The Book Group" is a dark comedy that follows an American and the dysfunctional book group she forms in Glasgow as a way to make friends.The Book Group" is a dark comedy that follows an American and the dysfunctional book group she forms in Glasgow as a way to make friends.The Book Group" is a dark comedy that follows an American and the dysfunctional book group she forms in Glasgow as a way to make friends.
- Nominated for 1 BAFTA Award
- 2 wins & 3 nominations total
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Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaIn one scene, Kenny remarks that he never sees Janice eating. In fact, the only female that is shown actually eating is Dirka; the other girls are shown with plates of food or touching food but never eating it.
- GoofsClare propositions Barney on their first meeting, then seems surprised when he turns up at her door on another occasion stoned and propositioning her.
- Quotes
Clare Pettengill: No, it's not a dirty book. It's just French.
- Crazy creditsThe first season's opening credits show the characters' houses in the order they appear during the book group sessions: Clare, Dirka, Barney, Rab, and Janice; though he had picked the book, Kenny decided to have the group meet at Clare's instead and Fist hadn't picked one during the first season.
Featured review
Not as funny as it was sold as being but much more rewarding in other ways
A lonely American girl living in Scotland advertises a book group in a local shop window to help her meet people. For the first meeting she has a strange mix of people arrive for the discussion. Kenny is a leisure center attendant in a wheelchair, Barney is a pompous English dope fiend, Fist and Dirka are Swedish football wives, Rab is a working class football fan and Janice is a football wife struggling to be seen as smart and as confident as everyone else. As the group gets to know each other better the characters come out more and the books provide only an excuse for the collage of feelings and experiences that are really exposed within the group.
This started it's run in the slot of the brilliant Black Books. Channel 4 were keen to keep the laughing Friday night audience it had captured with Black Books and Fraiser and hence launched The book Group as a comedy similar to that other Book title. However the two have little in common except the word book. The Book Group was initially a disappointment I spent the first ten minutes trying to laugh too hard, feeling I had to try because it was supposed to be wacky and hilarious. Once I got past this I found it was more comedy based on characters rather than surreal humour.
This has actually made it more rewarding and the comedy is better because it is more liberally scattered rather than the scattergun approach of Black Books. But the real money here is the characters and their stories. We find out more and more about them each week and get more and more involved in their stories. I've just finished watching the first (but hopefully not only) series, but I won't talk too much about the stories as it may spoil it. But the characters get more detailed each week some in surprising ways! It's a little stretched at times, but most of it works. Yes the series may drift away from the actual reading of books for some episodes but then the actually discussing of books was never the focus of the programme anyway.
All the cast are great Dudek (also popping up in ER) is great as Clare the first episode is an example of how she can play cool on the surface but let things bubble just beneath and then explode in an emotional overflow. McCann is great as Kenny able to display his frustartions and hurt (?) at his situation but more so at the different ways he is treated, as a sex object by some and a object of pity by others. James Lance is great as the least likeable of the characters while Mulder and Engstrom are great as the football wives. Riddell is brave as Rab. Gomez is mixed as Janice it's hard to tell. At first I thought she was poor because I thought she did a poor show of being confident then I realised that was the point, then her breakdowns etc and her efforts to show everyone how smart she is come off really well.
Overall it has it's weaknesses but it has developed over the 6 shows and would be a welcome return for series 2.
This started it's run in the slot of the brilliant Black Books. Channel 4 were keen to keep the laughing Friday night audience it had captured with Black Books and Fraiser and hence launched The book Group as a comedy similar to that other Book title. However the two have little in common except the word book. The Book Group was initially a disappointment I spent the first ten minutes trying to laugh too hard, feeling I had to try because it was supposed to be wacky and hilarious. Once I got past this I found it was more comedy based on characters rather than surreal humour.
This has actually made it more rewarding and the comedy is better because it is more liberally scattered rather than the scattergun approach of Black Books. But the real money here is the characters and their stories. We find out more and more about them each week and get more and more involved in their stories. I've just finished watching the first (but hopefully not only) series, but I won't talk too much about the stories as it may spoil it. But the characters get more detailed each week some in surprising ways! It's a little stretched at times, but most of it works. Yes the series may drift away from the actual reading of books for some episodes but then the actually discussing of books was never the focus of the programme anyway.
All the cast are great Dudek (also popping up in ER) is great as Clare the first episode is an example of how she can play cool on the surface but let things bubble just beneath and then explode in an emotional overflow. McCann is great as Kenny able to display his frustartions and hurt (?) at his situation but more so at the different ways he is treated, as a sex object by some and a object of pity by others. James Lance is great as the least likeable of the characters while Mulder and Engstrom are great as the football wives. Riddell is brave as Rab. Gomez is mixed as Janice it's hard to tell. At first I thought she was poor because I thought she did a poor show of being confident then I realised that was the point, then her breakdowns etc and her efforts to show everyone how smart she is come off really well.
Overall it has it's weaknesses but it has developed over the 6 shows and would be a welcome return for series 2.
helpful•103
- bob the moo
- May 17, 2002
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