to remain in power.

Nyborg is a character who in the wrong hands could be dreadfully unsympathetic, but in Sidse Babett Knudsen's brilliant performance we can still see the humanity in a woman for whom power is gradually leading her to lose touch with what is truly important in life. If Borgen were a British series one can only guess at how superficially the role would be played, with Nyborg likely either a paragon of virtue or a power-bitch right from the start. Similarly, her spin doctor Kaspar, is a damaged, unscrupulous, yet ultimately sympathetic figure who in a different context could easily have been portrayed as a stereotypical 'bastard'. Even the minor characters in the story, like the amiable but passionate Finance Minister Bent Sejro, and the weak but ambitious Justice Minister Troels Hoxenhaven have depth to them, although I would have liked to have seen more of the splendidly loathsome Labour leader Michael Laugesen.

With British TV now so enfeebled that trite, hammy nonsense like Sherlock can receive remarkable praise from fashion conscious critics, it is good to see BBC4 take a chance on broadcasting such excellent foreign fare, even though, along with other recent imports like Dexter and American Horror Story, it makes you realise how far our once unrivalled television has fallen behind over the last few years. Ah well, I guess while I wait for the next series of Borgen I can catch up on The Killing, another acclaimed Danish series I now wish I'd tuned into first time around...