What I'm watching #3:

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A few weeks ago I was off work with a sickness bug, and needed something to take my mind off feeling rubbish.  I decided to give the Netflix original series Orange is the new Black a try after hearing some good reviews, and I'm so glad I did!  I was immediately addicted (and got Craig hooked too!) and we watched the whole first season in less than a week.  Based on a true story, the show follows middle class good girl, Piper Chapman, as she goes to prison for a crime she naively committed more than ten years earlier.  The back story of each supporting character is slowly unfolded throughout the course of the series, which is both frustrating and fascinating.  It's very dark, but also very funny, and that's a winning combination for me.  I can't wait for the second series!

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It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia was actually Craig's latest TV discovery.  I watched the first episode with him and didn't think much of it, but he persevered, and by the time I dipped back into the show (somewhere in season two) I found it much more enjoyable.  

The basic premise is that four friends own an unpopular Irish pub in Philadelphia, and they get up to some mischief whilst trying to drum up business, get famous and generally pass the time.  This makes It's Always Sunny sound like a carbon copy of every other US sitcom in existence, and that's all I originally thought it was, but the show has since changed my opinion.  First of all, the cast are actually very funny (my favourite is Kaitlin Olson as Dee) and the addition of Danny Devito to the line up in season two is a bit of a curveball that ends up paying off.  Most importantly, the subject matter of the jokes is extremely unconventional, and generally quite taboo.  Some episodes are a little hit or miss - and if you're easily offended this might not be the program for you - but in general I'd say It's Always Sunny is a witty and unique take on the dry sitcom we've all seen a thousand times.

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Even though I probably would have been too young to get most of the jokes back in 2001 when Teachers was first shown on Channel 4, through the wonders of Netflix I have now started watching it from the beginning.  The show is definitely of its time, and looking a little dated now, but the writing is great and it makes me quite nostalgic for school (which proves they've done it right!).  Hats off to the creators, as some of the camera work is extremely clever and creative, setting Teachers apart from other Britcoms.  Following the life of one young English teacher and his colleagues, the program has a funny premise, and there's the added bonus of seeing Andrew Lincoln as a cheeky, youthful British whippersnapper, long before The Walking Dead.