Starstruck review: another series of the delightful BBC Three romcom
A ‘slow-burn treat’ starring the ‘charismatic’ Rose Matafeo
“I was nervous” about watching the third season of the BBC Three romcom “Starstruck”, because I so enjoyed the first two, said Deborah Ross in The Mail on Sunday. I needn’t have worried: “it’s witty and warm and terrific, all over again”. “The premise, essentially, is ‘Notting Hill’ in reverse.” The romance is between Tom (Nikesh Patel), a film star, and Jessie (Rose Matafeo), a New Zealand expat who has a dead-end job at a London cinema.
At the end of the last season, they got together; at the start of this one, the “happy-ever-after” we assume had been theirs comes unstuck in a montage showing them squabbling, sulking and finally splitting up. Jessie finds a new love interest in the form of an electrician (Lorne MacFadyen) who can match her for banter; but is it really all over with Tom? Written by Matafeo and Alice Snedden, “Starstruck” cleverly “both embraces and subverts Richard Curtis tropes”, and it rests on Matafeo’s performance, which is so charismatic you forgive Jessie her many flaws.
The show suffered a bit of second-season “script floppiness”, said Barbara Ellen in The Observer. But the writing is much “sharper” now and there are some great cameos – Minnie Driver returns as Tom’s agent and John Simm pops up as a “pretentious über-thesp”. It remains, in all, “a slow-burn treat”. A “low commitment, timewise”, the show provides good returns, said Pierra Willix in Metro. Heartwarming but not saccharine, it delivers “laugh-out-loud moments” – and you always wish the episodes were a bit longer.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
How to watch: BBC iPlayer
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
5 high-caliber cartoons about Kristi Noem shooting her puppy
Cartoons Artists take on the rainbow bridge, a farm upstate, and more
By The Week US Published
-
The Week Unwrapped: Why is the world running low on blood?
Podcast Scientists believe universal donor blood is within reach – plus, the row over an immersive D-Day simulation, and an Ozempic faux pas
By The Week Staff Published
-
Rishi Sunak's asylum spat with Ireland explained
In Depth Irish government plans to override court ruling that the UK is unsafe for asylum seekers
By The Week UK Published
-
Properties of the week: houses with enchanting gardens
The Week Recommends Featuring pretty homes in Hampshire, Devon and West Sussex
By The Week UK Published
-
Venice Biennale 2024: from the good to the bad to the downright 'bizarre'
The Week Recommends Central exhibition features the work of some 330 artists
By The Week UK Published
-
Sunset Song: gripping theatre that's 'close to magic'
The Week Recommends Morna Young's 'first-class adaptation' of Lewis Grassic Gibbon's classic novel
By The Week UK Published
-
Challengers: 'the most purely pleasurable film of the year so far'
The Week Recommends Zendaya plays a former tennis player turned coach in this 'almost ridiculously' sexy drama
By The Week UK Published
-
Baby Reindeer: a 'compelling and unforgettable' series
The Week Recommends Comedian Richard Gadd's disturbing Netflix drama about stalking
By The Week UK Published
-
Daniel Wallace's 5 favorite books that should not be forgotten
Feature The author recommends works by Italo Calvino, Evan S. Connell, and more
By The Week US Published
-
6 picturesque homes in Arizona
Feature Featuring a glass elevator in Sedona and a grotto waterfall in Paradise Valley
By The Week Staff Published
-
Silversea cruise review: a Central and North American adventure
The Week Recommends An incredible journey featuring cultural exploration, cooking classes, comfort and more
By Yasemen Kaner-White Published