This Life (1996–1997) User Reviews

Postscript: This Life +10

[tjcclarke · 8/10 · 3 January 2007]

Part of what made This Life such a landmark television series was its uncompromising trendiness - its utter refusal to comply with standard dramatic devices. The shaky camera, the rough cuts, the sex and the swearing were genuinely ground-breaking, which is why Amy Jenkins' decision to make a one-off comeback 10 years on has just a tinge of sell-out about it. I suppose this is how die-hard Beatles fans felt when Paul McCartney released the Frog Chorus.

Still, getting a glimpse of the whole "what happened next?" thing is always intriguing. In This Life +10 the group of law graduates reunite for gay biker Ferdy's funeral. The cause of his demise remains unexplained (maybe Ramon Tikaram was busy that day) though we do learn that he got it together with Welsh milksop Warren (Jason Hughes) in the years following the end of the series.

It is swiftly apparent however that the five original housemates have drifted apart: Anna (Daniella Nardini) is the only practising lawyer and has quickly motored up the ranks of high-class defence attorneys; Miles (Jack Davenport) has acquired a country mansion, a hotel business and a Vietnamese bride; Egg (Andrew Lincoln) has written a best-selling novel based on the gang's experiences and is still with Milly (Amita Dhiri) who has popped a sprog; and Warren is dealing with Ferdy's death admirably thanks to his burgeoning career as a life coach/self help guru.

Egg's status as a celebrity author prompts a sexy young filmmaker to organise a reunion between the flatmates at Miles's stately pile as part of a fly-on-the-wall documentary, and this is where the faintly absurd amateur psychology and pent-up tension begins to emerge.

But, hey, this is a study in recent social history after all and Jenkins just about gets away with the clichéd set-up largely thanks to the edginess of the group dynamic (which is still as well observed as ever) and the chemistry between Lincoln and Davenport whose old buddy routine provides just about the only realistic friendship of the whole lot of them.

Frankly the whole project is little more than an excuse to drum up the old neuroses and insecurities that plague those trying to come to terms with lost youth: Career woman versus housewife? Playboy versus responsible adult? Clapham Common cottager versus weird, over-analysing sperm donor? They are the identity crises that face us all

Still - there is much to enjoy. The soundtrack to Egg's ostentatious cooking routines and the group's booze-fuelled slanging matches has shifted from Massive Attack and Portishead to The Killers and Kaiser Chiefs - the use of contemporary music once again proving integral to This Life's success - but, in a nice conceit, as the action comes to a climax, the whole gang dance around like middle-aged loons to the Manic Street Preachers. Clearly these are nineties children at heart.

Whether intentional or not, there is a spooky symmetry between the fates of the characters and their real life alter egos. Miles's success in industry and Egg's fame mirror the career paths of Davenport and Lincoln who clearly didn't need this nostalgic trip down memory lane as much as the others and it is a tribute to their evident respect for Jenkins and the original series that they agreed to the reunion at all.

The biggest problem with the show has always been empathy. These people are egotistical, hopelessly unstable and borderline unlikeable - but they perfectly bring out the screwed-up wretch in all of us. One can easily forgive Jenkins her indulgence, for This Life +10 is a triumph of reminiscence and guilty pleasures.

Sex, drugs, and rock and roll

[xmasdaybaby1966 · 8/10 · 6 February 2021]

I just binge-watched this over 5 days and brought great memories back. I saw it 25 years ago with my dad when he was what my age is now so can understand how a middle-aged repressed man can enjoy such an edgy show full of nudity, drug taking, cottaging and lots of sex, swearing and innuendo. The first series was brilliant. Just a 40 minute show on BBC 2 for those that didn't want to watch the news on the other side was phenomenal. Unfortunately, it became a victim of its own success. The second series went on too long and really lost something when Jason Hughes left and then the last episode left things open for another series which didn't happen. This Life + 10 was a bit of a disappointment but a good concept. A great watch with great characters whom you could believe in.

