Emotional TV Part 1: The C Word

The point is that when it comes to entertainment, I am a psychopath.

 

So colour me surprised when not one but two programmes aired over the bank holiday weekend, leaving me a little emotional. In similar news, my reputation as a hard man has abandoned me.

 

The C Word was the first programme to render me a crying wreck weeping in the corner (OK not quite!). It aired on Sunday night at 20:30 and starred the versatile actress Sheridan Smith as a seemingly carefree editor whose life is turned upside down when she’s diagnosed with breast cancer. The difference to this from every other cancer story is that her character Lisa Lynch decides to write her thoughts and feelings down on a funny and honest blog called ‘Alright Tit’. (Let’s hope I don’t get into trouble for using the word ‘Tit’!)

 

 

Even though it dealt with the tragic subject of advanced and later terminal cancer, light and shade was used equally well here. Lisa’s upbeat attitude in the face of her particular adversity resulted in some great one-liners that made me giggle. Her husband Pete’s equally dry sense of humour was also appreciated and Paul Nicholls and Sheridan Smith worked well together as a believable husband and wife duo.

 

Lisa’s parents, and their struggle to get used to the Internet as they read their daughter’s blogs, were also hilarious, again resulting in some great one-liners like “Who’s that Anonymous who’s always putting his two-penneth in?’ (paraphrased). The names that Lisa and her brother call each other, which I won’t repeat here, were endearing. But more importantly of all, the lighter moments showed the humanity of the supporting characters in a way that the darker moments weren’t doing to quite the same effect.

 

As for those darker moments, the best word to use for some of those scenes were ‘uncomfortable’ and I mean that in the best possible way. The scene that comes to mind is Lisa’s appointment where the terrible confirmation that she has advanced breast cancer is revealed; and while she tries to remain strong and ask all the relevant questions, her husband falls apart while her mother shouts “How can you have breast cancer? You’re 28!” It was uncomfortable because it felt like we were watching those events really happen rather than the actors acting out what was in the script. If anything, it felt too realistic. But maybe that isn't a bad thing.

 

We see all those moments that we might expect to see in a drama about cancer. For example, the moment Lisa’s hair falls out and she worries that she’s ugly because she looks more like a cancer victim. Or that heartrending scene where she can’t get out of the bath and her husband carries her into the bedroom and sets her down like a baby. Sheridan Smith really puts her all into those moments. However we also get things we wouldn't necessarily have expected, like the reminder of how cancer has the ability to take away everything a person has - looks, self-confidence etc. Or how people find themselves dishing out on wigs they don't want to hide their bald head out of necessity (or get a cheap NHS wig, I guess). These scenes were surprising but also refreshingly honest and kept The C Word from being 'just another drama about cancer'.

 

 

What I believe would have been a happy ending if not for tragic events (more on that in a minute) occurred about an hour into the episode. Lisa manages to get her self-confidence together long enough to attend her brother’s wedding. “What was amazing,” she writes afterwards (and again this is paraphrased) “Is that I was enjoying myself so much, I forgot I had cancer.” She’s then told that the treatment worked, she’s free of cancer, Stephen Fry likes her blog (the equivalent of an Internet seal of approval!), and her book ‘The C Word’ is published and becomes a bestseller.

 

The tragic events that occurred in real life happened I believe while they were filming. The real Lisa Lynch died in March 2013 after her cancer returned and was deemed incurable. All credit to the drama, they decided to go ahead and add this to the story via a three year time jump. What was missing from this extra half-hour though was this. We didn’t get to see the reactions of the characters to the news that Lisa’s cancer was terminal. We just ended up in a psychologist’s office with Lisa’s voice-over informing us that her cancer had returned and she was going to die. If the family didn’t want those scenes to be filmed then that’s completely understandable. It just felt like something that should have been shown.

 

The most powerful scene however is when Lisa opens up to her friend that she thinks she’s handling the diagnosis all wrong and should be releasing balloons on Hampstead Heath or something equally as daft. To which her friend replies that she should do what she wants because it’s her diagnosis and she should handle it her way. Not only was the scene done well, it took me back to the reality show My Last Summer last year which followed a group of terminally ill people. One of the misconceptions people have is that just because people are dying, they should be crossing off their bucket list. This however is a rant that doesn’t belong on this blog but it was something that I’m glad was touched on.

 

 

We didn’t get to see Lisa’s final moments on screen and for that I’m glad. It would have felt intrusive for those scenes to be transmitted, even though this was a TV drama and even though this wasn’t the real Lisa. It would have felt like we were actually there, invading the privacy of the real Lisa and her family. It was a wise choice instead to end on her holiday in Brighton, when she united with three of her blogger friends and give us a happy if bittersweet ending.

 

I can’t remember the last drama I watched which had so much emotional heart. The C Word wasn’t too depressing (thankfully else I’d still be a crying mess!) but it stuck with me afterwards. I even gushed about what a great drama this was on Twitter and this is something that doesn’t happen often (with the exception of Poldark). If you haven’t seen this then please catch it on iPlayer because this is something you don’t want to miss!

 

Coming soon: The second programme that made me a tad emotional. Just a tad, mind. Let’s not ruin my reputation here!