Douglas is Cancelled reactions suggest viewers seriously divided over cancel culture drama

Virgin Radio

28 Jun 2024, 12:08

Douglas is Cancelled viewers seem seriously divided over whether or not they love or loathe ITV’s latest drama.

The four-part series follows the story of news presenter Douglas (Paddington and Downton star Hugh Bonneville) as he deals with public backlash after a sexist joke he made at a wedding gets revealed online.

Despite its impressive cast - including leads Bonneville and Karen Gillan - some viewers were left unimpressed by Steven Moffat’s new show, which aired its first episode on ITV1 yesterday night (27th June).

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However, others were full of praise for the show - all of which is available now to stream on ITVX - which also stars Ben Miles, Alex Kingston, Madeleine Power and Simon Russell Beale.

“I had high hopes for #DouglasIsCancelled but it’s terrible,” one viewer complained. “The dialogue is unnatural, and it’s full of generational clichés and lame gags. I’m sorry but for me, Douglas Is Cancelled is… erm, cancelled.”

“Given up and was looking forward to it,” another disappointed person posted on X (formerly Twitter). A third shared they were “bored”, while several complained about the writing of the show's female characters, especially Douglas’ 19-year-old daughter Claudia (Madeleine Power).

“I thought [episode one] was a great start - despite the unrealistic daughter,” shared one fan.

But others were even more full of praise for the programme. “Absorbed all four episodes of #DouglasIsCancelled this evening. Moffat at his sassy and witty best,” one person penned on social media.

“I love it. Actually laughed out loud a couple of times,” another viewer shared.

Douglas Is Cancelled’s divisive nature seems to have been desired by its creative team. Show star Nick Mohammed took to social media to celebrate the mixed response Douglas is Cancelled has received from TV critics, suggesting the show’s reviews which ranged from five stars to just one in varying publications “proved its point”.

Speaking about the show on The Chris Evans Breakfast Show with webuyanycar, Karen Gillan explained that her involvement in the project came from her curiosity to see what projects her old Doctor Who friend was working on.

“He actually wrote it as a play originally, and I had heard that he'd written a play, and I just asked him if I could read it. And he was like, ‘Okay’. And then I read it, and I was like, ‘You should turn this into a film’,” she explained.

“So I was on this campaign to get him to get it on the screen somehow. And then he turned around, and he was like, ‘Actually, we're going to make it a four part series for ITV. And would you like to play Madeline?’ And I wasn't even gunning for the role. I just wanted to see it made, and I was totally honoured to do it.”

Douglas is Cancelled is available to stream now on ITVX. New episodes will air weekly on Thursdays at 9pm on ITV1.