"Always use a condom, kids," said Lucy Mangan in The Guardian. That's the advice that comes through "loud and clear" from BBC Three's new sitcom "Daddy Issues".
The show follows Gemma (Aimee Lou Wood), a 24-year-old Stockport hairdresser who loves partying until one "bareback encounter in a plane toilet" means she winds up pregnant. This wouldn't be so bad if her housemate hadn't moved out, her mum hadn't "recently buggered off to foreign parts with a new boyfriend", and her sister wasn't in prison for trying to bump off her fiancé for an insurance pay-out. Left in dire straits, she decides to take on her newly divorced dad Malcolm (David Morrissey) as her flatmate.
This "modern odd-couple arrangement" helps the pair to survive, and a "touching" portrait begins to emerge as the duo start to mend their "fractured relationship". One of the show's "finest points" is that Malcolm's domestic ineptitude (he thinks jacket potatoes come in leather jackets) isn't portrayed merely for laughs but also to add to the invisible labour Gemma is forced to shoulder.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"Daft, honest, funny and tinged with bleakness", the show delivers a "potent blend of wit and charm". Stereotypes are given a "twist"; Malcolm's "borderline incel" old landlord Derek, for example, is slightly more "vicious" than a typical "sitcom sexist". This makes everything feel more hard-hitting: "you will laugh, but you might also cry".
Morrissey is a "revelation" as the "weedy", well-meaning Malcolm and the "easy chemistry" between the father-daughter pair injects the writing with "added richness", said Julia Raeside on the i news site. And while the show can, at times, be sentimental, "sublime comic razorblades lurk within". "I zipped through all six seriously entertaining episodes in one afternoon and was left wanting more, much more."
There's an "appealing oddball silliness" to Danielle Ward's scripts, added Katie Rosseinsky in The Independent, which works well to balance out the show's "emotional heft". And there's lots of material left to explore: how will the "winning central duo" fare when the baby is born? "Hopefully it's just getting started."
-
Jaguar Land Rover’s cyber bailoutTalking Point Should the government do more to protect business from the ‘cyber shockwave’?
-
Russia: already at war with Europe?Talking Point As Kremlin begins ‘cranking up attacks’ on Ukraine’s European allies, questions about future action remain unanswered
-
Sudoku hard: October 5, 2025The Week's daily hard sudoku puzzle
-
9 haunted hotels where things definitely go bump in the nightThe Week Recommends Don’t fear these spirited spots. Embrace them.
-
Saudi comedy fest exposes free speech schism in stand-upIN THE SPOTLIGHT The decision by some of stand-up’s biggest names to attend a festival in a nation infamous for its censorship has the comedy world picking sides and settling old scores
-
The 5 best zombie TV shows of all timeThe Week Recommends For undead aficionados, the age of abundance has truly arrived
-
Pucker up with these 8 soothing lip balms and treatmentsThe Week Recommends Don’t pout — these lip balms offer hydration and shine
-
7 bars to visit that celebrate the magic of the classic and the modernThe Week Recommends Where to drink now in the US
-
Enjoy the scenery on these 7 colorful fall road tripsThe Week Recommends 'Tis the season for autumn foliage
-
The soups, noodles and cake to make this the most tasty fall yetThe Week Recommends Soothing plates from across the globe
-
Sing songs with Sandler, gawk at Gaffigan: These are the comedians to catch on tour this fallthe week recommends Laugh to keep yourself from crying
