Reunited (TV pilot)

Reunited is a British television pilot written by Mike Bullen and directed by Simon Delaney. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 30 June 2010.

Reunited
Intertitle
GenreComedy-drama
Created byMike Bullen
David Maher
David Taylor
Written byMike Bullen
Directed bySimon Delaney
StarringZoë Tapper
Joseph Millson
Emma Stansfield
Ed Byrne
Navin Chowdhry
Jemima Rooper
Michelle Terry
Sarah-Jane Potts
Ella Choudhury
Yasmine Hulf
Composer(s)Mark Russell
Country of originUnited Kingdom
No. of episodes1
Production
Executive producer(s)Mike Bullen
Pete Thornton
Producer(s)Rosemary McGowan
CinematographyGavin Finney
Running time60 minutes
Production company(s)BBC Productions
Release
Original networkBBC One
Original release30 June 2010 (2010-06-30)

Plot

Eight years after sharing a flat together while students at university, six friends reunite.[1]

Production

Reunited is the first screenplay written by Mike Bullen for the BBC since his comedy-drama Sunburn (1999–2000). The idea came to him after an Australian friend of his met up with a group of people with whom he had shared a house.[2] Although Bullen had emigrated to Australia in 2002, he returned to the UK for the five months Reunited was in production, as he had only faxed in the scripts for his last British series, All About George.[3] Reunited was filmed on location in London in March 2010. Some scenes were filmed at Sam's Bar & Brasserie in Chiswick, London.[4]

Ed Byrne's character was originally called "Ed" but was changed to "Rob" after Byrne was concerned that viewers would attribute "Ed"'s negative characteristics to him in real life.[5]

Reception

Reunited was first broadcast on BBC One on 30 June 2010. Overnight ratings data gave an average of 3.3 million viewers, with a 15.3% audience share during its timeslot; it was beaten by a repeat of Midsomer Murders on ITV.[6]

The programme was selected as "Pick of the Day" in The Sunday Times, where critic John Dugdale wrote, "There's been so much bittersweet fiction since [Mike Bullen's Cold Feet debuted in 1997], and as this is about pals in their thirties, novelty is impossible and clichés inevitable. This opener has the familiar genre failing, too, of being neither comic nor involvingly dramatic — it is hard to care who Hannah ends up with, and a glimpse of Byrne's chest provides the funniest moment. Still, the cast is terrific, and Bullen hasn't lost his gift for memorable individual scenes."[7] The Liverpool Echo also selected as a highlight for Wednesday evening.[8] The Daily Mail's Nigel Andrew selected it as a "pick of the day", but rated it only two out of five star; he wrote, "A familiar scenario [...] and it isn't half as smart or funny as it thinks it is. A series looks doubtful."[9] In a positive preview, The Guardian's John Robinson compared it to the This Life reunion episode This Life +10.[10] The Daily Telegraph's Ceri Radford called it "a grown-up Coupling" and concluded her preview by writing, "It's a funny, touching portrayal of a group of friends who are old enough to be disappointed with life but young enough to try fixing things with tequila slammers and casual sex."[11]

The BBC did not commission a series, though Ed Byrne has discussed other projects with Mike Bullen.[12]

This has not been released on DVD yet.

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References
  1. BBC Press Office (17 June 2010). "Network TV BBC Week 26: Wednesday 30 June 2010". Press release. Retrieved 27 June 2010.
  2. Bullen, Mike (30 June 2010). "Writing Reunited was an easy job, but just don't ask Ed Byrne to play squash". BBC TV blog. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
  3. Billen, Andrew (28 June 2010). "Warming up for a new Cold Feet". The Times (Times Newspapers): p. 49.
  4. Staff (30 June 2010). "House Mates Reunited At Sam's". ChiswickW4.com. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
  5. Byrne, Ed. Television interview with Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby. This Morning. ITV. 29 June 2010.
  6. Laughlin, Andrew (1 July 2010). "Comedy drama 'Reunited' averages 3.3m". Digital Spy. Retrieved 1 July 2010.
  7. Dugdale, John (27 June 2010). "Critics' choice". The Sunday Times (Times Newspapers): p. 56 (Culture supplement).
  8. Shennan, Paddy (26 June 2010). "TV Week Ahead: June 26". Liverpool Echo (Trinity Mirror North West & North Wales): p. 10.
  9. Andrew, Nigel (26 June 2010). "Pick of the Day: Wednesday". Daily Mail (Associated Newspapers): p. 22 (Weekend supplement).
  10. Robinson, John (26 June 2010). "Wednesday 30: Pick of the Day". The Guardian (Guardian News & Media): p. 81 (The Guide supplement).
  11. Radford, Ceri (26 June 2010). "What to watch". The Daily Telegraph (Telegraph Media Group): p. 49 (Review supplement).
  12. Laws, Roz (20 February 2011). "Ed Byrne talks about expensive whisky and dad dancing". Sunday Mercury.
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