William and Mary

1st series really good, second series not bad, third series Mary becomes insane an frankly impossible to live with. Any rasonable guy would have 'ejected' writing was abysmal, what a shame. Acting was good but what can you do with a script this bad,

Came upon this series by accident. I purchase many British TV DVDs from Amazon.co.UK and this complete series was going cheap and being a great fan of men behaving badly, i thought lets give it a go.

We sat down one rainy afternoon and nine episodes later, said we must go to bed. This is a brilliant series, certainly not a comedy as some might think, there are many heart rendering moments. William (Martin Clunes) is an undertaker by default and Mary (Julie Graham) is a midwife so you can imagine death is around them but there is also so much joy. What a premise to a series, one partner brings new life in to the world and the other gently takes it away.

The writer and directors from the very first episode have built a tight and wonderful story based on the characters rather than the plot. Each character and there are many in each episode are acted perfectly. There are many twists and funny/sad moments especially in episode four.

I'm glad this show did not get under the radar, do yourself a favour and buy the entire series and then pass it on, but make sure you get it back , you will watch it again.

Thank goodness for British television - from Australia, we thank you.

I just watched all episodes of Series 1, 2 and 3 on Acorn TV in the USA. While this series is billed there as a comedy, I thought it to be more of a drama despite the occasional interruptions of humor. I got the feeling that it was a bit of a British soap opera for all of the cliff-hanger endings. Nonetheless, I really enjoyed the series. I thought the acting of the main characters was excellent and the chemistry between them seemed real. The direction was superb. The careers and history of the main characters is something I have not seen in American TV or movies. but I watch very little of that commercial driven drivel. It hooked me after the second episode and I am glad that I spent the time to see it all.

All characters are fine on this show - that is already running out of new ideas in the middle of series 2 - except, in my opinion, Mary. She seems so abrasive, crude and out-of-place with her line of work, and the themes that have been present in every episode are being used too often and often in too heavy-handed a fashion.. I am beginning to see why it lasted only three series. Nevertheless, there are enough pleasant surprises and good dialogue to keep it watchable and I'll watch all the episodes. I never thought I'd like Rueben, but he's quite a study in a conflicted man. My criticisms are not towards the actors, they are all very good actors; it's just that Mary is a scene-stealer for me...and not in a good way.

Mary's character is a pain, but still fun to watch. Love the contrast between birth and death situations.