Humiliation
Defined as the action of injuring someone’s dignity to make them feel foolish and ashamed, humiliation is a central theme in “The National Anthem.” When Prime Minister Michael Callow sees the first half of Princess Susannah’s kidnapping video, he expects that the terrorist has abducted her for political reasons or for financial gain. Bizarrely, however, the terrorist's only demand is that Callow appear on live television that afternoon to have “full un-simulated sexual intercourse with a pig.” The only ostensible benefit to the kidnapper is seeing the leader of the country publicly humiliated by being forced to go through with a demeaning act of bestiality—a universal human taboo. As the episode goes on, Callow’s wife is angry and upset over the way the scandal has already humiliated her husband, as the suggestion has made people picture the obscene act in their heads. As a consequence of Callow’s inability to avoid fulfilling the demand, Jane loses respect for her husband. However, the humiliation has a paradoxical effect, strengthening Callow’s public approval ratings.
Voyeurism
Voyeurism—an excessive, often sexual, interest in the private activities of others—is another crucial theme in “The National Anthem.” Brooker explores the theme primarily through his depiction of the public eagerly tuning in to watch the Prime Minister’s ordeal. Despite the government’s attempt to dissuade viewers by playing a nausea-inducing tone at the beginning of the broadcast, shots of empty streets suggest that everyone in Britain has dropped what they were doing to watch their leader have sexual intercourse with a pig. At the end of the episode, we learn it wasn’t just people in the UK: 1.3 billion people around the globe tuned in for the spectacle. While some viewers are shown gaining spiteful enjoyment from the broadcast, most viewers’ expressions shift from amusement to disgust and sorrow. Once it comes out that the stunt was masterminded by a visual artist, the public must reckon with the moral implication of their voyeuristic complicity in Bloom’s sinister plot.
The Dark Side of Technological Innovation
Another major theme Brooker explores in “The National Anthem” is the dark side of technological innovation—a staple theme of the Black Mirror series. In “The National Anthem,” Carlton Bloom, a Turner Prize–winning visual artist, weaponizes technology to make a point about how screens have come to dominate our lives and exploit humanity’s most ignoble desires. By uploading his ransom video to the social media platform YouTube, Bloom ensures that the technologically empowered public will re-post the video faster than the government can censor it. The story proliferates on Twitter so quickly that 50,000 people see it before the prime minister himself does, leaving the British government powerless to block the media from reporting on the scandal. Access to sophisticated technology also enables Bloom to obscure his location, uploading the video in a way that encrypts his IP address and even predicting the government’s tracking strategy so as to distract them with a decoy location. Ultimately, Brooker paints a grim portrait of a society that has yet to realize the ways in which advances in consumer technology could be used for manipulation and coercion.
Media Sensationalism
Another notable theme in “The National Anthem” is media sensationalism—the news media’s tendency to use shocking stories or language to provoke public excitement. When the prime minister’s staff learn of the kidnapping, they immediately impose a Defence and Security Media Advisory Notice, which advises the media to not report something because of national security risks or threats to people involved in a story. The fictional news outlet UKN disregards the D-notice as soon as CNN reports on the scandal, and the hitherto dismissive producer Martin assigns every thinkable angle on the story to optimize viewing figures. Throughout the episode, Brooker includes fragments of UKN’s all-day coverage, which needlessly seeks reactions from members of the public and presents panels of supposed experts who speculate on the kidnapper’s motivations, presenting controversial opinions rather than facts. The journalist Malaika, hungry for a “scoop,” seduces a Downing Street staffer to gain confidential information about the kidnapper’s suspected location. At the end of the episode, a UKN report set one year after the humiliation has substituted its sensational tone for a more reflective-sounding piece about the public’s complicity in the story. In this way, Brooker shows the news media showing—at least superficially—some contrition for its part in generating interest in the scandal.
Public Opinion
Public opinion is a dominant theme in “The National Anthem.” Defined as the prevalent views of the general public, public opinion enters the story when Callow reacts to the kidnapper’s demand by insisting that the government ensure the public doesn’t find out what has happened. The theme arises next when UKN, looking to fill its round-the-clock coverage of the scandal, conducts street interviews to canvas the opinions of passersby and publishes the results of opinion polls. Tom Blice, a No. 10 staffer, obsessively tracks poll figures, reporting to Callow the latest findings. In an absurd, darkly comic scene, Callow is relieved when Tom says he doesn’t need to fulfill the demand because three-quarters of the electorate won’t hold him accountable for the princess’s murder. With this scene, Brooker implies that Callow is more concerned with his reelection potential than Susannah’s life. However, Callow’s adherence to public opinion shifts out of his favor after the kidnapper ostensibly removes Susannah’s finger. With eighty-six percent of voters believing Callow must meet the kidnapper’s demand, Callow has no choice. The theme returns at the end of the episode when a UKN reporter comments on Callow’s higher-than-ever approval ratings, which implies that the public has rewarded his sacrifice with appreciation.
Coercion
Coercion is another key theme in “The National Anthem.” The practice of using threats or force to persuade someone to do something, coercion arises in the episode with the kidnapper’s surreal demand that Callow have sex with a pig on live television; if Callow doesn’t go through with the demeaning act, the kidnapper will kill Princess Susannah. As the episode goes on, Callow deals with the pressure of the public, his wife, the Queen, and his staff, each of whom appeals to him to make what is, in each of their opinions, the right decision. However, when public opinion turns against Callow, the Home Secretary shifts from advising Callow about his options to coercion. Implicitly threatening his life, Cairns says she “cannot guarantee” Callow’s or his wife’s safety if he doesn’t comply. Callow realizes his authority has been undermined; he has no choice but to go through with the obscene act.
Government Incompetence
Another important theme explored in “The National Anthem” is government incompetence. As the elected leader of Great Britain, Prime Minister Callow commands a sophisticated network of intelligence agencies, counter-terrorism units, police, and military operators. However, Carlton Bloom’s kidnapping stunt thoroughly undermines the UK government’s power by exposing its inexperience with modern technology and lack of strategic ability. For all its resources and would-be expertise, the government fails to limit the video’s spread on social media; to block media from reporting on the scandal; to track down the kidnapper, having been fooled by Bloom’s decoy; to fake the footage, having given away their attempt because someone spotted the substitute performer; to realize in time the finger doesn’t belong to Susannah; and, most crucially, to realize Susannah was released thirty minutes before the broadcast began. Ultimately, Brooker gives a satirical portrait of a British government that is easily thwarted by a single citizen who has access to YouTube.
