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From Amazon.co.uk
A real highlight of BBC2’s output in the 1990s, This Life works on a simple premise of following the lives of five young lawyers who each share the same London home. Yet that simplicity shields what was, and remains, a groundbreaking series, one that never shirked away from any of the issues it chose to touch on.
Across the two series that make up this unmissable boxset, we get to meet the full-of-himself Miles, the loud but troubled Anna, Milly the control-freak and the unsure Egg. Add in the upbeat Warren, who is gay but doesn’t want his parents to know, and the confused and bisexual Ferdy, and you have a melting pot of emotions and stories that are as captivating to watch as they were when the show was first broadcast.
At the core of This Life’s success though are some wonderful, career-making performances. The likes of Andrew Lincoln (Teachers, Love Actually) and Jack Davenport (Pirates of the Caribbean, The Talented Mr Ripley) have certainly used it as a springboard to launch their careers, and we can only hope to see more of the excellent Daniela Nardini and Amita Dhiri in the future.
But for now, savour just what this is. It’s astonishingly confident, moving, at times flat out hilarious but always unmissable. And it’s taken far too long to bring it all to DVD. Make the most of it now it’s here.--Simon Brew
Product Description
United Kingdom released, PAL/Region 2.4 DVD: LANGUAGES: English ( Dolby Digital Stereo ), English ( Subtitles ), WIDESCREEN (1.78:1), SPECIAL FEATURES: Box Set, Interactive Menu, Multi-DVD Set, Scene Access, SYNOPSIS: First aired on British television in 1996, This Life chronicles the lives of a group of house-sharing twentysomething professionals as they try to make sense of life, love and each other. This Life - Series 1: Providing a timely shake-up of TV drama conventions, This Life's refusal to conform was its key to success. While critics deemed it 'immoral', for its graphic depictions of homosexuality and blasé attitude to drug-taking, fans revelled in its honest and objective portrayal of contemporary life. It quickly became blatantly obvious that the friends of the series vastly outnumbered the foes; when production of This Life ended, national outcry for its continuation ensued. The series follows the burgeoning careers of five newly qualified solicitors, who share a house in South London. Anna and Miles can't ignore the attraction between them but the problem is neither will admit to it and seem intent on winding each other up as much as they can. Milly and Egg are deeply in love but their relationship is put under stress as Egg realises that he doesn't want to be a solicitor and Milly begins an affair with her boss. Warren is gay and in therapy to help him come to terms with his sexuality. He is terrified of letting his family know, as they wouldn't understand. This Life - Series 2: This time around, life is even more complicated: Egg is having serious problems with money and direction; Milly enters an affair with her boss, O'Donnell; Anna is still in love with Miles, but having a hard time accepting it; meanwhile, Miles gets engaged, despite his feelings for Anna; Warren gets arrested for 'cruising' in the loc...This Life - Complete Series 1 & 2 - 8-DVD Box Set ( This Life - Entire Series One & Two )
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
47 of 49 people found the following review helpful
By Ben Ripley
Format:DVD
"This Life" was indeed my favourite TV series of the nineties, if not of all time. This was a groundbreaking series, which paved the way for the likes of "Queer as Folk", "Cold Feet", "The Secret Life of Us" and many others.
The two season series follows the lives of Egg, Milly, Miles, Anna, Warren, Ferdy and their friends, colleagues and acquaintances through the highs and lows of modern living with all the trappings of the nineteen-nineties indulgencies.
What made this series superior to the many imitators was its absolute frankness and realism to situations and relationships and the boldness and bravado of the scriptwriters, producers and actors.
Daniella Nardini won a Best Actress British Academy Award for her role in this series and deservedly so. Her portrayal of the messed up, over confident yet insecure Anna is one of the finest pieces of acting in television of its time.
This series was also the springboard for up-and-coming talents including the beautiful Amita Dhiri as anally retentive Milly, the irrepressible Andrew Lincoln as the lost Egg, the heartbreaking performance of Jason Hughes as the hearty Warren, the mesmerising Jack Davenport as the arrogant Miles, the brooding Roman Tikaram as the bisexually bemused Ferdy and the stunning Natasha Little who underplays her role as the scheming Rachel to such an amazing degree it is a wonder she didn't walk away with an award herself.
