The King
The king (Michael Kitchen) is Urquhart's antagonist in To Play The King. Having recently succeeded his mother as monarch, he is determined to play a more active role in government but his initial attempts are thwarted by Urquhart.
As their relationship deteriorates, the King starts to raise issues against government policy, causing the government to lose popularity. As Urquhart faces re-election, the king organises a nationwide tour to highlight the issue of homelessness. He is humiliated in a dirty trick and Urquhart wins re-election, much to the king's displeasure.
After his re-election, Urquhart demands his abdication. Although the king cautions Urquhart that he will continue to fight his policies, he does not feature in the later series.
In the novel it is the king who decides to abdicate against Urquhart's wishes and plans.
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Famous quotes containing the word king:
“The one-eyed man will be King in the country of the blind only if he arrives there in full possession of his partial faculties—that is, providing he is perfectly aware of the precise nature of sight and does not confuse it with second sight ... nor with madness.”
—Angela Carter (1940–1992)
“When Prince William [later King William IV] was at Cork in 1787, an old officer ... dined with him, and happened to say he had been forty years in the service. The Prince with a sneer asked what he had learnt in those forty years. The old gentleman justly offended, said, “Sir, I have learnt, when I am no longer fit to fight, to make as good a retreat as I can” —and walked out of the room.”
—Horace Walpole (1717–1797)