Big Mood

There are little golden nuggets throughout Camilla Whitehead's honest, funny script, with an excellent episode six, in which we see how this illness affects not only mood but perception of time, which looks to others like selfishness. Like wine, Big Mood improves over time.

Big Mood manages to be funny, scratchy, sad and strange.

Coughlan could so easily have veered into caricature given the full spectrum of what's required of her, but she knows exactly when to lean in and when to pull back, cementing herself as one of the most versatile actors working today.

The result is a nuanced exploration of mental illness that extends empathy to both friends in equal measure. Big Mood's thought-provoking blend of dark comedy and drama dares to show what poor mental health can really be like. It is a rich sitcom that will linger with you.

It is all well done, especially by a writer making her small screen debut (Whitehall and Coughlan previously created the popular podcast comedy Whistle Through the Shamrocks together) and clearly well intentioned. So you can feel the frustration mount as the damn thing refuses to catch fire, take flight or whatever your preferred metaphor is for wishing.

Being “The Bipolar Comedy” is a good pitch on which Big Mood doesn’t deliver. Relying on two very good actors to conjure up a kooky friendship that we want to watch for three hours is asking a lot. At least it is initially. .... The final episode is by some way the strongest. The question is, will you watch that far?