Add to this eclectic mix the support from Keira Bradshaw-White (whose comic relief often adds a welcome tear of joy) and the pure sexiness of Steve John Shepherd as Jo, you have a recipe for one of the best feasts in television history.
The combined efforts of the superb cast and magnificent writing team (including the multi-talented Amelia Bullmore, better known to many as Alan Partridge's girlfriend 'Sonja' in "I'm Alan Partridge") culminate in pure addictive TV. The final episode has to be one of the most entertaining hours on the screen.
Ten years has been too long to wait, but thankfully it is here at last in its completion.
It rarely gets better than this...
20 of 21 people found the following review helpful
By Clark Morton
Format:DVD
i'd like to sum this up with something pithy like "Friends for adults", but that would be unfair on this jaw-droppingly amazing show. Far too many scenes left me open mouthed and thinking "did that really just happen?" for this prog to be summed up so easily. Maybe my most memorable moment sums it up - Miles and Anna doing the jiggy jiggy on the living room floor while Miles's fiance is asleep upstairs. This sounds cheap and nasty but it is the genius of the writers and cast that makes this such a poignant and heartbreaking scene.
There is far too much here to touch on in 1000 words. What about the groundbreaking depiction of gay sex and relationships, the wonderfully funny writing, the fantastic camera-work, the genius of the characterisation - I can still remember them all - Anna, Miles, Egg, Millie, Ferdie - and I haven't even watched this thing for 10 years..... and an incredible right-hook of an ending!
So much goodness in one little package.
19 of 20 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
This series from the 90's was unknown to me before finding it here on Amazon. I purchased both series because the synopsis sounded like something I would like, and because of the detailed rave reviews by others. Thank you for that.
I was not disappointed; only sad when I popped what I knew to be the last DVD in to the player. These wonderful characters were hard to let go of. I agree with the other reviewer in that a 10 year reunion episode is really needed, at the very least, to give these characters a proper goodbye.
Living in America now, I always get a little nostalgic when I watch a series that takes place in London, but this series stands on its own merit for leaving a lasting impression.
I was not disappointed; only sad when I popped what I knew to be the last DVD in to the player. These wonderful characters were hard to let go of. I agree with the other reviewer in that a 10 year reunion episode is really needed, at the very least, to give these characters a proper goodbye.
Living in America now, I always get a little nostalgic when I watch a series that takes place in London, but this series stands on its own merit for leaving a lasting impression.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
another classic
loved taking myself back to the 90's again and this was one of the cult tv shows to watch - fab
Published 22 hours ago by j bullows
5.0 out of 5 stars
This Life: Complete BBC Series 1 & 2 (DVD)
Service was swift. It took less time to get this product than what it does to get some products from Australia! Great Product
Published 5 months ago by Cheryl Hearn
5.0 out of 5 stars
great series!
Highly recommend this. I watched it when it was first on tv in the 90's, liked it then, love it now. Great characters, storylines and music!
Published 5 months ago by Sarah G
5.0 out of 5 stars
This Life - my life too, in so many ways
This Life, for me, was one of the key shows of the 1990s, and maybe of all time. One that I've never forgotten, and one that changed my life in some important ways. Read more
Published 9 months ago by B. Orr
5.0 out of 5 stars
90's Greatness!
This is one of the best british t.v series ever to grace our screens. This series epitomises everything great about the 90's.. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Gazinho
4.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic flashback to the '90s
Bought this to watch on maternity leave, loved it the first time round and still very current second time round, even with the fabulous 90s fashion! Read more
Published 14 months ago by KN
5.0 out of 5 stars
Almost perfect
I didn't see this the first time round and I am now of a similar age (25) to the characters in This Life. Read more
Published 18 months ago by H. Seymour
5.0 out of 5 stars
This Life :)
I think i was in alevels when This Life was on tv n i loved it, but for some reason missed the last few episodes, really wana see them but need to watch it from the start... Read more
Published on 7 May 2011 by bev.allerston
2.0 out of 5 stars
Doesn't stand the test of time
It's not bad but it is dated and the writing is sometimes simplistic and predictable. I puchased seasons 1 & 2 as the reviews were generally positive; halfway through Season 1 and... Read more
Published on 13 Feb 2011 by Slowhand
4.0 out of 5 stars
Fab series
I'd never seen this series and I really enjoyed it - would recommend it for sure - only 4 stars b/c it took a couple of episodes to get into....
Published on 15 Dec 2010 by SHOSHO
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