The Duchess (Katherine Ryan) on Netflix *spoilers*

[HardStare]

Anyone else binged this?
It had some moments that made me laugh out loud but still just weird - I'm not sure how many single mums mythologise motherhood like that and the spousification of the daughter (who was precocious bordering on unlikeable) was odd.
The mother-daughter team vs the world theme isn't new nor the topic of single motherhood (the hungover games by Sophie Heawood came out last month) but here, it's a strange narrative driven by the daughter's demand for a sister which is jarring, along with the practicalities of financing two kids when you are a potter. I'm sure ceramic artists up and down the country are throwing popcorn at the screen thinking Demi Moore has a lot to answer for.
What did you all think?

I thought it odd that making the same naked torso pot en masse resulted in a lifestyle living in London in what is probably a multimillion pound home with endless designer clothes, private school for the girl and “the best” plastic surgeon to do “fat transferances”.

She goes on about how her former boy band ex has “nothing” but I ended up feeling like she must have gotten a nice £2-4m nest egg from a paternity suit before Olives birth and her story about being a self made artiste was just another of her aberrant self indulgent behaviours.

It was a funny show but I really did not like her character that was constantly loudly embarrassing herself and swearing constantly. I guess I give it points for not showing a good person, but instead doing a show about an unlikeable bad mother and her impact on her daughter (her daughter Olive is lied to from start to finish by the mother). She has moments of humanity though. The haircut scene where she’s almost at tears is one.

I made the same assumption because of the 'golddigger' headlines alluded to in the interview bit - that she had the house and studio from the boyband success before he became a has-been.
I didn't notice the swearing , says more about me than the show, but I am probably not the demographic - although dysfunctional bordering on toxic, she appeared to love her kid to the point of infantilising her/raising an entitled one/whilst bordering on spousification at times...I prefer recent shows dealing with PND/challenges/maternal ambivalence so The Letdown, Workin Moms, Catastrophe, Motherland.
Although what it shared with Motherland is a lead character who, as you say, is hard to like.

I'm not a parent. It's interesting you mentioned catastrophe as I found myself thinking of that show, how brilliant it was. I gave enjoyed the comedienne when I've seen her but I didn't like The Duchess. It seemed "in your face" crass, on repeat, without the cleverness. I stopped after the 1st episode.

Sharon Horgan writes flawed women very well. Katherine Ryan was going all out for an unapologetic bitch persona with flickers of feminism but it didn't sit tonally with the mother-daughter unconditional love and wasn't consistent across all six episodes.

I'm in the process of binging it and I am enjoying it.

But living with a child like Olive.... wow. That'd take some serious patience (!)

I like Katherine Ryan and was looking forward to this. I found it funny but so so empty. I stopped watching because the humour wasn’t enough to get me through.

I thought it was a bit rubbish. I watched 3 episodes but had to pack it in. There's a thread on reddit im on called "not like the other girls" and Katherine reminds me of every post/meme I've seen on it. "Too cool for school"...

I once upon a time knew the actor who played Shep but that wasn't enough to keep my interest.

The humor wasn't my kind of thing, and the relationships were a bit weird.

Off topic Evan is the spit of F1 driver Daniel Ricardo

I binge watched it all yesterday. Which has more to say about my boring Saturday rather the quality of the programme.
It was a bit shit. Precious Olive got on my nerves.

I started watching it and like Katherine Ryan but this just seems a blurry line between a storyline and her stage comedy set
I'll carry on but I'm not bothered

I hate what she’s done to her face she was never like that until she did that show that Joan Rivers used to do. How’d you get so Rich? She interviewed a plastic surgeon on there and never looked the same again!

SMILF was so much better and realistic.

I really liked it, from the things Katherine has said in her stand up it came across as an exaggerated fictionalized account of her relationship with her own Daughter.

I loved it. Thought it was hilarious. The choices she made and her poor boyfriend who kept coming back.

Not sure why a previous poster thought the daughter was at a private school. I didn't pick up on that...