Nostalgia

[Malc-3 · 14 May 2001]

I still hold firmly to the belief that the last episode of this landmark show is the best 40 mins of British TV drama ever. Any number of storylines coming sharply to a head, the terrific wedding reception with its toilet sex and terrible dancing, darkest secrets coming horrifyingly to light and the legendary punch. But how sad! If we'd known then that there would never be another series we would have stormed the BBC ourselves. But think positive. The show is endlessly rewatchable, and its influence has lived on in Queer as Folk, Attachments, Teachers, Metropolis, Tinsel Town and most contemporary drama since.

Just please, please publish the damn scripts!

one of the greatest TV series of all times.

[ToneBalone60 · 10/10 · 12 February 2020]

Move over Friends this is your more intelligent English big brother. A perfect picture of 90s London through the eyes of young professionals and ordinary blokes and girls. A few cheesy performances by Tikarum but it sort of worked at the time much like the Fonz worked in Happy days at the time. Not a poor performance from a rich cast that all went in to achieve memorable careers. This is a collectors piece for those who lived through and experienced the era in London. Nostalgic and immersive TV.

2nd Season Drop

[MrDeWinter · 6/10 · 4 August 2021]

Season 1 was fresh, exciting and fun to watch. Season 2 was a mess. What have they done to the characters? All of them became insufferable, a competition in "who is the meanest of them all". Especially the characters of Kira and Ferdy made me want to punch them in the face. Not a single likeable character to connect with, behaving like school-bullies. Hard to believe that a Barrister, who's job is to appear in Court would behave that immature and childish as depicted here. Also, the sex scenes are very awkward and staged, not to mention the cheap looking wardrobe.

Just another step in television's ruination

[leslietwalters · 1/10 · 20 September 2007]

'This Life' is truly as bad as it gets. Its cast of mercenary, lascivious, ruthless, duplicitous, shallow characters are intended as a reflection on its post-eighties setting and I have to admit in this regard it is an accurate creation. Unfortunately, it leaves me nothing to sympathise with or care about and I regard it as just another step toward the television premium-rate phone in scams; astonishingly bad, cheap, reality and 'celebrity' saturated television; and other cut and run attitudes that have destroyed this medium and, indeed, much of British society. Sounds exaggerated? I don't think it is. In this regard programs such as 'This Life' have indeed been as influential as they are often called.

Sparkling acting highlights juicy drama/comedy.

[ldeorio · 9 December 1999]

A near-perfect study of life's transitional period between careless partying and responsible adulthood, this addictive British series touches a nerve with anyone who's waged that cumbersome battle. The absorbing characters and first-rate acting draw the viewer in until you feel like you want to jump into the fray yourself. Don't miss this on BBC America.

Even better than the real thing

[rog-15 · 9 January 1999]

When the last episode of the second series of This life was over and done with I sat in front of the tv and really felt as if I lost not one, but several close relatives in an accident or something. This Life gave us several of the finest moments in tv-drama. Ever.

Outstanding (contains spoilers)

[Dodger-9 · 27 July 2000]

Few dramas of the Nineties proved to be as memorable as Amy Jenkins' creation.

Inspired by her own days as an aspiring lawyer, it centres on a band of upwardly mobile mates all sharing a house in London.

Drink, drugs and bad language abound, along with a soundtrack to die for. Tightly scripted and beautifully cast, it was the show which gave the world sexy Scots icon Daniela Nardini (Anna) and The Talented Mr Ripley's Jack Davenport (Miles).

The ever bickering old flames provided much of the show's electricity, although there were a few sparks provided by Milly (Amita Dhiri) when she had a fling with her ultra-cool boss O'Donnell (David Mallinson).

Most fans were heartbroken when the show's creators, Island World, decided against a third run but executive producer Tony Garnett had learnt his lesson after making seminal early Nineties series, Between the Lines.

