PLUS ONE 1.5 – "One Love"

The big day arrives; unexpectedly early, given the fact most sitcoms stretch to six episodes. Rob (Daniel Mays) is still trying to find his ideal "plus one" to take to Linsey (Miranda Raison) and Duncan's (Duncan James) wedding, and chances upon a beautiful supermodel/bio-chemist called Astrid (Georgia King) while discussing the matter with Laura (Ruth Bradley)...

"One Love" was bitterly disappointing in most respects. After a superb build-up over the past four weeks, this episode felt terribly rushed and painfully predictable. For example: Rob's sister Rebecca (Ingrid Oliver) and best-friend Paul (Steve John Shepherd) inexplicably become a couple – the storyline abandoning the slow build-up at the eleventh hour -- while the ideal Rob/Laura match-up is mentioned but doesn't develop in any meaningful way. Admittedly, the latter's relationship will doubtless be allowed to blossom in series 2, but I think we were owed something significant happening between them in the finale.

The wedding itself was too low-key and cheap-looking to be taken very seriously (obviously a product of the show's budget, but I was looking forward to something a bit flashier after being promised the celebrity wedding of the decade). This week's guest-star wasn't a celebrity (in reality, or otherwise), but Astrid was the episode's one notable highlight; a brilliantly expressive and clearly insane girlfriend for Rob. Unfortunately, while her performance was great fun, it was obvious from the start that Astrid was a celebrity stalker, so her knife-attack on Duncan at the altar wasn't half the surprise it was intended to be.

Overall, "One Love" was a lacklustre ending to what had become a weekly comedy treat. It wasn't bad enough to undo all of Plus One's good work, and there were still some amusing moments, but it ultimately felt very rushed, small-scale and uninspired. The knotted lunacy of the earlier episodes wasn't in evidence, the embarrassment level was dialled down, the flashes of fantasy weren't very funny, and the big climax (Duncan being stabbed in the balls by the unhinged Astrid) just felt a bit desperate. The denouement tells us Linsey split from Duncan after their wedding day disaster (choosing to elope with TV presenter Steve Jones, who covered their big day), so will Rob receive another invite to a Linsey/Steve wedding in series 2? Is that likely, given the fact his "plus one" ruined her first wedding?

Basically, can the idea survive being stretched beyond its apparent end-game? Part of me suspects the writers were wrong to title their show Plus One – or to have given us the wedding day so early in its lifespan – as that immediately limits what the sitcom can revolve around. I'd actually prefer to see Rob and his friends venture into fresher territory, even if a change of title is necessary...


Writers: Tim Allsop & Stewart Williams
Director: Sarah O'Gorman

Cast: Daniel Mays (Rob), Duncan James (Himself), Miranda Raison (Linsey), Ingrid Olivier (Rebecca), Steve John Shepherd (Paul), Nigel Harman (Rich), Ruth Bradley (Laura) & Georgia King (Astrid)

PLUS ONE 1.4 – "Competition Winner"

The concept could easily run out of steam any second, but for now Plus One's doing a good job keeping itself alive. This week, Rob (Daniel Mays) decides to try and woo a beautiful celebrity date for his ex's wedding and, with the help of brother Rich (Nigel Harman), lowers himself to using a schoolboy as a fake, disabled "competition winner" to get closer to George Clooney's own ex, model Lisa Snowdon.

"Competition Winner" was fairly redundant in the wider picture – as it didn't really develop any of the regular characters, unlike previous episodes. This was a particular shame, as it seemed like it was going to focus on Rich, but his role in the story was rather perfunctory. Still, despite being mid-series filler at heart, "Competition Winner" managed to produce a few comedy highlights: the gloriously foulmouthed schoolboy was good value, an incident involving a nut allergy was a Farrelly Brothers-style moment of chaos, and guest-star Lisa Snowdon didn't embarrass herself in the acting stakes. Well, she certainly did better than stiff Jamelia last week, anyway, and her entrance in a sexy blue dress certainly delivered.