Last episode/ending spoilt it but rest was quite good

I've only found a few bits slightly amusing. Her character is very immature and tiresome and I can't understand why Evan would be interested in her.

Catastrophe is so much better as are other series by female comedians such as Roisin Conaty and Aisling Bea.

I watched it all but yes, felt her character was very two dimensional and so clearly in the wrong a lot that it was hard to relate to her.

And I do not know anyone, never mind a single mother, who lives in a house like that in London! It would have been good to have an explanation of how she could afford to!

I ended up finding Catastrophe annoying though because (like lots of tv shows!) they apparently easily bought and stunningly renovated a £3million pound house in de Beauvoir on a teacher/mid level marketers salary, didn't they? 2 bed poky flat in zone 5 more like. Even back in the 90s when houses were much cheaper, I don't remember things like Men Behaving Badly or 2.4 Children having such obscenely lush housing.

Loved Catastrophe too - the first series especially. Later on it got a bit bogged down in domestic drudgery and lost its way a bit I think.

Didn’t like The Duchess. I used to like KR a lot, bought tickets to her stage show Glitter Room which was v funny (and obviously the basis for a lot of this show) - I think it’s available in Netflix. This show was just a bit meh, the acting wasn’t brilliant (she’s not an actor and it shows). Her friend/colleague was also really unnatural as an actor, didn’t like the ex, he was a pointless caricature, DD was seemingly very much based on her own DD, who I guess has had to grow up quickly, being the DD of someone who travels a lot for work. She appeared in the stage show when I saw it, so obviously spends a lot of time around adults. My cousin was like that and ended up being a bit of a diva herself

I echo the PP who called it hollow.

I think that flawed, outwardly confident women are a current trope but have been executed far better by Sharon Horgan, Michaela Coel and Phoebe Waller-Bridge. This ain't no Fleabag. KR seemed to write a two-dimensional character, which is odd as it is based on her, unless she really is that vacuous.

I stopped after ep 3 when I realised I hadn't laughed once and was more bewildered than intrigued.

London is shot beautifully though and the costume designer looked like they had fun too. So 2 out of 10 on those points for me.

Nada for writing, direction or acting.

I enjoyed it. Think the outfits, soundtrack, and filmography were stunning.

Olive annoyed me- too precocious. And yeah, having a baby with a shit man you hate because your 9 year old wants you to is ridiculous but it’s a comedy show and not real life so not taking it too seriously.

I get the feeling she’s a hugely successful potter. Dev is supporting a big family on her income, Katherine had loads of money. They were guest speakers at a festival, and had commissions from Adele.

Thought the guy playing Evan wasn’t a great actor. I think he’s Sara Pascoe’s real life boyfriend?

All in all, worth a watch and I’d like another series.

I watched more today and actually found it fresh and liked it more once I got over the house envy and ridiculousness. It's not meant to be real so it's fine

I couldn’t stand it, all the cliches made me cringe. I just thought she came across as a horrible attention seeking twit. Turned off after 10 minutes.

Watched the first episode last night but only lasted 10 mins. The humour was very contrived. Even in that short time it felt every cliche had been trotted out. I think KR is really funny but this wasn’t for me. Ended up rewatching Parks & Recreation instead.

She's not a good actress.
The massive house - from making boob pots?
The Carrie Bradshaw wardrobe.
Gave it an episode and a half.

Nothing added up. KR goes to the doctor asking about donor insemination. Doc says at 37 she needs to get a move on.

She was supposed to have Given birth to Olive when she was 22. Olive is 10?

The living in the massive house, loads of money? Where did it come from?

Doc says at 37 she needs to get a move on

He says that egg quality reduces as a woman approaches mid-thirties and she needs to get a move-on. Katherine then says she’s only 33.

I think with the money thing, it’s meant to be a hugely successful business. She and Bev were guests at a festival, and also had a commission for Adele. Plus, I get the feeling she did well financially from Olive’s dad, when he was famous and had money.