Lucy Sullivan Is Getting Married
Encyclopedia
Lucy Sullivan Is Getting Married is an international best selling
1996 novel
by Irish author, Marian Keyes
. It chronicles the life of Lucy Sullivan, a 26-year-old perpetually broke, unlucky-in-love office worker from London
, who has a penchant for bad boys, a needy, alcoholic and flawed father, a dead-end job and exasperating flat-mates, dippy Charlotte and bossy Karen. The book is written in the first person and is described by Keyes as a "sideways" sequel to her first novel Watermelon. The novel was adapted into a television series in 1999. It aired on the ITV
network, but struggled with numerous scheduling changes. The series has aired internationally and has been released on DVD.
for the LWT network. It originally aired on ITV
in November 1999. It was described as a "saga about broken hearts and terrifyingly unsuitable boyfriends" with "plenty of workplace-mileage to be extracted from Lucy's job at Nudawn Supplies". Sam Loggin played Lucy. Her flatmates, Charlotte, a promiscuous dippy blonde, and Karen, a bossy Scottish communal financer, were played by Letitia Dean
and Zoë Eeles respectively. Other characters included Lucy's three work colleagues: over-weight Meredia (Debbie Chazen
), loud-mouthed Megan (Sara Stockbridge
), and middle-class Hetty (Gwyneth Strong
). The group of girls party their way around London looking for would-be husbands or boyfriends. Gerard Butler
starred as Lucy's unreliable lover, Gus.
Despite this, the show drew complaints from viewers for featuring a sex scene and bad language. Complaints from viewers about the content of various editions of the series were upheld in part by the Independent Television Commission
(ITC) in 2001. Nine complained of the inclusion of a lesbian storyline and kiss, while others believed that the sexual content, swearing and tasteless material were inappropriate for the time of transmission. In its report, the ITC said it had "serious concerns about the scheduling of a series which concentrated on the sexual relationships of a group of young adults, so early in the evening". A Standards Panel was concerned by the general nature and tone of the content, in particular the sexual themes in one episode, which it "considered were likely to have exceeded the expectations of the majority of the audience at a time when a large number of children would be available to watch it". It was concluded that certain episodes were, therefore, in breach of the Programme Code.
According to LWT, the series also failed to perform well in the earlier slot and was eventually withdrawn. It has since been repeated on ITV in a late night time slot at various times.
Bestseller
A bestseller is a book that is identified as extremely popular by its inclusion on lists of currently top selling titles that are based on publishing industry and book trade figures and published by newspapers, magazines, or bookstore chains. Some lists are broken down into classifications and...
1996 novel
1996 in literature
The year 1996 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Harper Lee's novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, is removed from an advanced placement English reading list in Lindale, Texas because it "conflicted with the values of the community."* In the United Kingdom, the first...
by Irish author, Marian Keyes
Marian Keyes
Marian Keyes is an Irish Book Awards-winner Irish novelist and non-fiction writer, best known for her work in women's literature. She has sold over more 22 million copies worldwide and been translated into 32 languages...
. It chronicles the life of Lucy Sullivan, a 26-year-old perpetually broke, unlucky-in-love office worker from London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, who has a penchant for bad boys, a needy, alcoholic and flawed father, a dead-end job and exasperating flat-mates, dippy Charlotte and bossy Karen. The book is written in the first person and is described by Keyes as a "sideways" sequel to her first novel Watermelon. The novel was adapted into a television series in 1999. It aired on the ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
network, but struggled with numerous scheduling changes. The series has aired internationally and has been released on DVD.
