David Farnor | On 31, May 2020

Hot on the heels of ITV’s Isolation Stories comes another series made in lockdown that capitalises on its remote-production format by making it all about that challenge – the human desire, nay necessity, to stay connected.

Called “unprecedented”, after the most over-used word of the past three months, the BBC Four anthology brings together a staggering list of talent, both in front of and behind the camera. A cast that includes Meera Syal, Julian Barratt, Denise Gough, Olivia Williams, Paul Chahidi, James Norton and Paterson Joseph is enough reason to tune in alone, but the scripts they’re given – including from John Donnelly, James Graham and Tim Price – match the star wattage with understated nuance and heartfelt insight.

“It’s like Captain America – when he came out the ice the world had changed!” declares one teen in James Graham’s Viral. It’s a rare moment where TV pauses to consider the effect of the coronanvirus pandemic on young people, who have seen their dreams, ambitions and hopes for the future eradicated and overshadowed by uncertainty and loss. It follows a group of teens as they chat through the idea of creating a viral video on TikTok – and, briefly, the potential of a new romantic connection being formed amid the chaos.

Equally warm-hearted is the masterful Penny, which sees Lennie James deliver a monologue to camera in a hotel room. A man experiencing homelessness, he captures in his yearning facial expressions his longing to reach out to a loved one he hasn’t seen since the pandemic tore them apart. Who exactly Penny is only makes the whole story all the more effective, balancing the lightness and relief of seeing a loved one’s face with the pang of separation.

Elsewhere, Katherine Parkinson delivers a strong performance as a woman trying to get her parents to listen to how serious the crisis is, while Gemma Arterton plays a women being abused in the affecting Safer at Home. But there are moments of dark levity too, as one company meeting trying to arrange the delivery of life-saving equipment turns into a shrewdly funny example of online bullying and cowardly censorship.

Produced by Headlong and Century Films, the result is a low-key but high-quality zoom through the avenues of society hat are constantly changing – from capitalism and culture to work and relationships – that proves you only need a camera and an internet connection to make moving, pertinent drama. Unprecedented? Here’s hoping this and ITV’s Isolation Stories have set a new precedent for storytellers across the UK to keep telling the stories we need to hear.

Unprecedented is available on BBC iPlayer until May 2021.

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