Secret Diary of a Call Girl
SHOWTIME | Release Date: October 4, 2007
CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
54
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 26 Critic Reviews
Positive:
11
Mixed:
10
Negative:
5
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
91
Entertainment WeeklyGillian Flynn
Season 1 Review: The series shows the darker side of Belle's work without getting into that porno-punishing crap so often disguised as morality lessons. The series, like Belle, is far too smart to succumb to such an average attitude. Read full review
83
Entertainment WeeklyClark Collis
Season 2 Review: The script portrays its subject in a dubiously good light but is gem-packed. Read full review
80
Boston GlobeMatthew Gilbert
Season 1 Review: The emotional strains of keeping her secret from Ben (Iddo Goldberg) grow across the eight episodes and lend the season an unexpected poignancy. Read full review
80
Chicago TribuneMaureen Ryan
Season 1 Review: The real pleasures of this half-hour show come from its sly sense of humor and from Belle’s practical yet adventurous approach to her job. Read full review
80
SalonHeather Havrilesky
Season 1 Review: While I realize my entire description makes the show sound hopelessly shallow and unrealistic (which it is), it's also smart and well acted and at times, funny. Read full review
80
TV Guide MagazineMatt Roush
Season 1 Review: It’s titillating without being truly trashy, because it also has heart--for that, thank Bil-lie Piper (formerly of Doctor Who), who brings wit and warmth, but also a crisp and unpredictable edge, to the tricky role of Belle by night/Hannah by day. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleTim Goodman
Season 1 Review: Like "Sex and the City" - oh, no, not that comparison - the half hour flies by and you realize that the human relationships depicted here are interesting and worth mining and Belle's life choices are entertaining. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleTim Goodman
Season 2 Review: At times slight--the trick of talking into the camera was never novel, and the absence of an erotic backbone made it feel partly contrived--Secret Diary of a Call Girl nevertheless ends up at an unexpected place: smartly satisfying. Read full review
70
VarietyPhil Gallo
Season 1 Review: DeMange draws out the helplessness and frustrations of the men who visit Belle, which are complemented by Tat Radcliffe's framing of the action. Read full review
70
Philadelphia Daily NewsEllen Gray
Season 1 Review: As the season's eight episodes progress, and she's forced to open her life to a bit of outside scrutiny, cracks begin to appear in the facade. And while that's not enough to turn her into a victim--we're not talking Lifetime here--it does gradually transform her into the character Showtime most needs her to be: someone whose company might actually be worth paying for. Read full review
63
Slant MagazineArthur Ryel-Lindsey
Season 1 Review: This is hour-long material forced into a 30-minute timeslot, though some of its plots are strung together--at times held up by--Piper's silent, meaningful looks at the camera. Read full review
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