Plot
Lucy visits a fortune teller with her three mis-matched friends, and a marriage is predicted in her future. When the fortune-teller's prophecies for her friends come true, Lucy begins to suspect that she will soon be marrying. Lucy spends the following 12 months looking for Mr Right. Various eligible bachelors are introduced, among them Gus, Lucy's unreliable lover; Daniel, her oldest friend; Chuck, a handsome American; and Adrian, the video shop man. This is followed by a series of disastrous dates, drunken nights out, confessions and revelations. Author Keyes has said, "I'm very fond of that book and I think I have the most affection for Lucy Sullivan as a character. There's a lot of me in there [...] I wanted to write about a single girl in London who goes out with eejit after eejit, you know, because that was really the life I had led, and there was this strange culture of singleness I encountered and I found this very funny. Lucy's depressive, but she has a sense of humour, and that's why I like her."Reception
The success of the novel led to publishing deals of more than £600,000, one of the most lucrative ever achieved by an unestablished writer. Between Britain and Ireland Lucy Sullivan Is Getting Married has sold over 250,000 copies; In Ireland, the book went straight to number one and stayed there for nine weeks.TV adaptation
The novel was adapted into an 8 hour, sixteen part, television drama series by Carnival FilmsCarnival Films
Carnival Films is a British television production company, founded by Brian Eastman in 1978 as Picture Partnership Productions Limited and run by Gareth Neame since 2005. The company swiftly built up a strong reputation as an independent production company of theatre, film and television drama...
for the LWT network. It originally aired on ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
in November 1999. It was described as a "saga about broken hearts and terrifyingly unsuitable boyfriends" with "plenty of workplace-mileage to be extracted from Lucy's job at Nudawn Supplies". Sam Loggin played Lucy. Her flatmates, Charlotte, a promiscuous dippy blonde, and Karen, a bossy Scottish communal financer, were played by Letitia Dean
Letitia Dean
Letitia Dean is an English actress and singer. She is best known for her role as Sharon Watts in the popular BBC soap opera EastEnders, who was one of the serial's original characters. Dean was part of the original cast in 1985 and remained in the series until 1995...
and Zoë Eeles respectively. Other characters included Lucy's three work colleagues: over-weight Meredia (Debbie Chazen
Debbie Chazen
Debbie Chazen is an English actress. She is most famous for playing the roles of Annie in the BBC comedy The Smoking Room, Big Claire in Mine All Mine and various roles in the BBC sketch show Tittybangbang....
), loud-mouthed Megan (Sara Stockbridge
Sara Stockbridge
Sara Stockbridge is an English model and actress who achieved a certain level of high fashion notoriety in the mid to late 1980s as the muse of designer Vivenne Westwood...
), and middle-class Hetty (Gwyneth Strong
Gwyneth Strong
Gwyneth Strong is an English actress. She is probably best known for her role in the popular BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses as Cassandra, who was married to Del Boy's brother Rodney.-Career:...
). The group of girls party their way around London looking for would-be husbands or boyfriends. Gerard Butler
Gerard Butler
Gerard James Butler is a Scottish actor who has appeared on film, stage, and television. A trained lawyer, Butler turned to acting in the mid-1990s with small roles in productions such as the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies , which he followed with steady work on television, most notably in...
starred as Lucy's unreliable lover, Gus.
Scheduling
The series was launched with four episodes in its first week at 10:30pm on ITV, following which it aired once weekly. However, it failed to attract the young adult audience at which it was aimed, so the series was withdrawn (mid series, episode 9) from that timeslot in December 1999. The programme was subsequently aired a year later between November 2000 and January 2001, in the early evening, pre-watershed time slot at 17:05. LWT said, "the underlying tone and structure of the series was not dissimilar to that of the tea-time soaps and, given the wider audience available at that time, it was substantially edited and revoiced to make it suitable for the slot."Despite this, the show drew complaints from viewers for featuring a sex scene and bad language. Complaints from viewers about the content of various editions of the series were upheld in part by the Independent Television Commission
Independent Television Commission
The Independent Television Commission licensed and regulated commercial television services in the United Kingdom between 1 January 1991 and 28 December 2003....
(ITC) in 2001. Nine complained of the inclusion of a lesbian storyline and kiss, while others believed that the sexual content, swearing and tasteless material were inappropriate for the time of transmission. In its report, the ITC said it had "serious concerns about the scheduling of a series which concentrated on the sexual relationships of a group of young adults, so early in the evening". A Standards Panel was concerned by the general nature and tone of the content, in particular the sexual themes in one episode, which it "considered were likely to have exceeded the expectations of the majority of the audience at a time when a large number of children would be available to watch it". It was concluded that certain episodes were, therefore, in breach of the Programme Code.
