Coupling (TV series)
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Coupling is a sitcom written by Steven Moffat that debuted on BBC2 in May 2000. It centres on the dating and sexual adventures and mishaps of six friends in their thirties, often depicting the three women and the three men each talking amongst themselves about the same course of events, but in entirely different terms. An American adaptation of the sitcom was briefly produced in 2003.
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The show debuted to less-than-impressive ratings, but its popularity soon increased and by the end of the third season the show was consistently achieving moderately-high ratings in the UK. The series began airing on PBS stations and on BBC America in the United States in late 2002 and quickly gained a devoted American fanbase as well. The show also airs in Australia via the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
It has been suggested that Coupling is what would result if one intended to make a series like Friends but with characters as dysfunctional as those in Seinfeld, and made the show focus pretty much entirely on sex.
Like Seinfeld, at least some of the characters in Coupling are based on real people. The producer and writer also happen to be the prototypes for the lead characters in the show, and share the same names.
The series has made use of techniques that are unconventional in sitcoms, such as split screen and non-linear narratives.
Coupling ran for four series on the BBC. The series was thought to have ended when American network NBC lured away the producer and writer to do an American adaptation, which NBC was reportedly hoping to position as a replacement for Friends. Fans of Coupling considered this a great shame, pointing out that past American adaptations of British sitcoms have tended to be less funny than the British originals. However, the adaptation of Coupling for an American audience was somewhat unique because it was largely a word-for-word duplicate of the British version, except that it was foreshortened to meet differences between advertising in the two countries (American sitcom episodes are generally minutes shorter than the equivalent "30 minute" British sitcoms). Many people in the viewing public were aware of this and did not appreciate the approach. Additionally, the series was attacked in the press long before the first episode aired because the show was more sexually graphic than typical American television. The US version was canned after airing a mere four episodes. It starred Rena Sofer and Sonya Walger, among others.
In 2004 the fourth season started screening on BBC Three, and on BBC2 a few months later. Richard Coyle (who plays Jeff) does not appear in the fourth season, and has been replaced by Richard Mylan (who plays a new character called Oliver).
The DVD releases of all four seasons are currently available in the UK and the US.
Main cast
- Steve Taylor – played by Jack Davenport
- Jane Christie – played by Gina Bellman
- Susan Walker – played by Sarah Alexander
- Sally Harper – played by Kate Isitt
- Patrick Maitland – played by Ben Miles
- Jeff Murdoch – played by Richard Coyle (Seasons 1-3)
- Oliver Morris – played by Richard Mylan (Season 4)
Crew
- Steven Moffat – Writer
- Sue Vertue – Producer
- Beryl Vertue – Executive Producer
Episodes
See also
External links
- Official site (http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/coupling/)
- Template:Imdb title
- British Sitcom Guide (http://www.sitcom.co.uk/coupling/)
- Phill.co.uk Comedy Guide (http://www.phill.co.uk/comedy/coupling/)
- BBC Comedy Guide (http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/guide/articles/c/coupling_66601000.shtml)de:Coupling