The National Anthem (Black Mirror)

"The National Anthem"
Black Mirror episode
A stunned Prime Minister (Rory Kinnear, left), having watched a video of the kidnapped Princess Susannah (Lydia Wilson), learns her kidnappers' improbable demands.
Episode no.	Series 1 Episode 1
Directed by	Otto Bathurst
Written by	Charlie Brooker
Original air date	4 December 2011 (2011-12-04)
Running time	44 minutes
Guest appearance(s)
Rory Kinnear – Michael Callow Lindsay Duncan – Alex Cairns Donald Sumpter – Julian Hereford Tom Goodman-Hill – Tom Blice Anna Wilson-Jones – Jane Callow Lydia Wilson – Princess Susannah Patrick Kennedy – Section Chief Walker Alastair Mackenzie – Martin Alex Macqueen – Special Agent Callett Jay Simpson – Rod Senseless Helen Fospero – Lucinda Towne Sophie Kennedy Clark – Lauren Andrew Knott – Brian Allen Leech – Pike Sophie Wu – Jamie Rakie Ayola – Shelly Justin Edwards – Jon Jeany Spark – Camilla Jonathan Forbes – Browne Shazad Latif – Mehdi Raboud
Episode chronology
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List of Black Mirror episodes

"The National Anthem" is the first episode of the first series of the British science fiction anthology series Black Mirror. The episode was written by series creator and showrunner Charlie Brooker and directed by Otto Bathurst, and first aired on Channel 4, on 4 December 2011.

In the episode, the British Prime Minister, Michael Callow (Rory Kinnear), awakens one morning to be told by the Home Secretary (Lindsay Duncan) that Princess Susannah (Lydia Wilson), a much-loved member of the Royal Family, has been kidnapped; however, the biggest shock is to learn the terrorists' demands.

The episode received very positive reviews.

British Prime Minister Michael Callow (Rory Kinnear) faces a huge and shocking dilemma when Princess Susannah, Duchess of Beaumont (Lydia Wilson), a much-loved member of the Royal Family, is kidnapped. For her safe return, the Prime Minister must have live sexual intercourse with a pig on national television, as per a list of technical specifications designed to make it impossible to fake. Callow adamantly opposes fulfilling the demand and does everything possible to catch the kidnapper before the deadline. Callow also demands the news not reach the public, but the ransom video has been posted on YouTube and, despite having only been up for nine minutes, has already been viewed and downloaded by many members of the British public. Although the UK's media initially agrees to comply with a D-Notice to not report the story, the story soon reaches foreign news networks, which immediately report. After this, the UK media follow suit. The public's response is initially one of sympathy towards Callow, and the majority do not expect him to go through with the demand.