Again, Plus One overcame its problems because of the engaging performances, the occasional gem of dialogue ("... you have a face like a balloon full of shit"), and its signature playfulness with narrative and format (the fantasy sequences, Rob breaking the fourth wall, reality television parodies, the fact every episode's essentially a flashback from the opening scene of Rob's inevitably misfortune.) Throw in some bad-taste humour – like Rob's photographer friend Paul (Steve John Shepherd) rather creepily taking photo's of Rebecca's (Ingrid Oliver) boobs as she breast-feeds her baby – and it's a fizzy half-hour of immature japery that works very well.

And through it all, we've somehow become caught up in Rob's plan to upstage his ex at her wedding, despite the fact she hasn't really done anything terribly wrong. As far as we know, anyway. Indeed, the fact she's invited Rob to her nuptials could even be seen as an olive branch, with unintended insensitivity? A moment when Lisa Snowdon agrees to become Rob's "plus one" earned an unexpected catharsis when it occurred, too... before, tragically, Rob's underhand ways to reach that point caught up with him.


29 January 2009
Channel 4, 11.05pm

Writers: Tim Allsop & Stewart Williams
Director: Sarah O'Gorman

Cast: Daniel Mays (Rob Black), Duncan James (Himself), Miranda Raison (Linsey), Ingrid Oliver (Rebecca Black), Nigel Harman (Rich Black), Steve John Shepherd (Paul), Ruth Bradley (Laura) & Lisa Snowdon (Herself)

PLUS ONE 1.3 – "See It In A Boy's Lies"

Oh, this is interesting: "See It In A Boy's Lies" was probably the least funny episode of Plus One so far, but also its most compelling. A combination of winning performances and an unpredictable script glossed over a lack of belly-laughs; as it's just so enjoyable spending time with this bunch...

Rob (Daniel Mays) is still looking for this ideal "plus one" date for his ex's wedding, and sex-mad brother Rich (Nigel Harman) spies a sexy model called Aimee (Camilla Beeput) on one of the album covers Rob "produces" (i.e., he compiled the list of tracks on a spreadsheet.) Rob uses his contacts to arrange a sit in on Aimee's latest photoshoot with his photographer friend Paul (Steve John Shepherd), and manages to secure a date after impressing her with fake tales of celebrity friends and album-producing prowess.

Similarly to previous episodes, the resulting date with Aimee eventually goes disastrously wrong, primarily because his "celebrity friend" Jamelia shows up at the same nightclub he takes Aimee to, forcing him to try and keep his lies covered up. But, this episode was less interested in manipulating events to tie Rob's life up in knots (giving us only one misunderstanding that lands Rob in jail at the very end). Also, celebrity love-rival "Duncan from Blue" (Duncan James) and Rob's ex Linsey (Miranda Raison) barely feature this week, with the story instead focusing on Rob's realization that he fancies Irish work colleague Laura (Ruth Bradley).

There may have been a paucity of big laughs, but there were some very funny physical moments – from a fantasy sequence where Rob and Laura ravish each other on their desks (inspired by Laura fellating a Twix), to Rob's surprisingly excellent body-popping at a nightclub to impress Aimee and Jamelia. I bet Mays gets asked to re-enact that sequence, a la Ricky Gervais' Office dance, wherever he goes now. Also, given Plus One's tendency to indulge in fantasy sequences, I half expected Rob's gyrations to be revealed as a brief moment of hope before an embarrassing reality strikes, but the script neatly subverted our expectations. Indeed, one of the more refreshing things about this series is how Rob isn't being written as the befuddled, socially-inept, nerdy Romeo he could have been.

Great to see some development of Laura from "bland face at the office" to one of the best characters, and surely Rob's best chance for a girlfriend who's not a suspiciously out-of-his-league model/actress/singer. I hope they continue the Rob/Laura relationship, and hopefully Paul's feelings for Rob's sister Rebecca (Ingrid Oliver) will be given time to bloom, too.

