The Murdoch melodrama: The Shakespearean edition

By Rajyasree Sen

I spent last evening in front of the telly, watching the BBC-sponsored Shakespearean tragedy: The Merchant of Menace. The five-hour saga unfolded in real time, successive characters trooping onto the screen, with all the elements of a Shakespearean play: hubris, tragedy, scandal, and destruction. It was like watching King Lear, Hamlet, Lady Macbeth and Cleopatra, all hamming it up in one glorious melodrama.

King Lear: Rupert Murdoch played the old man who unwisely hands his kingdom over to his children only to be betrayed and brought to ruin. Rupert Murdoch was doddering, hard of hearing, alternately cranky and contrite. I’d almost felt sorry for him if I hadn’t seen that picture of him with Rebekah Brooks and little James Murdoch Fauntlerloy at the races, looking every bit the dapper media baron. Do we really believe that he and his kingdom have been led asunder by those he trusted? The chorus of British MPs didn’t seem convinced.

Hamlet: James Murdoch, the Prince of Murdochland. In this iteration, it is his father who is the adulterer, casting aside the loyal wife of many years for another. Where his brother Lachlan chose mother Anna, James remains by his father’s side. Steadfastly loyal and seemingly composed, he seemed visibly nervous each time Murdoch Sr spoke, worried that he would confess to a secret phone hacking contract or two. As much as you pitied Lear, you couldn’t help but feel just a tad contemptuous of James’ weak-kneed attitude. And much like Hamlet, you wouldn’t care if someone offed Murdoch Junior with a poison-tipped sword..

Cleopatra: Wendi Deng stole the show, colour-blocked to perfection, looking every inch the trophy tiger wife. Age definitely will not wither her, nor custom stale. And her infinite variety, other women are bound to cloy. Her most riveting moment was in her encounter with that other Shakespearean staple: The Fool. In this case, British comedian, Jonnie Marble, who tweeted Dickens before heading out to do his deed: ‘“It is a far better thing that I do now than I have ever done before #splat”. Our Cleo swung out of her seat in a flash to land a right hook on the man who threatened her husband with shaving foam. I say let’s give the Iron Princess the News Corp empire.

Lady Macbeth: With a wild tousled mass of auburn curls, Brooks was the perfect Lady Macbeth – all bloody, bold and resolute. Asked the same question in different permutations and combinations, she repeated herself patiently, seemed to reveal facts and even agree with the accusations being placed on her, but never said a word we didn’t already know. Her unerring loyalty to Rupert Murdoch and by default, James, was unequivocal. A more loyal, intrepid and impressive compatriot in the line of fire will be hard to come by. And her firm but apologetic tone, the straight-shouldered but chin-down contrite posture, made her a star witness for the defence – and a perfect role for Julianne Moore in that inevitable Hollywood movie.

The first four acts of the play are over, but there’s plenty more to come. So get your bag of popcorn ready for the next performance by the British Shakespearewallahs.

Rajyasree Sen is a restaurateur, TV connoisseur and unsolicited opinion-giver. You can read about her adventures with food and life in Delhi on her blog or follow her at @rajyasree.  

Here are some pictures from the Murdoch Tragedy

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