Henry Lloyd-Hughes explains why Marriage is 'the best drama the BBC will do this year'

Virgin Radio

17 Aug 2022, 10:35

Acting legend Henry Lloyd-Hughes joined Tom Allen on the Chris Evans Breakfast Show with Sky this morning to talk about his new BBC drama Marriage and why it is the best thing you will see on the channel this year.

The new series premiered on Sunday (15th August) and has already been met with praise from fans and critics alike.

Starring Sean Bean as Ian and Nicola Walker as Emma, the series follows a married couple as they approach their 27th wedding anniversary and holds a microscope on the ups, downs and complexities of long-term relationships.

Henry plays the character of Jamie, Emma’s seedy boss that threatens to cause a rift between the couple and, according to him, this is a series that cannot be missed.

Speaking to Tom Allen about the drama, the actor said: “I think it’s so deeply, painfully truthful in all the ways a drama can be and I recognise it’s a bit different. Especially if you’re used to seeing Sean Bean in Game of Thrones or Nicola Walker fighting crime, but I also think that this is the best drama that the BBC will do this year.”

One of the reasons Henry believes this, is because of the genius writing and directing of Stefan Golaszewski- also responsible for the hit BBC show Him & Her.

For Henry, the beauty is in the mundane scenes of the show that Stefan has woven throughout.

He explained: “It takes a certain type of genius to have the audacity to say, ‘I'm gonna write a scene in which a Dad is doing the dishwasher and he doesn't know what to say to his daughter.’

“Once you get into the world of those pauses, I find it very profoundly moving and agonising to watch in a way and I suppose, it's like when people first watched The Office, and there was a moment where they turned around to each other and said, ‘Hang on a second, why am I watching a show about a paper distributor for distributing company?’”

In a world where big-budget TV shows and dramas seem to be the norm, Marriage offers a welcome respite and draws us back into the realities of day-to-day life and, as Henry says, there will always be space for that.

He added: “It's an interesting time in television because the scope of it has expanded so much and we are used to now exploring the billion dollar spaceships exploding missiles and Dragon side of things so incredibly thoroughly and more power to all the people that enjoy that.

“Having said that, I also think that it's a completely valid and interesting experiment to try and explore the silences of unpacking the dishwasher.

All four episodes of Marriage are now available to stream on BBC iPlayer.

For more great interviews listen to  The Chris Evans Breakfast Show with Sky, weekdays from 6:30am on Virgin Radio, or  catch up on-demand here.