Overall, I wouldn't have expected it, but Plus One has become a weekly comedy treat in a mere three weeks. There's a nice balance of comedy, well-drawn characters, a sense of unpredictability, and some excellent performances (Mays, Bradley and Oliver in particular). I'm still not sure if it has much of a lifespan (given the focus on an imminent wedding day), but for however long it lasts, I'm really enjoying Rob's romantic misadventures.


23 January 2009
Channel 4, 9.30pm

Writers: Tim Allsop & Stewart Williams
Director: Sarah O'Gorman

Cast: Daniel Mays (Rob Black), Miranda Raison (Linsey), Duncan James (Himself), Ingrid Oliver (Rebecca Black), Nigel Harman (Rich Black), Steve John Shepherd (Paul), Ruth Bradley (Laura), Camilla Beeput (Aimee) & Jamelia (Herself)

PLUS ONE 1.2 – "Black And White And Red All Over"

The misadventures of Rob Black (Daniel Mays) continue, but "Black And White And Red All Over" manages to broaden its appeal somewhat, by giving the supporting actors more to do. This series could easily become totally focused on Rob's quest to find a "plus one" for his ex's wedding, but while that's still the obvious engine behind the series, there are signs of more complexity from Rob's family and friends...

We begin in media res, with Rob's face smashed into a car's deployed air-bag and dressed as a panda, before a flashback reveals the circumstances that led to that bizarre moment. Rob's still after a girlfriend to impress his ex Linsey (Miranda Raison) and her celebrity fiancé "Duncan from Blue" (Duncan James), particularly now he's heard that their wedding is being televised on T4. Through his sister Rebecca (Ingrid Oliver), Rob finds a potential plus one in the shape of West End diva Abby Ross (Sophie Winkleman), who later invites him to a "bad taste party" (hence the panda costume).

Unlike last week's opener, this episode was less knotty when it came to engineering shocks, surprises and misunderstandings for Rob, which was good to see. Despite the fact it's a comedy, there has to be a level of credibility, and episodes would become rather tiresome if each one was an onslaught of wrong-end-of-the-stick humour. Instead, this episode built up to one big misunderstanding – with mis-coloured panda make-up making Rob look like a racist to a black paramedic – and it worked much better.

There's a good mix of actors in supporting roles, so it was great to see them getting something to do. We learn that Rob's sister Rebecca is definitely a single mother, but also that Rob's friend Paul (Steve John Shepherd) secretly fancies her. A few characters have yet to be explored -- like Rob's confident brother Rich (Nigel Harman) and work friend Laura (Ruth Bradley) -- but that will hopefully come soon enough. It might also be nice to get an insight into Linsey's character, as the situation between her and Duncan is all from Rob's perspective. How close was she to Rob, exactly? Why invite him to her wedding -- isn't that insensitive? Is she really in love with Duncan, or has she been dazzled by his fame?

Guest star Sophie Winkleman was good value, even though she just reprised her Peep Show character "Big Suze" (posh, immature, crazy airhead) for the duration – with an extra squeeze of selfishness. It seems to be a feature of the show that an attractive actress will guest-star in every episode (which is fine by me), but hopefully it won't become too ridiculous -- as Rob is hardly the type of bloke who'd attract the likes of Susie Amy and Sophie Winkleman, is he? Shouldn't he be having a trickier time luring the female equivalent of Duncan James?

There were actually fewer laughs than last week, but that didn't really matter. There was a welcome ensemble feel at times (the "Gaymaker" chat at the dinner table being an episode highlight) and it's refreshing to see Rob isn't written as a socially dysfunctional nerd. He even refuses to be overshadowed by his louder, sexier brother, as I expected he would be.

Overall, "Black And White And Red All Over" was another decent episode that showed us not every story will be exclusively Rob's, and thus become repetitive. We also learn that the wedding day is twelve weeks away -- so if we assume that each episode equals one week in Rob's life, it seems we'll get at least two series out of the idea. If the show can maintain its narrative momentum, continue to explore the characters that circle Rob, and craft embarrassing set-backs that aren't totally implausible, Plus One looks to have found fertile comedy ground to reap.


