We Might Regret This
The opening scene of We Might Regret This is both heartily familiar and entirely novel. Main character Freya, a tetraplegic, is mid-sex when her 24/7 personal assistant Ty interrupts. It’s a situation that one may never have seen on television, and it’s delivered with hilarious honesty. This thread is continued throughout the dramedy’s six-episode run; star and co-writer Kyla Harris brings disability representation to the BBC, dressed up beautifully in humour and heartbreak.
We join Freya as she moves from her Canadian home to London, to live with her older boyfriend Abe (Darren Boyd), as she navigates life and relationships as a care user. When estranged best friend Jo (Elena Saurel) appears and accidentally stays on to become Freya’s new caregiver, relationships are pulled at and pressed. It’s these relationships where the show really thrives, and not just Freya’s immediate group, but the ensemble cast as well. Abe’s ex-wife Jane and son Levi anchor some of the script’s heaviest emotional beats. Indeed, Sally Phillips plays Jane with her classic dry sarcasm, lined with vulnerability. Edward Bluemel is a welcome talent, playing tricky, tortured Levi with openness and heart. His situationship with Saurel’s Jo is one of the highlights – funny and realistic, the two of them bounce off of each other in both light and dark moments with equal ease.
Saurel aces every scene she’s in. Mostly she’s fabulously witty and dry, but it’s her rare exposed moments that make her brilliant. When taking part in a personal assistant training session, she asks, “What does it mean when someone you love starts paying you to stick around?” It’s these moments that push it above the average BBC show.
But of course, it is Freya who makes We Might Regret This tick. Everything she does, everything she says, seems to come from a place of utter sincerity. Her joy as she rides her wheelchair with a motorbike crew is vibrant, her pain when fighting with Abe is shattering. She is a full person, complex and flawed and wonderful and necessary for our screens.
We Might Regret This succeeds in bringing us disabled representation both on the screen and behind it. Harris and her co-writer Lee Getty have put together a quick script, full of classic BBC under-the-breath quips, and created well-rounded and interesting characters. Viewers will be absolutely aching for season two.
Talitha Stowell
We Might Regret This is released on BBC iPlayer on 19th August 2024.
Watch the trailer for We Might Regret This here:
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