This Country

This Country
Genre Sitcom
Mockumentary
Created by Daisy May Cooper
Charlie Cooper
Written by Daisy May Cooper
Charlie Cooper
Directed by Tom George
Starring Daisy May Cooper
Charlie Cooper
Country of origin United Kingdom
No. of series 1
No. of episodes 6
Production
Executive producer(s) Stephen McCrum
Producer(s) Simon Mayhew-Archer
Editor(s) Craig Harbour
Running time approx. 25 minutes
Release
Original network BBC Three (online)
Picture format 16:9 1080i
Original release 8 February 2017 (2017-02-08)

This Country is a mockumentary sitcom, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC iPlayer on 8 February 2017. Created by, written by and starring siblings Daisy May Cooper and Charlie Cooper, the programme is about the day-to-day lives of two young people living in a small village in the Cotswolds.[1] The show centres on themes of social clumsiness, the trivialities of human behaviour, the eccentricities of living in rural England, and the boredom and social isolation of young people in small communities.[2][3]

The Coopers play the central characters, cousins Kerry and Lee "Kurtan" Mucklowe.[4] Their father, Paul Cooper, plays Kerry's father Martin Mucklowe, while their uncle, Trevor Cooper, plays local man and antagonist Len Clifton.[5][6] Although credited to "Ivy Woodcock", the voice of Sue Mucklowe—Kerry's mother, never seen on screen—is provided by Daisy Cooper.[7]

Cast

Production

The series was filmed on location in and around the town of Northleach, Gloucestershire. Daisy Cooper said: "All the material is based around stuff that happens in Cirencester, but when we went to the channel they thought that Cirencester was a bit too big and Northleach is a smaller village, and sort of isolates the characters a bit more. Makes them more claustrophobic."[3]

Filming commenced in September 2016, and was completed within 3 weeks.[3][5] A second series has been confirmed, but no filming or release dates have been announced as of July 2017.[8]

Broadcast

As a BBC Three (online) production, each episode of This Country is premiered on Wednesdays via BBC iPlayer, the corporation's digital streaming platform. Episodes are then rebroadcast by BBC One on the following Saturday evening.

Episode list

Series 1 (2017)

# Title Directed by Written by Original air date
1"Scarecrow"[9]Tom GeorgeDaisy May Cooper and Charle Cooper8 February 2017 (2017-02-08)
Kurtan enters the annual village scarecrow-making competition with high hopes of winning first prize and getting his photograph "on the front page of The Gazette." His hopes are dashed when he finds there has been a mix-up with the allocation of pitches and he must set up his scarecrow at the distant and little-visited Trowley Bottom Farm. Kerry is apparently challenged to a fight by youths from a neighbouring village.
2"Mandy"[10]Tom GeorgeDaisy May Cooper and Charle Cooper15 February 2017 (2017-02-15)
Kerry and Kurtan are celebrating the news that their former woodwork teacher from school has died. Kurtan becomes obsessed with discovering what happened to Robert Robinson, a classmate whom neither Kerry nor Slugs can recall. Mandy, the local "hard woman", informs them that she is setting up business as a tattoo artist and intimidates Kerry into agreeing to have a tattoo, despite demonstrating that she has no artistic talents.
3"Oven Space"[11]Tom GeorgeDaisy May Cooper and Charle Cooper22 February 2017 (2017-02-22)
Kerry and Kurtan are awaiting the arrival home of their uncle, "Nugget" Nuggins, who is being released from prison. It becomes apparent that while Kerry looks up to Nugget and is excited by the prospect of his return, Kurtan is not so enthusiastic and is terrified of the man. The cousins argue bitterly over whose food should occupy the top shelf of the oven.
4"King of Nerds"[12]Tom GeorgeDaisy May Cooper and Charle Cooper1 March 2017 (2017-03-01)
Following an argument with her mother about money, Kerry decides to look for a job. With an assurance of potential earnings of £15000 per month, she is persuaded to join a pyramid scheme, taking out a loan of £200 to buy her way in. Assisted by Kurtan she attempts to establish a door-to-door sales operation. Kurtan is instead more interested in playing Warhammer with his new "nerdy" friends, Neil and Nathan.
5"Peeping Tom"[13]Tom GeorgeDaisy May Cooper and Charle Cooper8 March 2017 (2017-03-08)
Kerry's estranged father Martin is accused of voyeurism and kicked out of his home by his girlfriend Sandra. Kerry attempts to establish a new relationship with him while he is temporarily living in a caravan in a field. Kurtan and Slugs become rivals for the attentions of Kayleigh Hudson, a girl who has just moved to the village.
6"GNVQ"[14]Tom GeorgeDaisy May Cooper and Charle Cooper15 March 2017 (2017-03-15)
Kurtan is offered a place at Swindon College, studying for a GNVQ in health and social care. Kerry has difficulty coming to terms with the idea that he will be leaving the village—and her—behind. Rev. Seaton attempts to act as an intermediary to reconcile their differences.

