Mail Online

State Of The Union

BBC2, 10pm, 10.10pm & 10.20pm

The first season of State Of The Union in 2019 was a charming example of small but perfectly formed TV. Rosamund Pike and Chris O’Dowd gave a masterclass in comedy drama over a series of ten-minute episodes as a couple meeting each week before their counselling session.

Now the format is repeated, again with director Stephen Frears and writer Nick Hornby, but this time we’re in the US and the leads are Brendan Gleeson and Patricia Clarkson (right).

With actors this good you can’t go wrong, and the nuances are delightfully observed, such as when Scott (Gleeson) reacts with horror to all the barista coffee options at the cafe where he and estranged wife Ellen (Clarkson) meet. There’s a distinct political undertone of culture wars here, but both performers endow their characters with an appealing empathy.

Tuesday

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2022-05-22T07:00:00.0000000Z

2022-05-22T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://mailonline.pressreader.com/article/283175792109536

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