Francis Urquhart

Francis Ewan Urquhart
House of Cards character
First appearance	House of Cards
Created by	Michael Dobbs
Portrayed by	Ian Richardson

Francis Ewan Urquhart is a fictional character created by Michael Dobbs. Known by his initials FU, Urquhart is the main character in Dobbs's House of Cards trilogy: House of Cards (1990), To Play the King (1993) and The Final Cut (1995). He was portrayed in the BBC TV adaptations by Ian Richardson, who won a BAFTA award for his performance.

House of Cards follows Urquhart, a Conservative and the government chief whip, as he manoeuvres himself through blackmail and murder to the post of Prime Minister. To Play the King sees Prime Minister Urquhart clash with the newly crowned King of the United Kingdom over disagreements regarding social justice. By the time of The Final Cut, Urquhart has been in power for eleven years, and refuses to relinquish his position until he has beaten Margaret Thatcher's record as longest serving post-war Prime Minister.

Thought to be based on Richard III and Macbeth, and described as the "epitome of elegant evil", Urquhart is characterised by his habitual breaking of the fourth wall, his quoting of Shakespeare, and his usage of the catchphrase, "You might very well think that; I couldn't possibly comment", or a variation thereon, as a plausibly deniable way of agreeing with people and/or leaking information.

Michael Dobbs stated that the inspiration behind Urquhart came during a drinking session at a swimming pool after a tense encounter with Margaret Thatcher, deliberately creating a character moulded around the initials "FU". Ian Richardson was offered the role of Urquhart for the BBC TV adaptation of House of Cards in 1990, which he immediately accepted, noting:

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