Married Single Other
Encyclopedia
Married Single Other is a British television drama created and written by Peter Souter. The series is based on the lives of group of people who are either married, single or "other", other being defined as in a relationship. It began airing on Monday 22 February 2010 at on ITV1
and UTV
. The series was filmed on location in various areas of Leeds
, while Left Bank Pictures
television studios annexed to The Leeds Studios
were used for interior shooting.
couples living in suburban Leeds
. Two of the couples have adolescent children, although there is less focus on them than on their parents. While all three couples appear throughout, episodes generally centre mostly on one of the couples. The series has been compared to an earlier ITV comedy-drama, Cold Feet
(1997–2003).
Supporting characters
locations such as Chapel Allerton
, Kirkstall
and Yeadon
, instead using areas such as Little London
, Lincoln Green
, Sherburn-in-Elmet
and Burmantofts
. Extensive parts of the city centre are used, in particular Clarence Dock
. Clint is seen climbing to Abbey's flat which is located above the river terrace of Aire Bar on Call Lane. Allerton High School
in Alwoodley
is used throughout the series. Eddie and Lillie were shown to get married at Leeds Civic Hall
and then had the wedding reception in a marquee on Blenheim Square, Little London. Their house and Clint's flat are in Hanover Square, Burley
. Shots of Leeds are used in between scenes.
The theme tune to this programme is "Find My Way Back Home" by Priscilla Ahn
. The programme also relies on leitmotif
s through the episodes, using music by bands such as The Cure
, Radiohead
and Goldfrapp
. Babs performs The Housemartins
' Caravan of Love
at Eddie and Lillie's wedding.
Cast member Amanda Abbington announced on Facebook
in May 2010 that the series was not being renewed by ITV. ITV formally confirmed the series' cancellation. Executive producer Andy Harries told The Guardian
"We had an amazing cast, a devoted following and some strong ideas for series two. It's a horrible feeling to be dumped, we thought there was still life in the relationship, but we're definitely 'other' now." He told the 2010 Edinburgh International Television Festival
, "It averaged 4.65 million across the series, the best for an ITV drama to be decommissioned in the last four years [...] The audience didn't stay. I suppose the stories weren't strong enough. There were some weaker episodes. It found its strength towards the end, I think a second series would have found its feet and grown its audience. ITV disagreed."
ITV1
ITV1 is a generic brand that is used by twelve franchises of the British ITV Network in the English regions, Wales, southern Scotland , the Isle of Man and the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey. The ITV1 brand was introduced by Carlton and Granada in 2001, alongside the regional identities of their...
and UTV
UTV
UTV is a television channel based in the UK region of Northern Ireland. The channel is the Channel 3 or Independent Television licensee for Northern Ireland and is operated by UTV Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of UTV Media.- Terrestrial :* Analogue: Normally tuned to 3 * Freeview : 3...
. The series was filmed on location in various areas of Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
, while Left Bank Pictures
Left Bank Pictures
Left Bank Pictures is an English film and television production company. It was formed in 2007 by Andy Harries, formerly controller of drama, comedy and film at Granada Productions, and Francis Hopkinson and Marigo Kehoe...
television studios annexed to The Leeds Studios
The Leeds Studios
The Leeds Studios also known as the Yorkshire Television Studios or YTV Studios is a television production complex on Kirkstall Road in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England...
were used for interior shooting.
Premise
The series revolves around three lower middle classLower middle class
In developed nations across the world, the lower middle class is a sub-division of the greater middle class. Universally the term refers to the group of middle class households or individuals who have not attained the status of the upper middle class associated with the higher realms of the middle...
couples living in suburban Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
. Two of the couples have adolescent children, although there is less focus on them than on their parents. While all three couples appear throughout, episodes generally centre mostly on one of the couples. The series has been compared to an earlier ITV comedy-drama, Cold Feet
Cold Feet
Cold Feet is a British comedy-drama television series produced by Granada Television for the ITV network. The series was created and principally written by Mike Bullen as a follow-up to his award-winning 1997 Comedy Premiere of the same name. The storyline follows three couples experiencing the...
