MIX TAPE. tue and wed 9pm bbc 2 - TV PACE.NO SPOILERS

[Blondeshavemorefun]

new 4 part drama. On tue and Wed x 2 weeks

Sometimes all we want to watch is a swoon-worthy romance, and a nostalgic new BBC series sounds exactly like the kind of telly we need right now – especially if you loved One Day, Normal People and hit 2000 movie High Fidelity.

Based on the novel of the same name, Mix Tape will take viewers from 1980s Sheffield to the present day, with our leading couple connected by the power of music.

Already winning awards (Mix Tapewon the SXSW 2025 TV Spotlight Audience Award,) the four-part series has now been acquired by the BBC, ready to stream later this summer.

Sue Deeks, Head of BBC Programme Acquisition, said: "Accompanied by an absolutely cracking '80s soundtrack, Mix Tape is an enjoyable blend of nostalgia, romance and heartbreak – it really is the perfect summer treat!"

Mix Tape: Plot
The story, adapted from Jane Sanderson's novel, follows Daniel and Alison from their '80s teenage romance to the modern-day reality of their adult relationships while living on opposite sides of the world.

The synopsis reads: "In Sheffield, 1989, teenagers Daniel and Alison meet at a house party and bond over their shared love for music.

The relationship they forge that night follows them forever, and leave them wondering what could have been.

"Twenty years later, Daniel is in Sheffield, and Alison in Sydney. Despite the distance, Daniel reaches out to Alison in the hope that they might be able to rekindle that spark that once illuminated their young lives.

"The pair reconnect through a song from their shared past and explore their burning curiosity to understand if this is the love, and the life, they were meant to have."

Mix Tape: Cast
Teresa Palmer (The Clearing, The Fall Guy) and Jim Sturgess (Across the Universe, Cloud Atlas) will lead the cast as Alison and Daniel in the present day. Florence Hunt (Bridgerton, Cursed) and Rory Walton-Smith will play the young couple in the '80s.

Mix Tape: Trailer
Filmed on location in Dublin and Sydney, Mix Tape has already aired in Australia,

I'll watch it for Jim Sturgess 😍😆

Name rings a bell. What else has he been in ?

I loved the book so really hoping this is as good!

That depends if they stick to the book

many dramas don’t

Tonight is manic for tv / 3 shows I watch /want to watch - all at same time

mix tape e1 starts tonight

then have clashing

all 9pm obviously 🙄

couple next door e2

insomnia e4

I read it just over a year ago. They've shoved the timeline forwards 10 years, probably to make the present day now (in the book the present day was 2012).

I'm from Sheffield so watching with a keen eye. There's no Albert Bridge and we've never had red buses like they showed.

The football match was the Sheffield Derby and it wouldn't have been good natured, it'd be total carnage.

Dan didn't live in Sheffield in the current timeline but in Edinburgh (or was it Glasgow?) so they changed that. And the CGI depiction of the canal basin didn't get it right.

Otherwise I really enjoyed it.

I didn’t get in with this. Tried for 30mins and it’s a no go for me

Shame as looked good

so hope others enjoy

Ahh I am liking it so far so will give it a chance, is making me feel so old though it seems like school days are such a long time ago now!

Me too. I had a few niggles - I'd imagined older Alison as a brunette not blonde, and I thought they made her mum seem a bit of a caricature, whereas the book depicted her as much more of a run down alcoholic, but overall I enjoyed it and hope the remaining episodes don't lose too much from the book. I think the casting of young and older Dan is great, they look very similar.

watched episode 1,
really enjoyed it

Have they kept the correct songs on the mix tape?
I read the book during the hot early summer of lockdown and had the Spotify playlist of the mix tape playing whilst sitting in the garden reading.
If they've changed the songs I'm not watching 😡

Yes the only thing bothering me is that the older Alison looks nothing like the younger Alison! They could have at least had her with brown hair or the same colour eyes!

We watched the first episode of this last night - I also read the book back in about 2020 and remember thinking the characters were overwhelmingly selfish.

The Sheffield parts are all filmed in Ireland (it got funding from an Irish body I think) which feels a bit off. Agree that older Alison doesn’t ring true to young Alison.

I’m glad some of you enjoyed it shame I didn’t have it. Had a good write up.

This was my review. I agree with you. (No spoilers!)

Quick review:
I'm from Sheffield and I really connected with the descriptions of Sheffield, especially references to Sheffield Wednesday, and the author brought the city to life. I also enjoyed the use of mixtapes as a plot device because they bring back memories, more so than generic playlists, playing into my appreciation for personal touches and nostalgia. The book's exploration of contrasting social backgrounds, families, and values was interesting and made me think about social dynamics. Dan and Ali, though initially intriguing with the "One That Got Away" element, came across as self-centred and smug. I might have preferred more relatable or well-developed characters. In particular Alison's characterisation as flawless and her sudden success as a writer felt unbelievable as there was no evidence of her having developed as an individual between 1979 and 2012.

Self-centred and smug nails it. We watched episode two last night. Parts of it made me cringe!

I don’t know if I’m remembering the book wrong but the typing out of lyrics to send one another was a proper side-eye moment between me and DP - wasn’t it links to playlists or something? We’ll watch the other two but I’m guessing the split timeline will be over now and the “young” parts are definitely the better elements of it.

I’m 2 episodes in and enjoying it! Much better than One Day, there’s more chemistry between the young Alison and Daniel and they seem believable. Like pp agree about the casting of old and young Dan and I like Jim Sturgess! However not really warming to the older Alison or Dan’s wife (Katja?).

I’m enjoying the music! It’s my era (a few years older than the characters), and I’m glad they didn’t go for obvious 80s choices.

I’ve not read the book.

i am enjoying it
dan's wife is well played, demanding the road trip.
the young characters are great

Dan's wife is Caitlin in the book. No idea why they would change her name. It seems pointless.

I couldn’t work out if she was meant to be American, Irish or Australian. Looked up the actress and she’s Danish but not sure if that’s relevant to the storyline!

No it's not. In the book she's an Irish redhead!

I needed a Northern drama with realistic settings that was easy to watch. Interesting that some of it was filmed in Ireland.
I remember when I was 17 a boy made me a mix tape. Over 50 years later I still remember the tracks. Mix Tape ticked my boxes ✅️

The Irish (and original) pronunciation of Caitlín is Kathleen. If the character is Irish and it’s set in the 80s maybe they wanted to avoid using the Katelyn pronunciation as it wouldn’t be authentic…and so avoided using it altogether?

I’m enjoying it. I’ve not read the book so I’m assuming she left for Aus and she was pregnant.

Interested to see what younger viewers made of it. The music is so much my generation - but the rituals of making the mixtape were even more evocative