British TV series or programme
Lovesick
(formerly known as
Scrotal Recall
)
[7]
is a
British sitcom
created by
Tom Edge
which was first broadcast on
Channel 4
in October 2014 and stars
Johnny Flynn
,
Antonia Thomas
,
Daniel Ings
,
Hannah Britland
and
Joshua McGuire
.
[8]
After the show was originally aired on Channel 4, it was made available by
Netflix
, who then commissioned a second season globally on 17 November 2016, where it was billed as a
Netflix Original
.
[9]
The show concluded with a third season, which was released exclusively on Netflix on 1 January 2018.
[10]
Plot
[
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]
The show revolves around a group of university friends sharing a house in Glasgow and their romantic lives. After Dylan Witter (Flynn) is diagnosed with
chlamydia
, he attempts to contact all of his previous sexual partners to inform them of his diagnosis.
[11]
Dylan lives with best friends Luke Curran (Ings) and Evie Douglas (Thomas), the latter of whom previously harboured a secret crush on Dylan, but has since moved on, recently becoming
engaged
. The majority of each episode is told through
flashback
, showing Dylan's encounters with a number of women, as well as the changes his friends go through.
The third season, released in January 2018, focuses more on Dylan, Evie and Luke's relationships with each other, and Angus's (McGuire) own personal problems.
Cast
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]
Main
[
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]
- Johnny Flynn
as Dylan Witter, the protagonist of the show. He is a vaguely inept romantic who goes from one casual relationship to another, usually expecting more than there is to offer. He works in landscaping, as a garden designer and previously briefly worked as a
barista
. Luke refers to him as "Dyl" or "Dildo". His parents Julian (
Tony Gardner
) and Janie (
Siobhan Redmond
) appear in season three.
- Antonia Thomas
as Evelyn "Evie" Douglas, Dylan and Luke's best friend. She is barbed, sarcastic and usually single. She appears to have underlying feelings for Dylan, although these are confused by the situation between them. Evie works as an illustrator and photographer. She is engaged to Mal throughout the first and second series.
- Daniel Ings
as Luke Curran, best friend and flatmate of Dylan and Evie. He is feckless, irresponsible and shallow, however he has a strong affection for his friends and often goes out of his own way to help them. Luke works as an app developer for a company called Volcano Media. His mother is seen in a photograph in the series one episode "Cressida", particularly because Luke and his mum previously shared the same haircut.
- Hannah Britland
as Abigail Saunders, the barmaid at Angus and Helen's wedding, and one of Dylan's former lovers. After he contacts her to inform her of his diagnosis, they resume their casual relationship. Although not her main employment, throughout the series she is a writer who wishes to have a career in storytelling.
- Joshua McGuire
as Angus Baker, a friend of Dylan, Luke and Evie's from university. He is slightly childish but appears to be the most academic member of the group with a background in mathematics.
- Richard Thomson as Malcolm "Mal", Evie's fiance. He is introduced as a friend of Anna's. A former soldier, Mal is a Police Constable and uses this to his advantage to help Evie and her friends. Mal has a nut allergy which is highlighted when Evie accidentally feeds him
pine kernels
on
Valentine's Day
. His parents Fiona (
Deborah Findlay
) and Richard (
Karl Johnson
) feature in the episode "Jonesy". Despite being set in
Glasgow
, Thomson is the only Scottish actor in the main cast of the series.
- Klariza Clayton
as Holly, a stripper who meets Angus and the group on her first day in the strip club. After a lap dance, she develops a relationship with Angus.
- Yasmine Akram
as Maria "Jonesy" Jones, a bubbly and vivacious friend of the group from university. She has a strict no-relationship policy.
Recurring
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]
- Susannah Fielding
as Phoebe Morris, Dylan's date to a quiz-night who he realises is the female equivalent of Luke. Although Phoebe was dating Dylan at the time, Luke has a deep affection for her, which continues in series 3. Phoebe dies almost five years after her relationship with Dylan ended from an unknown cause and this greatly affects Luke.
- Riann Steele
as Cleo, a short-term girlfriend of Luke's, who goes on to become his therapist.
- Jamie Demetriou
as Samuels, Luke's workmate in app development at Volcano Media. He is gifted with exceptional memory, often recalling Luke's past mistakes. He appears to have a close and supportive friendship with both Luke and McNeish.
- Turlough Convery
as McNeish, a colleague of Luke's. He seems friendly but
laddish
, to the point of offering a principal investor in his company
MDMA
.
- Laura Aikman
as Jo, Luke's ex-girlfriend whose break-up with him deeply affected him.
- Stephen Wight
as Jonno, one of Luke's former co-workers as an app developer. He usually introduces himself with "I'm Jonno."
- Jessica Ellerby
as Jane Ansell, a short-term, sexually permissive former girlfriend of Dylan's three and a half years before his diagnosis.
- Aimee Parkes as Helen, the domineering wife of Angus. She seems to love Angus despite her personality, and Angus feels her anger is caused by her belief that he does not love her equally.
Dylan's list
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Other appearances
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]
Episodes
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]
Series 1 (2014)
[
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]
Series 2 (2016)
[
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]
Series 3 (2018)
[
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]
Production
[
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]
The first series was made available on
Netflix
in the United States in April 2015 and was billed as a "Netflix Original".