The far from electrifying third run of that show ensured that he'd never milk a drama if the material wasn't there. For that we should be grateful as TL remains a short-lived gem which, like a fine bottle of wine, is good to the last drop.

best tv show around

[Cat-41 · 20 December 1998]

This must be, by far, the best television show ever to have been made...it's 'hand held camera' approach makes it more realistic, and the storylines are very believeable. The writers are not afraid of trying anything, from homosexuality, to bulemia, to alcoholics. Everybody has a favourite character, mine being Warren and you feel like you know the cast. I was devastated when I heard that they were not going to make a third series, but in a way, I am glad that they finished where they did. Other shows run out of ideas, but keep on going, creating ridiculous storylines, and that is what they are remembered for, but This Life stopped while it was ahead. It will be remembered for its genuine plots, and not for going downhill taking its reputation with it. I would recommend everybody to watch This Life as it's brilliant!

Better second time around

[Britlaw · 16 August 2000]

This has just finished a repeat of the whole series in the UK, being shown late every week night during the summer. It is amazing it was first shown nearly five years ago and has been finished over three years now. This has brilliant and believable scripts, tight storylines told with economy, all played with great panache.

Nearly every actor has gone on to better things, if there could be anything better than this, Jack Davenport to Hollywood films, Daniela Nardini into several very good homegrown dramas and Andrew Lincoln does the voiceovers for about 50% of British ads.

The final episode has to be the most satisfying piece of television ever and the final scene of that episode made it into the top 100 TV moments of the Millennium as voted by the UK's Channel 4 viewers.

As a piece of British life in the mid-Nineties it will probably become an icon of the period. As a lawyer myself, the legal scenes were spot on, as befits the author's origins. They left this at the top, and rightly so as anywhere from that final scene would have been down hill.

One of the best drama series ever made.

[jamie-123 · 20 June 2000]

This Life is one of the best drama series yet produced by the BBC.

It follows the lives of 5 housemates who share a South London town house and never once holds back in terms of sex, language, nudity or attitude. Its candour was the main reason why it was so popular as unlike some sugar coated, problem-resolved-in-an-hour soap-operas it showed life as it really is.

This Life only lasted for two series, but could have easily continued. Only the powers-that-be at the BBC know why a third series was never commissioned, but to many it was a loss to British TV.

Top Quality TV

[Stevebarry2000 · 3 December 1999]

There could have been no duller a subject to touch than young Solicitors and their shared house in Southwark. However, the reality was a unique snapshot of two years in the life of drug-taking, hyper-sexed twenty-somethings.

The only downside to the two series', was that they never made a third.

"This Life" is real life without the boring bits!

[rossif · 28 October 1998]

This is one of the most addictive, amusing and involving TV

series I have yet seen. It has a kind of cultish appeal, and I

know a lot of people who follow it closely and discuss each

weekly installment as if it was real life. That's the key I

think. This series is based in reality. A group of very

different personalities share a house in South London and the 2

year story shows their growing relationships and their

interraction with various friends and colleagues mainly in the

legal profession. It's fairly graphic stuff with sex in

various forms, nudity, bad language and drug use presented in a

very matter of fact way. The characters are believable and

appealing despite the warts and all presentation, and the lines

are often bitingly clever. Daniela Nardini as Anna gets the

best lines by far, delivered in a wonderful Scottish brogue for

maximum effect. All good things must come to an end however and

the series concludes with the happy group disintegrating after a

massive row. But it was good while it lasted. What a

stunning, intelligent and

Mixed feelings about this important British drama series...

[HenryHextonEsq · 21 May 2002]

Ah, now here's a series I am in a few minds about, and that I have changed my mind over over time. I feel that the seemingly universal tide of praise this show gets needs a little tempering.