16 January 2009
Channel 4, 10pm

Writers: Tim Allsop & Stewart Williams
Director: Sarah O'Gorman

Cast: Daniel Mays (Rob Black), Duncan James (Himself), Miranda Raison (Linsey), Ingrid Oliver (Rebecca Black), Nigel Harman (Rich Black), Steve John Shepherd (Paul), Ruth Bradley (Laura), Sophie Winkleman (Abby Ross) & Steve Jones (Himself)

PLUS ONE 1.1 – "I Do A Lot Of Work For Charity"

After a successful pilot as part of Channel 4's Comedy Showcase season in 2007, a full series of Plus One has now arrived. In a notable change, the main character of Rob Black has been recast, with Daniel Mays (Funland, The Bank Job) replacing Rory Kinnear -- who couldn't reprise his role, owing to theatre commitments.

Beyond that, this first episode played like an alternative pilot, as we're reacquainted with the basic situation, and brought up-to-speed: nerdy Rob Black splits with his girlfriend Linsey (Miranda Raison), who immediately finds love on the rebound with minor-celeb "Duncan from Blue" (Duncan James, from Blue.) To rub salt in the wound, Rob is later invited to their wedding, but he aims to upstage his ex's hunky fiancé, by taking a glamorous girl as his "plus one"...

It all boils down to a cross between The Worst Week Of My Life and a small-screen Farrelly Brothers movie, with Rob's efforts to find his ideal "plus one" hitting snags every step of the way – not least the irritating omnipresence of rival Duncan (always accompanied by various arrangements of his hit single "All Rise"), who sweeps in to outdo whatever success Rob has managed to eek out.

In "I Do A Lot Of Work For Charity", Rob traces a sexy school friend he had a crush on called Nicola Dare (Susie Amy) on Facebook, and pretends to be a record producer to grow closer to the singer. His attempts to woo her don't go well, so he pursues a back-up plan to snare Duncan's own ex-girlfriend Jo – unaware she's in a coma. From there, he gets talked into raising money to help her in a fun run charity event, and this charitable work impresses Nicola enough to get Rob's original plan back on-track. But things soon disintegrate around him...

Plus One has a rather limited idea, so it surprised me to find it picked up for a full series. That said, the idea should sustain at least one run, but it's difficult to see how it can extend its life once, inevitably, Linsey and Duncan's wedding day arrives. Until then, we can enjoy a spirited and fast-paced comedy that's generally enjoyable, if slightly uncouth and idiotic. The ways in which Rob's life snowballs out of control aren't always very plausible (particularly a scene where a goodie-two-shoes doesn't believe Rob's story that a tramp has stolen his trainers – despite the fact he's dressed like a runner, and there's a tramp wearing trainers nearby?), and the comic situations can get rather strained in their efforts to shock (Rob rubs his freshly-kicked crotch in front of a little girl, and is mistaken for a paedophile.)

Daniel Mays puts in a likeable performance, helped by an expressive Mr. Bean-like face, but the real challenges for him lie ahead. It's easy to identify with Rob's plight (many people have been dumped by their lovers for a "better-looking model"), but the character is still essentially immature and slightly sinister is his aim to ruin what seems to be a loving relationship between Linsey and Duncan. We'll have to see how the scripts copes with the fact the hero of the piece is little more than a jealous schemer.

The supporting cast are quite peripheral and weak here; existing more as additional thorns in Rob's side. His foulmouthed, 33-year-old gym teacher brother Rich (Nigel Harman) is more handsome and has no problem pulling 18-year-old girls, his best-friend Paul (Steve John Shepherd) is a trendy photographer of scantily-clad women, and I assume his sister Rebecca (Ingrid Oliver) is happy with her lot in life –- although the presence of a permanently breast-feeding baby, but no sign of the father, perhaps hints that she's been similarly unlucky-in-love?

Overall, this was a confident and entertaining start, despite a few slips. Mays gave a winning performances, Duncan James proves he's a good sport by affectionately mocking his cheesy pop-star persona, and you can't argue with the decision to cast Susie Amy (Footballer's Wives) as a fantasy-girl type – although it's a stretch to believe Rob would stand a chance with her, or indeed, with someone who would go on to be engaged to Duncan from Blue.

