Things You Should Have Done

Last updated

Things You Should Have Done
Genre Sitcom
Created by Lucia Keskin
Written byLucia Keskin
Directed byJack Clough
Starring
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes6
Production
Running time22–28 minutes [1]
Production companyRoughcut Television [2]
Original release
Network BBC Three
Release29 February 2024 (2024-02-29) –
present

Things You Should Have Done is a British television sitcom created and written by Lucia Keskin, first broadcast on BBC Three and available on BBC iPlayer from 29 February 2024. It stars Keskin as a 'stay-at-home-daughter' who is left to fend for herself after her parents unexpectedly die.

Contents

Cast and characters

Main

Recurring

Episodes

Series 1 (2024)

No.TitleDirected byWritten byBBC Three airdate [2]
1"Learn to Drive"Jack CloughLucia KeskinFebruary 29, 2024 (2024-02-29)
After her parents die, Chi must fend for herself, beginning with driving lessons.
2"Get a Job"Jack CloughNathan FoadFebruary 29, 2024 (2024-02-29)
Chi begins looking for a job, but discovers a retirement home instead.
3"Learn to Cook"Jack CloughLucia KeskinMarch 7, 2024 (2024-03-07)
Chi celebrates Pancake Day with the family.
4"Pay Your Bills"Jack CloughLucia KeskinMarch 7, 2024 (2024-03-07)
After the lights in her house go out, Chi learns what bills are.
5"Do Something for Someone/Anyone"Jack CloughLucia KeskinMarch 14, 2024 (2024-03-14)
To help her Aunt Karen relax, Chi organises a camping holiday for the family.
6"Get Out of Kent"Jack CloughLucia KeskinMarch 14, 2024 (2024-03-14)
Chi looks to begin a new life by moving to Spain with Michelle.

Production

On 24 May 2023, it was announced that the BBC had commissioned a sitcom created by Lucia Keskin. [3] Filming for the series took place at several locations in Thanet, Kent, including Broadstairs, Margate, and Ramsgate. [4] [5] The series was inspired by the loss of Keskin's grandfather. [6]
In September 2024, it was announced that the BBC had renewed Things You Should Have Done for a second series. [7]

Reception

Critical reception

Things You Should Have Done has received mixed reviews from critics. Isobel Lewis, in a four-star review for iNews, praises Keskin's performance as "a deadpan masterpiece; it takes an incredibly sharp comic actor to play dim this well", and that "this is comedy built entirely around her tastes, and those craving a properly silly show will lap it up". [8]

In a review for Digital Spy , Jamie Windust writes that "Keskin's dark comedy perfectly cast and hilariously stupid" and "taps into comedic devices that twenty-something Brits love". [9] In comments for The Guardian , Coco Khan adds that the sitcom "showcases the best of Keskin's creative journey" and "her clear potential as a screenwriter with a knack for what audiences find funny and moving". [10]

In a three-star review for The Guardian, Lucy Mangan writes, "[the show] has a fine cast, some good moments [...] and plenty of unrealised potential on show", adding that "the death of Chi's parents is just a device – and a potentially wasted one at that: it doesn't make it in any way a show about grief, which might have provided more depth". She concluded that the show "stops feeling quite so much like a loose coalition of slightly underbaked ideas" when "Karen or Lucas ground it more firmly in reality – emotional or otherwise". [11] Lucy Sweet, writing for TheBig Issue, states the show "is still a work in progress" and "the plot seems pretty unhinged and might be in need of some intervention", but adds that "it's worth it to see Keskin flexing her deeply weird skills". [12]

During an episode of the podcast Off the Telly, co-hosted by Joanna Page and Natalie Cassidy, Page branded the series as "shit" and "boring", adding that she "shouldn't have bothered [to watch it]". In response, Keskin reacted to Page's review with a TikTok video, later stating on Twitter that "there is a way of [criticising] without making someone feel terrible about their work whilst being in the industry themselves". [13] Page was subsequently criticised for her comments. Page's Gavin & Stacey co-star Mathew Horne however described the series as "the best thing on television right now". [14]

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References

  1. ↑ "BBC iPlayer - Things You Should Have Done". BBC iPlayer . Retrieved 16 April 2024.
  2. 1 2 "Things You Should Have Done". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 16 April 2024.
  3. ↑ "Jon Petrie announces new and returning series featuring stellar talent and rising stars at the BBC's Comedy Festival in Cardiff". BBC. 24 May 2023. Retrieved 16 April 2024.
  4. ↑ Collar, Joe (4 March 2024). ""Hopefully people think there *is* acting" — Chi With a C on Things You Should Have Done". Filmhounds Magazine. Retrieved 16 April 2024.
  5. ↑ "'I failed my GCSEs at Kent grammar - but now I've got my own BBC show'". Kent Online. 29 February 2024. Retrieved 16 April 2024.
  6. ↑ Copson, Josie (29 February 2024). "'Losing my grandad inspired my BBC sitcom - I enjoy dark humour'". Metro . Retrieved 16 April 2024.
  7. ↑ "Hit BBC comedy Things You Should Have Done to return for second series". BBC . 7 September 2024. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
  8. ↑ Lewis, Isobel (29 February 2024). "Lucia Keskin's Things You Should Have Done is very stupid - and very funny". iNews . Retrieved 16 April 2024.
  9. ↑ "BBC's new show taps into One Day's nostalgia for twenty-something Brits". Digital Spy . 6 March 2024. Retrieved 16 April 2024.
  10. ↑ Khan, Coco (12 March 2024). "YouTube sensation Lucia Keskin: 'It's my worst nightmare to be called an influencer'". The Guardian . ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 16 April 2024.
  11. ↑ Mangan, Lucy (29 February 2024). "Things You Should Have Done review – there's tons of potential in this surreal comedy". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 16 April 2024.
  12. ↑ Sweet, Lucy (10 March 2024). "Things You Should Have Done is distracting me from the things I should be doing". The Big Issue . Retrieved 16 April 2024.
  13. ↑ Sarrubba, Stefania (28 March 2024). "Things You Should Have Done star reacts to Joanna Page's scathing review". Yahoo! News . Retrieved 17 April 2024.
  14. ↑ Murray, Tom (29 March 2024). "Mathew Horne wades in after Joanna Page's savage takedown of new BBC comedy". The Independent . Retrieved 17 April 2024.
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