It was generally well written, but rarely brilliant. The acting likewise was mostly good in a naturalistic way, with Andrew Lincoln good as Egg, veering between genuinely likeable and a little irritating, Jason Hughes as Warren proving the making of the show in many ways; a well-written gay character impressively acted. Definitely pointed the way to "Queer as Folk" to some degree. Daniella Nardini was of course, a delicious, refreshing presence, though I do feel the character became a bit of a self-parody in some of the later episodes of the long Series Two. Likewise to some extent, Miles becomes less interesting as the overlong Series Two goes on, though overall Jack Davenport does a good job in portraying an infuriating, smug cad. Natasha Little I do like, but then that's my own peculiar penchant for her strangely alluring ice maiden, the subtle "bitch" they just call "Rachel"... ;-) On the whole it was good ensemble acting, certainly a lot better than in the shows imitating "This Life".

While you may feel it a mite unfair, I would bring up the show's influence on British TV since it finished in 1997, with endless shows hung up over largely Southern middle-class repellants. Largely, these shows have duller characters and more annoying dialogue than "This Life", and I am talking "Teachers" and that neurotic, depressing, incredibly po-faced, glorified soap "Attachments". Only "Queer as Folk" can stand as a good programme, but then that was in many ways a far more groundbreaking series than "This Life", even if it too did suffer some diminishing returns with its follow-up special. Suffice it to say that the writers and actors of "This Life" have been involved in quite a few things since, but well, not too many TV programmes I can put names to. Amy Jenkins, the show's creator, but not actually the script writer of too many episodes, has claimed a large amount of the credit for it, and went on to do some badly received work in the film and novel fields.

It certainly is a question; how groundbreaking was "This Life"? I doubt you could say it alone "led the way" in breaking more taboos as regarding language, sexuality and sex itself, though perhaps it became in a sense "the programme of a generation", attracting a youth audience that perhaps hadn't been so targeted by drama series before. Oh, and of course, it "pioneers" in jerky, neurotic camerawork. Pioneering perhaps in the context of British TV drama, but then what about Woody Allen's 1992 film, "Husbands and Wives"?

Mention of that film indeed prompts me to reflect that "This Life" lacked a sustained wit... yes, at times Anna and Warren are witty characters in a waspish vein, but... well, I suppose this goes with the territory of drama that is primarily going for realism, trying to capture the behaviour of mid-twenties professionals. I do get the impression that "This Life" will to some extent date, and will not have quite the same impact as it did on a first viewing, back in 1996-97.

I was a massive fan of it then, but can now see its faults a little more objectively. Series One I believe still stands up very well, with the show still fresh and unlike Series Two, actually focusing a bit on their actual work as lawyers, rather than just their personal lives. When Warren leaves in Series Two it goes downhill, with perhaps the endless agonizing of Milly over Rachel and some newer characters not quite interesting so much. I feel it became too much of a superior middle class soap, too predictable and set in its ways. Yes, the last episode is a corker in many respects. It actually does tie it up in a satisfying manner - where *would* it have gone from there?! Though that's not quite so compelling a question as with "Twin Peaks"' ending. It's a fine, revitalizing episode to the series, but by no means one of the few best episodes of UK TV television - heck, has no one seen "The Singing Detective", "Edge of Darkness", "The Prisoner", "Shooting the Past", "GBH" or "Brass Eye"? Anyway, while I would certainly accept that "This Life" defined a particular era in a way, it was a limited drama series, certainly no work of genius or great invention. Good television, but perhaps not so lasting television.

Rating:- *** 1/2/*****

Strangely addictive tales of sad, pretentious young persons

[cerdo · 25 February 2001]

This Life was a very crafty, addictive soap, which kept even skeptics like me interested to the end - and what a delicious, bitter-sweet end it was. The thing that bothers me about this story is the characters - are big-city, professional twenty-somethings really such sad people ? Everything in their lives was so empty and pretentious that it was quite hard to feel any empathy with them at all, and despite the self-conscious realism there was an almost sterile feeling to the production (perhaps this is largely a question of culture-shock for a person who has never been in such an environment - I kept thinking, these people want to get out into the bush a bit more), but the sharp direction and writing swept me along. If only we could get a show which combined good writing, good direction and likeable characters...