(1997–2003).
Characters
Main characters- Dickie and Babs- "Married". Dickie (Dean Lennox KellyDean Lennox KellyDean Lennox Kelly is an English actor, He is the brother of actor Craig Kelly.Dean is best known for his role as Kev Ball in Channel 4’s Shameless.-Career:...
) who is self employed and making income from his ideas, is married to unemployed child psychologist Babs (Amanda AbbingtonAmanda AbbingtonAmanda Abbington is an English actress and comedienne who has appeared on both television and stage. She is best known for her roles in the 2005 comedy sketch show Man Stroke Woman and the 2007–2008 comedy After You've Gone with Nicholas Lyndhurst...
). Babs is unhappy in her marriage. Babs has one child from her ex, who left her for another woman and whom she now refers to as "the sperm donor". Clint and Dickie are brothers. - Clint and Abbey- "Single". Clint (Ralf LittleRalf LittleRalf Alistair J. B. Little is an English actor, writer and semi-professional footballer, working mainly in television comedy. He is best known for playing Antony Royle in The Royle Family and Jonny Keogh in the first six series of Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps.-Early life and work...
) has never slept with the same girl twice, until he meets model Abbey (Miranda RaisonMiranda Raison-Early life:Born in Burnham Thorpe, Norfolk, her father Nick Raison is a jazz pianist and artist, while her mother Caroline read the news for Anglia Television. She has two brothers and two sisters: Ed , Rosie, Sam and May. Her parents divorced when she was six years old, and her father remarried...
). He falls in love with Abbey, who as yet doesn't feel the same. Clint and Abbey are of the three the upwardly mobile couple. - Lillie and Eddie- "Other". Lillie (Lucy DavisLucy DavisLucy Clare Davis is an English actress. She is best known for playing the character Dawn Tinsley in the BBC comedy The Office and as Dianne in the horror-comedy movie Shaun of the Dead.-Career:...
), a domestic violence charity worker, has been in a long term relationship with paramedic Eddie (Shaun DooleyShaun DooleyShaun Dooley is a British actor who regularly appears on television and in British Films.-Biography:Shaun Dooley was born in Barnsley, South Yorkshire. He studied at the Arden School of Theatre in Manchester between 1992 and 1995....
). Eddie has asked for 15 years on Lillie's birthday to get married but she has not yet accepted. In the first episode, he asks her and she once again declines. They have two sons, Harry and Joe.
Supporting characters
- Harry- Harry (Tom Kane) is the eldest son of Eddie and Lillie and is aged 16. Harry is a somewhat awkward character who is smitten by Gina.
- Joe- Joe (Jack ScanlonJack ScanlonJack Scanlon is an English child actor who played one of the lead roles in the Holocaust film The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas ....
) is the younger son of Eddie and Lillie and is aged 11. Joe is extremely clever and often displays his knowledge of various subjects, leading him to be bullied at school. Joe also displays some autistic tendencies such as an obsession with numbers, particularly piPi' is a mathematical constant that is the ratio of any circle's circumference to its diameter. is approximately equal to 3.14. Many formulae in mathematics, science, and engineering involve , which makes it one of the most important mathematical constants...
. - Gina- Gina (Leila Mimmack) is the daughter of Babs and is aged 15. Unlike Harry, Gina is confident and although she is friends with Harry, she sees herself as a 'cut above' and doesn't return his romantic interest. The identity of Gina's father is never truly revealed.
- Flo- Flo (Gina YashereGina YashereGina Obedapo Yashere is a British comedian of Nigerian descent.-Early life:Yashere was born in Bethnal Green, London, England. Her mother was an immigrant from Nigeria...
) is a colleague of Eddie's who is constantly frustrated by false emergency calls. She acts as a source of advice for Eddie, however is often irritated by his worrying about his "white middle-class" personal problems. - Mr Connolly- (Neil BellNeil Bell (actor)Neil Bell is a British actor, mainly on UK TV and in occasional films.Bell studied drama at Oldham College and has played character roles in such TV series as Buried, Shameless, Murphy's Law, Ideal, City Lights, The Bill and Casualty, and the films 24 Hour Party People and Dead Man's Shoes...
