The Cuckoo (TV series)

For the British sitcom, see Cuckoo (TV series).

The Cuckoo
Created byBarunka O’Shaughnessy
Screenplay byBarunka O’Shaughnessy
Rebecca Wojciechowski
Directed byBrian O'Malley
Starring
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes4
Production
Executive producers
  • Suzi McIntosh
  • Mike Benson
  • Jonathan Ford
  • Barunka O’Shaughnessy
Production company
  • Clapperboard Studios
Original release
NetworkChannel 5
Release8 April (2024-04-08) –
12 April 2024 (2024-04-12)

The Cuckoo is a 2024 British television series broadcast on Channel 5 in April 2024. It stars Jill Halfpenny, Claire Goose and Lee Ingleby.

Synopsis

A family who have moved from the city to the countryside take in a mysterious lodger, Sian.[1]

Cast

Production

The four-part series is from Clapperboard Studios and created by Barunka O’Shaughnessy. Filming took place in County Wicklow, Ireland.[2] Filming took place in October 2023, with Brian O'Malley as director. Episodes were written by Rebecca Wojciechowski and O’Shaughnessy.[3]

The series has Claire Goose and Lee Ingleby cast as a married couple with their daughter played by Freya Hannan-Mills, with Jill Halfpenny as Sian, their new Lodger and Marjorie Yates also cast.[4][5] Halfpenny was initially in line to play the role of Jessica but pushed to play the protagonist role of Sian.[6]

Broadcast

The series was broadcast in the UK on four consecutive nights from 8 April 2024 on Channel 5.[7]

Reception

Emily Watkins of the i newspaper described it as "well-paced, well-acted, well-scripted".[8] Alexi Duggins in The Guardian described the first episode as having "clunky dialogue".[9]

References

  1. ^ Chaplin, Emily (3 April 2024). "Channel 5's The Cuckoo cast, storyline, episodes and where it was filmed". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  2. ^ Guyoncourt, Sally (8 April 2024). "The Cuckoo cast, filming locations and episode guide for Channel 5 drama". inews. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  3. ^ "Filming begins on The Cuckoo by Clapperboard for Channel 5". Televisual. 24 October 2023. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  4. ^ Belcher, Annette (8 April 2024). "Cuckoo on Channel 5: What it's about, how many episodes, who's in the cast and where you've seen them before". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  5. ^ Cormack, Morgan (8 April 2024). "The Cuckoo cast: Who stars in the Channel 5 drama?". Radio Times. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  6. ^ "Is The Cuckoo based on a true story? Inspiration behind Channel 5 drama". Radio Times. 8 April 2024. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  7. ^ Nisbet, Megan (3 April 2024). "Channel 5 The Cuckoo start time, cast list, filming locations, plot and how many episodes". Walesonline. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  8. ^ Watkins, Emily (8 April 2024). "The Cuckoo review: The best weeknight drama on TV". i news. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  9. ^ Duggins, Alexi (8 April 2024). "TV tonight: Kate Winslet and Hugh Grant's divisive political satire". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 April 2024.