Our Ex-Wife

What a surprisingly witty, darkly funny, fast-paced, brilliantly cast and highly entertaining gem of a pilot. The half hour program felt like 10 minutes, and even though it felt like and end to a short movie when the last like was said- I immediately wished there was more entertainment like this. As this pilot is from 2016 I can only hope somewhere in the archives there are at least 4 series waiting to be released. I'll file it next to Absolutely Fabulous, Black Books, Fleabag.... If you do a series- at least 8 episodes, please.

And I don't want anything for my birthday AND Christmas this year 😉

Why is this still not being made? I remember this pilot from years back and still find myself awaiting the series. Maybe Robert Webb should find it himself? Surely we can crowd fund it? Or Netflix can pick it up?

The BBC pilot sitcom season has been rather mixed. Some promising funny material, some average and a few just plain bad. I expect the bad ones to be green-lit to become a series.

Our Ex Wife showed promise from the very beginning. It really hits it stride from the first scene and goes with it. It is probably inspired by the black comedy movie, The War of the Roses starring Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner.

Jack and Hilary were once in love and a decade later had a messy nasty divorce. He calls her psychotic and she responds in kind and they fantasize about sadistically killing each other.

Five years later Jack is engaged to a sweet, kindly American vet, Sarah who wants to meet Hilary and think that both of them could get along for the sake of their children.

I was surprised how much the writer has painted Hilary out to be a monster. In the divorce court scene it is mentioned she repeatedly cheated on him as well as being a conniving liar. Our sympathies are clearly meant to go with Jack.

Melanie Lynskey as Sarah and Peter Egan as Jack's dad steal the show as their roles are more subtle.

However I did find that although I found the show refreshing I did not laugh that much and I also wondered how much mileage you can get out of two people hurling abuse at each other. There is only so many times you can call your ex a psychotic whore.

This pilot is absolute quality writing.

My "second wife" and I laughed all the way through this from start to finish.

The synergies of my "ex-wife" was all too real :)

All the characters have strong and funny lines, which bounce off the central pair and cement the plot.

The one liner spats between the ex's were hilarious.

This pilot must to proceed into a full series.

Well done to the BEEB for having the vision to do this.

Fingers crossed we will see the characters and plot expand into a full series.

Our Ex-wife

The best comedy on British TV (any TV) since The Office.

It looks like 'Auntie' accidentally stumbled on to this and commissioned the pilot because of some administrative error because this one is 'laugh out loud' funny.

Just when you think that British humor had curled up and gone to politically correct BBC heaven a thing of absolute genius springs from the ashes.

After a wave of abject failures and simply unprofessional attempts at making comedy at the BBC, this one actually IS funny!

You better get used to the idea of only having the pilot to cherish though, because 'The Beeb' will never ever actually make a series out of this. They are probably still busy scratching their heads wondering how this brilliant pilot got past their humorless lefty managers and producers.

I'll bet a few people were fired over this. Making funny TV isn't what the BBC do well so enjoy the pilot... it's already all you have to watch.

Maybe Sky will give it the life it deserves.