Billed as the British version of Friends, Coupling tells the tales of the lives and loves of six main protagonists, three of each gender with the main scenario being a sofa in a bar and the action shifting to various flats and a beautician’s.
The writer is Stephen Moffat, who is now much more famous for writing the best and most scary episodes of Dr Who – the one with the little voice calling ‘Are you my Mummy?’ “The Empty Child”/”The Doctor Dances”; “The Girl in the Fireplace” about Madame de Pompadour; and “Blink”, the one with the statues – all of which won awards.
The BBC announced in May 2008 that Moffat would be taking over from Russell T Davies as head writer and executive producer for the fifth series, to be broadcast in 2010.
Coupling is smart and funny and involves all sorts of innovative story telling techniques, such as split screen action and various versions of the same story told through the eyes of different characters.
Ruf and I have worked our way through dvds of all four series and very much enjoyed the antics of Susan and Steve (based on the evolution of the relationship between the writer and his second wife, Sue Vertue, who also produced the show); Patrick, Susan’s ex, and Sally, her best friend, who has a fixation with her neck skin getting older – don’t we all; as well as Jane, Steve’s previous girlfriend, and the very strange Jeff, Susan’s work colleague.
Moffat also wrote the original, unbroadcast, pilot episode for the American version of the same series, in 2003, although this was less successful and was cancelled after four episodes on the NBC network. Moffat has blamed its failure on an unprecedented level of network interference.
I thoroughly recommend the UK boxset!
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