According to LWT, the series also failed to perform well in the earlier slot and was eventually withdrawn. It has since been repeated on ITV in a late night time slot at various times.
Cast
- Sam LogginSam LogginSam Loggin is an English actress born in Northamptonshire, UK. Her noteworthy performances include the roles of Lucy in Lucy Sullivan Is Getting Married and Anna in Girls in Love.- Filmography :- References :...
as Lucy Sullivan - Letitia DeanLetitia DeanLetitia Dean is an English actress and singer. She is best known for her role as Sharon Watts in the popular BBC soap opera EastEnders, who was one of the serial's original characters. Dean was part of the original cast in 1985 and remained in the series until 1995...
as Charlotte - Zoë Eeles as Karen
- Gwyneth StrongGwyneth StrongGwyneth Strong is an English actress. She is probably best known for her role in the popular BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses as Cassandra, who was married to Del Boy's brother Rodney.-Career:...
as Hetty - Debbie ChazenDebbie ChazenDebbie Chazen is an English actress. She is most famous for playing the roles of Annie in the BBC comedy The Smoking Room, Big Claire in Mine All Mine and various roles in the BBC sketch show Tittybangbang....
as Meredia - Sara StockbridgeSara StockbridgeSara Stockbridge is an English model and actress who achieved a certain level of high fashion notoriety in the mid to late 1980s as the muse of designer Vivenne Westwood...
as Megan - Gerard ButlerGerard ButlerGerard James Butler is a Scottish actor who has appeared on film, stage, and television. A trained lawyer, Butler turned to acting in the mid-1990s with small roles in productions such as the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies , which he followed with steady work on television, most notably in...
as Gus - Cameron Jack as George
- Niall BuggyNiall BuggyNiall Buggy is an Irish actor who has worked extensively on the stage and screen in Ireland, the UK and the US. Some of his more well known roles include the lead in Brian Friel's, Uncle Vanya, for which he won an Irish Theatre Award and an Olivier Award for Dead Funny...
as Mr. Sullivan - Frances TomeltyFrances TomeltyFrances Tomelty is a Northern Irish actress and the first wife of Sting. She is the daughter of Belfast actor Joseph Tomelty ....
as Mrs. Sullivan - Simon GreenallSimon GreenallSimon Greenall is a British actor, writer and voice artist from Longtown in Cumbria. He has appeared in a wide variety of roles in television, film, radio and the theatre, and is probably best known for his role as Michael in the TV series I'm Alan Partridge and as the voice of headmaster Iqbal in...
as Richard - James HillierJames Hillier (actor)James Hillier, is an English actor. In recent years he has played Sergeant Christian Young on the BBC police drama, HolbyBlue, and Damian, Roxy Mitchell's fiancé in BBC1 Soap Opera EastEnders.-Early life:...
as Steve - Pascal LangdalePascal LangdalePascal Langdale is an English actor, who has played supporting roles in a number of television dramas since 1999. Pascal Langdale also lent his voice and likeness to the critically acclaimed video game Heavy Rain, in which he played Ethan Mars...
as Daniel - David Simeon as Ken
- Michael TroughtonMichael TroughtonMichael Troughton is an English actor and teacher. He is the son of actor Patrick Troughton and the younger brother of David Troughton....
as Ivor - Shirley StelfoxShirley StelfoxShirley Stelfox is an English actress, who trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. She is best known as Edna Birch in British Soap Opera Emmerdale....
as Mrs. Nolan
Crew
- Writer: Colin BrakeColin BrakeColin Brake is an English television writer and script editor best known for his work for the BBC on programs such as Bugs and EastEnders. He has also written spin-offs from the BBC series Doctor Who...
- Directors: Brian GrantBrian Grant (director)Brian Grant is a British television director and producer, famed for directing episodes of British television series including As If, Hex, Doctor Who, Party Animals, Sinchronicity, Britannia High, Highlander, Queen of Swords, Clocking Off...
, Sarah Hellings - Producer: Stuart Doughty
- Executive producer: Brian EastmanBrian EastmanBrian Eastman is a producer of feature films , television drama , and stage productions...