Break Clause, a new six-part comedy-drama on Channel 4, follows a couple who break up on the day they move in together and are then stuck sharing a flat for six months. Created by Jess Bray and directed by Alice Snedden, the series captures post-university life in a way that is almost uncomfortably true-to-life.
The show opens with Ben (Samuel Bottomley) choosing the moment his girlfriend Lil (Lara Ricote) is about to walk across the stage at graduation to tell her he will move to London with her after all. Lil has a job lined up with an architectural practice, while Ben is an unemployed writer who resorts to skip diving to save on groceries. He initially refuses to do a medical trial for money, calling it “morally dodgy”, but changes his mind when he learns it pays £800 per study.
A tale of privilege and resentment
Ben resents Lil for coasting down to the capital with her “big fucking bank account”, while he spent the summer working in an ice-cream van to afford the move. The class element is heavy-handed at times, leaning into the north/south divide, but it makes its point on privilege. This is underlined when Ben admits to Thanksgiving dinner guests that the turkey they are eating came from a bin.
The series harks back to the peak sadcom era of the late 2010s, when shows were often compared to Fleabag. It will make you laugh, might make you cry, and will make you think twice about moving in with anyone again.
Deadpan weirdness and standout performances
Break Clause is very funny, with a weird bent that fits the current golden age of deadpan weirdness. Jack Shep plays Lil and Ben's guileless mate Liam, Hammed Animashaun plays a terrible estate agent who doesn't own a working pen, and Nathan Foad plays Lil's boss Owen, desperate to ingratiate himself with his team.
Ricote stands out with quirky comic chops, delivering lines like “You were always so fucking negative about London,” and “What if the water tasted weird? What if it was too loud? What about terrorism?!” Her performance shines in scenes such as one where Lil gyrates against a wall asking her date “Do you like this?” to which he replies “I'd actually quite like it to stop.”
A romcom ending left open
It's not a romcom, but it ends with a romcom scenario: Lil is offered a transfer abroad, and the pair must decide whether to enact their break clause. The final episode pulls its punches on this dilemma and on neighbour Frances (Charly Clive), who has the hots for Ben. Things are left open for series two.
Ben's dad Alan (John Thomson) tells him, “You have to be a lot of different people when you're in a long relationship,” and it feels as though there are more versions of these two yet to meet. Break Clause is on Channel 4 now.