It got less appealing and amusing as time ticked on, but if future episodes can make Rob's mishaps more creative and plausible, and give the supporting characters something worthwhile to do (they're stuck as Rob's audience or sounding-boards here), then Plus One will be worth making a date for every week.


9 January 2009
Channel 4, 10pm

Writers: Tim Allsop & Stewart Williams
Director: Sarah O'Gorman

Cast: Daniel Mays (Rob Black), Duncan (Duncan James), Miranda Raison (Linsey), Ingrid Oliver (Rebecca Black), Nigel Harman (Rich Black), Steve John Shepherd (Paul), Ruth Bradley (Laura) & Susie Amy (Nicola Dare)

COMEDY SHOWCASE: Plus One

Writers: Tim Allsop & Stewart Williams
Director: Simon Delaney

Cast: Rory Kinnear (Rob Black), Duncan James (Himself), Miranda Raison (Linsey), Nigel Harman (Rich Black), Steve John Shepherd (Paul), Ingrid Oliver (Rebecca Black), Ruth Bradley (Laura), Laura Haddock (Nicky) & Gemma Atkinson (Herself)

When his ex-girlfriend gets engaged to celebrity hunk Duncan James, Rob is invited to their wedding and decides to upstage his ex by ensuring his "plus one" is a gorgeous babe...

Unfortunately sold on the back of the sitcom debut of popstar Duncan James (formerly of Blue fame), Plus One was a pleasant surprise. Not only for the surprisingly decent turn from James -- who was natural on-screen, albeit playing himself -- but for becoming a decent comedy in the Farrelly Brothers tradition.

Rory Kinnear (son of the late Roy Kinnear), takes the lead as likable slacker Rob Black, whose ex-girlfriend Linsey (Spooks' Miranda Raison) has moved onto the aforementioned pop hunk. Unsurprisingly, Rob's self-esteem is at a low ebb, but when he's invited to their wedding, Rob decides to get revenge on his ex by upstaging her with a gorgeous "plus one" on his arm...

Rob's ideal plus one is Gemma Atkinson (another celeb cameo), but he doesn't hold out much hope in attracting someone of that calibre. However, work colleague Laura (Ruth Bradley) sets him up with a sexy TV model called Nicky (Laura Haddock). After going on a date, Rob is amazed to find Nicky seems to genuinely like him -- so is his plan robust enough for him to make a move on her...?

There's a lot to enjoy in Plus One, which begins a little shakily (not helped by the apparent stunt casting of Duncan James), but quickly settles down once Rob is hooked up with Nicky. A few characters exist purely to stretch the material (Rob's friend Paul), or act as pay-off for a final joke (Rob's brother Rich), but neither 't slow the pace.

Above all, Rory Kinnear's performance was strong, and his character Rob made a plausible loser in the Seth Rogen mould. It's also easy to find emotional connection with a character who's constantly being slapped around the face by life, and generally given a bad lot. Any bloke would be annoyed if their girlfriend left them for a celebrity pin-up, so the episode's driving force connected well.

You find yourself really hoping Rob will succeed with the lovely Nicky, so when an unfortunate accident in a toilet with a slice of chili occurs, you'll be cringing with embarrassment for him. I didn't quite believe the whole chili incident -- it being so improbable, really -- but the end result certainly made me squirm as intended.

Overall, Plus One was a surprisingly good episode of the Comedy Showcase season, which has yet to fall flat on its face. Rory Kinnear is a refreshingly normal lead, there's good support from the cast (particularly Laura Haddock as Nicky), the celebrity cameos work better than expected, while the plot itself builds nicely. The only thing I wasn't sold on were the slightly distracting characters, like Nigel Harman's handsome brother and Steve John Shepherd's oddball best-mate -- although the latter's perverted time-travel chat was amusing.

Ultimately, any comedy that ends with a "bum rape" gag must be worth a look...


19 October 2007
Channel 4, 10.30 pm