Can’t Cope, Won’t Cope returns to BBC Three for Season 2
David Farnor | On 11, Jun 2017
Can’t Cope, Won’t Cope returns to BBC Three this week for a second season.
Created and written by playwright Stefanie Preissner, the Irish comedy series follows two young women, Aisling and Danielle, as they navigate life in Dublin and the perilous waters of adulthood.
Aisling (Seána Kerslake, A Date for Mad Mary) would rather be shot from a cannon than change her routine. She’s lived with best friend, Danielle (Nika McGuigan, Philomena), ever since college. Together, they live their lives to the full, with nights out and drink-fuelled adventures aplenty, protecting each other from the sharper edges of the world. But something is stirring. Danielle would never admit it, but she is becoming less and less enamoured with the life they’ve created. The pair have one thing in common: a fear of reality. They don’t know it yet, but reality has them firmly on its radar.
“It’s more Fleabag than Friends,” we wrote in our review of Season 1, describing the sitcom as “not the breezy flatmate sitcom you might be imagining”.
The coming-of-age drama is by Deadpan Pictures, the makers of Moone Boy, and marked Preissner’s first commission for television. With the rights bought up by BBC Three in the UK and First Look Media in the US and Canada, the project was successful enough to earn a second season commission from RTE 2, with the support of BAI, Section 481. Now, Aisling and Danielle are back again on our screens.
Season 2 picks up as the duo struggle with being apart. Aisling’s had her soul sucked out of her by the small town of Mallow for an entire summer. In Vancouver, Danielle’s wish of a life in Canada with more art and less Aisling has come true, but now she has no-one at her side to roll her eyes at. Season 2 will give Aisling and Danielle all the opportunities to get where they want to go, if only they could make better decisions.
Season 2 premieres today on BBC iPlayer, with BBC Three adding new episodes weekly on Mondays. Not caught up? The box set of Season 1 is also available on BBC iPlayer until 1st August 2018.
BBC Three acquires Irish comedy Can’t Cope, Won’t Cope
3rd February 2017
BBC Three has acquired Irish comedy series Can’t Cope, Won’t Cope.
Created and written by playwright Stefanie Preissner in her first commission for television, the six-part series follows two young women, Aisling and Danielle, as they navigate life in Dublin and the perilous waters of adulthood.
Aisling (Seána Kerslake, A Date for Mad Mary) would rather be shot from a cannon than change her routine. She’s lived with best friend, Danielle (Nika McGuigan, Philomena), ever since college. Together, they live their lives to the full, with nights out and drink-fuelled adventures aplenty, protecting each other from the sharper edges of the world. But something is stirring. Danielle would never admit it, but she is becoming less and less enamoured with the life they’ve created…
The pair have one thing in common – a fear of reality. They don’t know it yet, but reality has them firmly on its radar.
The coming-of-age drama is by Deadpan Pictures, the makers of Moone Boy. BBC Three bought the show in a deal with Content Media, continuing the BBC’s commitment to bring the best of international comedy and drama to British audiences. Indeed, it follows the acquisition of Australian swimming drama Barracuda, which premiered at Christmas on BBC Three.
“Can’t Cope, Won’t Cope is a laugh-out-loud series and I’m delighted that it’s coming to BBC Three,” comments Damian Kavanagh, Controller of BBC Three.
Sue Deeks, Head of Programme Acquisition at the BBC, adds: “Can’t Cope, Won’t Cope is the perfect mix of humorous, heartfelt performances and fresh, sharp writing that manages to be both laugh-out-loud funny and incredibly poignant. BBC Three viewers will find so much to enjoy in this gem of a series.”
Preissner says: “The opportunity to bring the voice and experience of young Irish women to a larger audience is fantastic. The team on Can’t Cope did an amazing job capturing that voice and I hope that the BBC Three audience love it. The opportunity to see a whole new group’s reaction to Aisling and Danielle is as exciting as it is terrifying and I’ll be rocking with nerves when it goes out, just like I was the first time.”
The programme will be released later this year.