[13]
The show found enough success on the site that Netflix went on to commission a second series of 8 episodes, without Channel 4's involvement. The second series debuted globally on the streaming network in November 2016.
[14]
Lovesick was filmed in numerous locations in and around
Glasgow
, Scotland.
[15]
Most outdoor scenes were filmed in the West End of the city, and the series has featured
Kelvingrove Park
, the
University of Glasgow
and
Partick
.
[11]
[16]
Name change
[
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]
After its transfer from
Channel 4
to
Netflix
, the show was renamed from
Scrotal Recall
to
Lovesick
.
[9]
Antonia Thomas noted that while the former name technically made sense, it completely mis-sold the tone of the show.
[17]
Thomas admitted to being pleased with the name change, and noted that the second series would continue to follow the same format as the first, but would go more in-depth.
[17]
[18]
[19]
[20]
Reception
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]
Lovesick received critical acclaim for its storyline and acting performances.
[21]
The
review aggregator
Rotten Tomatoes
gave the series an average score of 98%, based on 41 total reviews among the three seasons.
[22]
Paste
magazine said "This honest approach is refreshing in a world of sitcoms focusing on wealthy lads and ladies moving from their college dorms straight into Manhattan lofts and prosperous careers.
Lovesick
is all about keeping it real."
[23]
References
[
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]
- ^
"Tom Edge - United Agents"
.
unitedagents.co.uk
.
- ^
"Lovesick - Clerkenwell Films London UK"
.
Clerkenwell Films
.
- ^
Zuckerman, Esther (8 January 2018).
"Lovesick's Tom Edge on Rom-Coms, Season 3, and What's Next for Dylan and Evie"
.
- ^
"Lovesick creator Tom Edge on season 3 and coming back from Scrotal Recall"
. 1 January 2018.
- ^
Rollins, Samantha (January 2018).
"That Netflix Show You Made Fun Of Is Actually The Loveliest Rom-Com On TV"
.
- ^
Tom Eames (24 March 2016).
"Scrotal Recall is coming back for a second season... on Netflix"
.
Digital Spy
.
- ^
Harp, Justin (27 July 2016).
"Scrotal Recall gets a brand new name as it sets Netflix premiere"
.
Digital Spy
.
Hearst Corporation
. Retrieved
1 August
2016
.
- ^
"Johnny Flynn stars in new Channel 4 comedy Scrotal Recall"
.
Independent.co.uk
. 7 August 2014.
- ^
a
b
"Netflix Announces Premiere Dates for Nine Series, Including Black Mirror, Chef's Table: France, Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life and More"
.
Netflix Media Center
. Netflix - Media Center - Press Release. 27 July 2016
. Retrieved
2 August
2016
.
- ^
"Netflix UK Sets Premiere Date For 'Lovesick' Season 3 - TVWise"
.
TVWise
. 5 December 2017
. Retrieved
6 December
2017
.
- ^
a
b
"Scrotal Recall: the STI comedy that's not as gross as it sounds"
.
Telegraph.co.uk
. 2 October 2014
. Retrieved
11 May
2015
.
- ^
"Katrine De Candole"
.
IMDb
.
- ^
"Netflix's New Original 'Scrotal Recall' Is So Much Better Than Its Attention-Grabby Title"
.
Pajiba
. 20 April 2015
. Retrieved
11 May
2015
.
- ^
"Netflix Has Officially Renewed Scrotal Recall for Season 2"
.
Premiere Date
. Archived from
the original
on 4 April 2016
. Retrieved
10 April
2016
.
- ^
"Lovesick's Daniel Ings on why he's fallen for Glasgow big time"
.
Radio Times
. 1 February 2018
. Retrieved
13 December
2020
.
- ^
Virtue, Graeme (16 November 2016).
"A whole new ball game: the unlikely return of STI sitcom Scrotal Recall"
.
The Guardian
. Retrieved
16 November
2016
.
- ^
a
b
Sancto, Roxanne (14 November 2016).
"Lovesick Star Antonia Thomas on Changing the Show's Name from Scrotal Recall and Wanting to Play Eartha Kitt"
.
Paste
. Netflix - Media Center - Press Release
. Retrieved
15 November
2016
.
- ^
Merry, Stephanie (26 October 2015).
"Is it too late to change the name of 'Scrotal Recall'?"
– via www.washingtonpost.com.
- ^
"Q&A: Tom Edge, creator of Channel 4 comedy SCROTAL RECALL"
.
- ^
"
'Lovesick' is the same charming show as 'Scrotal Recall,' but with a name people will actually say"
.
Entertainment Weekly
.
- ^
Starkey, Adam.
"Lovesick creator Tom Edge and star Daniel Ings tease possibility of season 4"
.
metro.co.uk
. Metro
. Retrieved
11 January
2019
.
- ^
"Lovesick (2015?2018)"
.
Rotten Tomatoes
. Retrieved
17 November
2023
.
- ^
"Why You Should Be Watching Lovesick, Netflix's Raunchy, Gawkily Funny Britcom"
.
pastemagazine.com
. Retrieved
30 June
2017
.
External links
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]