) After breaching the terms of his restraining order and attempting to meet his wife at the women's refuge, Mr Connolly is confronted by Lillie. After attacking Lillie, Mr Connolly feigns injury and attempts to have her sacked for assaulting him. - Eros- Eros (Edward Franklin) is a 17 year old petty criminal, whom Gina goes to great lengths to defend, after being caught trying to steal presents from Eddie and Lillie's wedding, Gina relents and has no further contact with him.
- Fabiana- Fabiana (Oona ChaplinOona Castilla ChaplinOona Castilla Chaplin is a Spanish actress, flamenco dancer, and ballerina. She is also the granddaughter of Charlie Chaplin, and uses the stage name Oona Chaplin.- Personal life :...
) is a Brazilian cage dancer, who Clint seduces before changing his mind and rejecting her. In a vengeful act, Fabiana works her way into the circle of friends and seduces Clint's brother, Dickie and moves into his caravan. After Abbey finds out she leaves Clint.
Production
The series has been filmed around several areas of Leeds, generally breaking away from using traditional Yorkshire TelevisionYorkshire Television
Yorkshire Television, now officially known as ITV Yorkshire and sometimes unofficially abbreviated to YTV, is a British television broadcaster and the contractor for the Yorkshire franchise area on the ITV network...
locations such as Chapel Allerton
Chapel Allerton
Chapel Allerton is an inner suburb of north-east Leeds, from the city centre, West Yorkshire, England. The Chapel Allerton electoral ward includes areas otherwise referred to as Chapeltown and Potternewton - the suburb is generally considered to be only the northern part of this...
, Kirkstall
Kirkstall
Kirkstall is a suburb of north-west Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, on the eastern side of the River Aire. To the west is Bramley, to the east is Headingley and to the north is West Park. Kirkstall is around from the city centre and is close to the University of Leeds and Leeds Metropolitan...
and Yeadon
Yeadon, West Yorkshire
Yeadon is a town within the City of Leeds metropolitan borough, in West Yorkshire, England. It is home to Leeds Bradford International Airport.-History:...
, instead using areas such as Little London
Little London, Leeds
Little London, along with its adjacent areas Lovell Park and Blenheim, is an area of 1960s high-rise and maisonette council housing in inner-city north Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, situated between the city centre and Sheepscar....
, Lincoln Green
Lincoln Green
Lincoln Green is an area of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The area is mainly residential with a small local shopping centre. The area also has public houses and a working men's club . Most housing in Lincoln Green is council owned high rise flats, these are in a significantly worse condition then...
, Sherburn-in-Elmet
Sherburn-in-Elmet
Sherburn-in-Elmet is a town and civil parish in the Selby district of North Yorkshire, England, situated close to Selby. It is one of only three places in the area to be explicitly associated with the ancient Celtic kingdom of Elmet via featuring the kingdom's title in its name, the others being...
and Burmantofts
Burmantofts
Burmantofts is an area of 1960s high-rise housing blocks in inner-city east Leeds, West Yorkshire, England adjacent to the city centre and St. James's Hospital. It is a racially diverse area, with sizable Afro-Caribbean and Irish communities, but suffers the social problems typical of similar areas...
. Extensive parts of the city centre are used, in particular Clarence Dock
Clarence Dock (Leeds)
Clarence Dock is a shopping and leisure destination in central Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It also hosts a large residential population in waterside apartments, as well as a significant office presence....
