Every Season 1 Black Mirror Episode Ranked Worst To Best
1. The National Anthem
The National Anthem is an absurd 45 minutes of television. As a member of the Royal Family is kidnapped, the Prime Minister is confronted with an impossible scenario: have sex with a pig on live TV or condemn the Princess to her death.
Originally envisioned by Charlie Brooker as a ridiculous scenario that Jack Bauer from 24 could have to face, he retooled it for the first ever episode of his anthology series. A ludicrously comedic plot but delivered with the stakes of a drama, this cemented the unique tone of the award-winning Black Mirror which we know and love.
Unusually the focus on technology is not as prevalent as in the following two episodes and what the show has later become known for, the so called "twilight zone for technology". While there are mentions of how the media will cover the live bestiality broadcast and how social media is reacting to the preposterous nature of the event, these are all secondary.
The main focus is on the Prime Minister, a brilliant performance by Rory Kinnear where after throttling a member of staff he manages to elicit both loathing and sympathy as we see his ugly side yet understand his pathetic desperation. Understandably the episode with its graphic focus repulsed many viewers but also acted as a precedent for the series, putting it on the radar as bold and hillarious in equal measure.