In this single drama, a couple’s anniversary trip to Spain becomes an uncomfortable examination of two relationships at different stages.
To celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary, Jim (Peter Capaldi) and Sue (Sarah Parish) embark on a holiday to Spain. The distance between them is immediately apparent; Jim is preoccupied with his business, while Sue feels neglected. Their strained holiday is further complicated when they meet the young, effusive couple in the adjacent villa, Esther (Anna Madeley) and her new fiancé, Felipe (Juan Pablo Di Pace), with whom they must share a swimming pool. The younger couple’s public displays of affection only serve to highlight the stagnation in Jim and Sue’s own marriage. However, as the four are forced into closer proximity, the facade of the seemingly perfect engagement begins to crack, revealing insecurities that challenge everyone’s assumptions.
A sharp and perceptive one-off play from writer David Nicholls, made before his international success with the novel One Day. The production uses the classic template of the holiday-gone-wrong to construct a painful comedy of marital stagnation. Nicholls’ script finds its drama not in grand events but in small, excruciating moments of social discomfort, contrasting a middle-aged couple’s quiet desperation with the performative perfection of a younger pair. The teleplay is anchored by strong performances from Peter Capaldi and Sarah Parish, who ground the increasingly awkward situations in a believable portrait of a relationship under strain.
Broadcast: BBC One, 1 Episode, 8 September 2006
Written by: David Nicholls
Director: Peter Lydon
Executive Producers: Greg Brenman, Roanna Benn
Producer: Rhonda Smith
Music: Kevin Sargent
Main Cast: Peter Capaldi (Jim), Sarah Parish (Sue), Anna Madeley (Esther), Juan Pablo Di Pace (Felipe), Steven Webb (Stuart), Jodie Kelly (Helen)