. Clint is seen climbing to Abbey's flat which is located above the river terrace of Aire Bar on Call Lane. Allerton High School
Allerton High School
Allerton High School Business and Enterprise is an 11-19 comprehensive in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England specialising in Business and Enterprise.-Admissions:...
in Alwoodley
Alwoodley
Alwoodley is a civil parish and suburb of Leeds in West Yorkshire, England. It is north of central Leeds. The name Alwoodley is said to be a corruption of 'Aethelwaldley', as it was originally known in the Middle Ages, meaning the woodland clearing , at Aethelwald's farm...
is used throughout the series. Eddie and Lillie were shown to get married at Leeds Civic Hall
Leeds Civic Hall
Leeds Civic Hall is a civic building housing Leeds City Council, located in Millennium Square, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The design was the result of a competition held in 1926, which was won by Vincent Harris...
and then had the wedding reception in a marquee on Blenheim Square, Little London. Their house and Clint's flat are in Hanover Square, Burley
Burley, Leeds
Burley is a suburb of north-west Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, characterised by the red brick terraced housing, much of which was built in the period 1899 - 1903 and green spaces. Sometimes called 'The Cardigan Triangle , it stretches north from the main Kirkstall Road, towards Hyde Park and...
. Shots of Leeds are used in between scenes.
The theme tune to this programme is "Find My Way Back Home" by Priscilla Ahn
Priscilla Ahn
Priscilla Ahn is an American singer-songwriter.-Early life and education:Ahn was born Priscilla Natalie Hartranft in Fort Stewart, Georgia to Kay and Harry Hartranft and spent her childhood living in the USA and South Korea. She lived in Berks County, Pennsylvania for several years and attended...
. The programme also relies on leitmotif
Leitmotif
A leitmotif , sometimes written leit-motif, is a musical term , referring to a recurring theme, associated with a particular person, place, or idea. It is closely related to the musical idea of idée fixe...
s through the episodes, using music by bands such as The Cure
The Cure
The Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976. The band has experienced several line-up changes, with frontman, vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member...
, Radiohead
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...
and Goldfrapp
Goldfrapp
Goldfrapp are an English electronic music duo, formed in 1999 in London, England, that consists of Alison Goldfrapp and Will Gregory ....
. Babs performs The Housemartins
The Housemartins
The Housemartins were an English indie pop band that was active in the 1980s. Many of the Housemartins' lyrics were a mixture of Marxist politics and Christianity, reflecting singer Paul Heaton's beliefs at the time .-Formation:The band was formed in late 1983 by Paul Heaton and...
' Caravan of Love
Caravan of Love
"Caravan of Love" is a 1985 R&B hit originally recorded by Isley-Jasper-Isley, the second half of The Isley Brothers' 3 + 3 lineup of the 1970s.-Isley-Jasper-Isley version:...
at Eddie and Lillie's wedding.
Cast member Amanda Abbington announced on Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
in May 2010 that the series was not being renewed by ITV. ITV formally confirmed the series' cancellation. Executive producer Andy Harries told The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
"We had an amazing cast, a devoted following and some strong ideas for series two. It's a horrible feeling to be dumped, we thought there was still life in the relationship, but we're definitely 'other' now." He told the 2010 Edinburgh International Television Festival
Edinburgh International Television Festival
The Edinburgh International Television Festival, founded in 1976, is held annually over the British August bank holiday weekend at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre....
, "It averaged 4.65 million across the series, the best for an ITV drama to be decommissioned in the last four years [...] The audience didn't stay. I suppose the stories weren't strong enough. There were some weaker episodes. It found its strength towards the end, I think a second series would have found its feet and grown its audience. ITV disagreed."