Reception

This Country received positive reviews from critics. Stuart Heritage, for The Guardian, described it as a "perfectly observed" comedy, and wrote: "I found myself rewinding entire scenes because I was too busy howling with laughter to hear what was going on."[2] Sean O'Grady, for The Independent, wrote: "It isn't very often that I am able to recommend something because it made me weep tears of laughter, but I am happy and heartened to say that the latest BBC mockumentary, This Country, is sublime enough to have lifted my spirits heavenwards... [It has] an uneasily well-observed quality that raises the comedic genre almost to an art form."[4] Rupert Hawksley, for the The Daily Telegraph, wrote: "It is, by some distance, the funniest thing on television at the moment."[15] Mike McCahill, for Reader's Digest, described the show as an "increasingly cherishable mockumentary" and essential viewing, observing that "[the] Coopers have created an entire universe in a handful of episodes."[16] Arts critic Bruce Dessau concluded: "It might have well-used stylistic elements of both The Office and People Just Do Nothing about it, but it is sharply-written and deftly performed [and] stays just on the right side of cliché. And most importantly both Kerry and Lee are richly comic."[17]

References

  1. ↑ Mutevelian, Sophie (5 February 2017). "Pick of the day: This Country". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  2. 1 2 Heritage, Stuart (22 February 2017). "This Country: perfect, horrifying TV for anyone who grew up in a village". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  3. 1 2 3 Merrifield, Ryan (17 February 2017). "Cirencester siblings Daisy and Charlie Cooper talk about their new BBC Three show This Country". Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  4. 1 2 O'Grady, Sean (3 February 2017). "TV preview: This Country". The Independent. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  5. 1 2 "Behind the Kurtan". The Cotswolds Gentleman. 2 March 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2017.
  6. ↑ Richardson, Jay (25 January 2017). "Country cousins". Chortle. Retrieved 3 March 2017.
  7. ↑ Jones, Alice (8 March 2017). "This Country’s Daisy May and Charlie Cooper: 'It's basically our experience of growing up in the Cotswolds'". i News. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  8. ↑ http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2017-07-18/bbc3-mockumentary-this-country-returns-for-a-second-series
  9. ↑ "This Country, Episode 1" at BBC Programmes
  10. ↑ "This Country, Episode 2" at BBC Programmes
  11. ↑ "This Country, Episode 3" at BBC Programmes
  12. ↑ "This Country, Episode 4" at BBC Programmes
  13. ↑ "This Country, Episode 5" at BBC Programmes
  14. ↑ "This Country, Episode 6" at BBC Programmes
  15. ↑ Hawksley, Rupert (13 March 2017). "Is BBC Three 'mockumentary' This Country the best British comedy since The Office?". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
  16. ↑ McCahill, Mike (March 2017). "5 TV shows you should be watching this month". Reader's Digest. Retrieved 6 March 2017.
  17. ↑ Dessau, Bruce (February 2017). "Review: This Country, Episode 2, BBC Three (And BBC One)". Beyond The Joke. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
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