I am so glad I arrived late to this party because The Dry is a complete whirlwind of fun
The comedy has the unique ability to hug as hard as it kicks
Nancy has flawlessly moved from theatre to TV writing
Ant, Shiv and Caroline are such brilliant characters
I am very late to the party on this one, but I have a public service announcement to anyone who is looking for a brilliant comedy that is laden down with a dark poignant humour and acted perfectly by a relatively-unknown cast.
It would normally take a lot for me to delve into the infuriating RTE Player, but repeated recommendations meant I found myself attempting to load the buffering app a few times over the last week or two to binge on the 8-part comedy called The Dry.
My dedication to the deeply-flawed streaming site should go a long way to indicating how much I think of the comedy written and created by Dubliner Nancy Harris. I was rewarded each time with some beautifully-shot and acerbically-written episodes that left me craving for more.
Nancy has flawlessly moved from theatre to TV writing
Okay, it does star Moe Dunford and Ciaran Hinds, so the cast isn’t completely unknown, but it is the actors behind the protagonists that steal the show. Roisin Gallagher (Shiv), Siobhan Cullen (Caroline), Adam John Richardson (Ant) as the adult kids are flawless and Janet Moran as the scene-stealing Karen is utterly hilarious.
And Pom Boyd as the disjointed and lost matriarch of the Sheridan family proves that she should be working more after two albeit-similar-yet-incredible turns in this and Frank of Ireland.
To be clear, some of the plot lines in The Dry are hard to watch and hit you with a gut-wrenching bang, but because it is so delicately written you can’t help but keep watching. Even when you have to repeatedly relaunch the RTE Player to get sound as well as a picture.
It has that rare ability to hug you almost as hard as it kicks you.
And luckily for me, because I am SO late to the game I don’t have long to wait until season 2 as it wrapped up filming last weekend and rumour has it that it will land on terrestrial TV later in the year.
Thankfully this doesn’t wreak of RTE trying to flog a dead horse. There is so much more for each of these characters to give that you could easily see a third or even fourth season landing in the coming years.
But for now, let’s focus on season 1 which was a tour de force and left me as an emotional wreck; yet gagging for more.
Ant, Shiv and Caroline are such brilliant characters
Sharon Horgan and Ricky Gervais are heralded around the planet as TV comedy writers who combine humour and pathos perfectly. Soon we should be able to add Harris to that list.
It seems the only thing stopping her rise to small screen fame is her dedication to her craft as an award-winning theatre writer.
For now though, trust me, I’ll be glued to season 2 on the actual telly when it comes back. But for you guys right now…if you haven’t dabbled already, I urge you to take the risky plunge into the RTE Player just this once. You won’t regret it.