Episodes
| # | Title | |Director | Cold Feet Cold Feet Cold Feet is a British comedy-drama television series produced by Granada Television for the ITV network. The series was created and principally written by Mike Bullen as a follow-up to his award-winning 1997 Comedy Premiere of the same name. The storyline follows three couples experiencing the... , given the similarly aged cast, Northern middle-class setting and similar themes. The series has the same director and producer as Cold Feet, Declan Lowney Declan Lowney Declan Lowney is an Irish television and film director. After directing a short film in 1980, Lowney worked for Radio Telefís Éireann, and directed musical events such as the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest, and The Velvet Underground's Live MCMXCIII... and Andy Harries Andy Harries Andrew D. M. Harries is a British television and film producer. After graduating from Hull University in the 1970s, Harries began his television career on the Granada Television current affairs series World in Action, before moving on to freelance work... respectively. Tim Dowling from The Guardian The Guardian The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format... wrote "Yes, it's predictable. Yes, it's a lot like Cold Feet. And Married Single Other is also a pleasure to watch". Dowling drew similarities from the series compared with Cold Feet such as the "a northern location, a large cast of inter-connected characters, implausibly wry dialogue, dangerous levels of sentimentality, some well-signposted cliches and Ralf Little." On the Box also likened it to Cold Feet, claiming "ITV must be furiously trying to work out how to replicate the success of Cold Feet, the influential comedy drama about the turbulent relationships of a handful of 30-somethings". Stephen Armstrong from The Times The Times The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International... called the programme "a strangely rare television gem - a genuinely good romcom with no bonnets in it." Mike Ward of the Daily Star was impressed by the opening episode, commenting: "It's high time we had a decent comedy-drama to get our teeth into, and this new Monday night six-parter looks like being just the job." Bingo Hideout hailed it as the "best drama / light comedy series for some time", adding: "If you think of Friends but with more soul, Eastenders with loveable characters and less screaming, Doc Martin with a little less stuffed shirt, Three Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps with a little more grown up humour – this is witty, pithy, emotionally draining and heart breaking in equal measure." The Leicester Mercury Leicester Mercury The Leicester Mercury is a British regional newspaper, owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust, for the city of Leicester and the counties of Leicestershire and Rutland... gave a more negative review stating "Married Single Other (ITV1, 9pm) teetered precariously on the brink of schmaltz for nearly an hour, before finally giving up and plunging headlong into lines which even Richard Curtis would think were OTT." Brian Viner in The Independent thought it 'lacks almost all of Cold Feet's many virtue... it's more of a wilting carnation than a golden rose.' And noted that 'you can be fairly sure that the writer has spent too long studying the life and works of Richard Curtis – either that or browsing in Clinton Cards' Unreality Primetime said of the series "It's not that it’s not good; it’s just not Cold Feet good – yet – so I think ITV shot itself in the foot by offering up that comparison." The series has been nominated in the Best Drama/Entertainment category at the 2010 Royal Television Society Yorkshire Awards Royal Television Society The Royal Television Society is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present and future. It is the oldest television society in the world... . InternationalIn Australia, Network TenNetwork Ten Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country... is scheduled to air the series on 22 August 2010. In  South Africa, BBC Entertainment showed the series in August 2010.In  Belgium, éénEEN EEN may refer to:* Eastern Educational Television Network, the original name for American Public Television.* Elemental Energy, a Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game booster pack.* Emerald Energy, an oil company... is scheduled to air the series on 31 August 2010. In  Estonia, Eesti TelevisioonEesti Televisioon Eesti Televisioon is the national public television station of Estonia. It made its first broadcast on 19 July 1955.The bulk of ETV's funding comes from government grant-in-aid, around 15% of which is in turn funded by the fees paid by Estonian commercial broadcasters in return for their... started showing the series on 30 November 2010. In  Israel, Hot3 started showing the series on April 2011.In  Portugal, the show premiered on May 2010 on FOX NextFox Next FOX:Next was a television channel operated by Fox International Channels in Portugal. Its programming was basically focused on television series and movies. The channel was launched in Portugal on April 14, 2008, as part of the meo package line-up... . FOX Life Fox Life Fox Life is a television network, launched by the Fox Broadcasting Company, which airs across Latin America, Europe and Japan . Its basic programming include numerous television series, sitcoms and movies, among others, which includes some original programming in certain regions... and Fox Life HD Fox Life HD Fox Life HD is the version of the Fox Life broadcasting only in high definition, owned by Fox Broadcasting Company and Fox International Channels Italy... started broadcasting the show on 7 March 2011. In  Sweden, the show premiered in May 2011 on Sveriges TelevisionSveriges Television Sveriges Television AB , Sweden's Television, is a national television broadcaster based in Sweden, funded by a compulsory fee to be paid by all television owners... . DVD releaseMarried Single Other was released on DVD and Blu-ray by 2entertain on 5 April 2010.The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
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