''Too Close'', also known as ''Under the Skin'', is a 2021 three-part

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...

miniseries A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format h ...

directed by

Susan Tully Susan Tully (born 20 October 1967) is an English actress, television producer, and television director. Her most prominent television acting roles were those of rebellious teenager Suzanne Ross in ''Grange Hill'' and single mother Michelle Fowl ...

and based on the 2018 novel written by

Clara Salaman Clara Rachel Salaman (born 19 May 1967 in Islington, London) is an English actress and author. She is known for playing the role of DS Claire Stanton in the long running ITV drama ''The Bill'' from 1999 to 2001. She first appeared on The Bil ...

under the pen name "Natalie Daniels". The series follows Dr. Emma Robertson as she assesses the

sanity Sanity (from la, sāntā) refers to the soundness, rationality, and health of the human mind, as opposed to insanity. A person is sane if they are rational. In modern society, the term has become exclusively synonymous with ''compos mentis'' ( ...

of 'yummy mummy' Connie Mortensen, accused of attempted murder. For their performances, both

Emily Watson Emily Margaret Watson (born 14 January 1967) is an English actress. She began her career on stage and joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1992. In 2002, she starred in productions of ''Twelfth Night'' and ''Uncle Vanya'' at the Donmar War ...

and

Denise Gough Denise Gough (born 28 February 1980) is an Irish actress. She is the elder sister of the actress Kelly Gough. She has worked in film, television, video games and theatre. Gough is a double Olivier Award winner. Early life Born in Ennis, Cou ...

were nominated for the BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress in 2022.

Plot

Forensic psychiatrist Forensic psychiatry is a subspeciality of psychiatry and is related to criminology. It encompasses the interface between law and psychiatry. According to the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, it is defined as "a subspecialty of psychiat ...

Dr Emma Robertson is assigned to assess the

of 'yummy mummy' Connie Mortensen, accused of the

attempted murder Attempted murder is a crime of attempt in various jurisdictions. Canada Section 239 of the ''Criminal Code'' makes attempted murder punishable by a maximum of life imprisonment. If a gun is used, the minimum sentence is four, five or seven ye ...

of two children. Robertson begins to feel sympathetic towards Mortensen, who claims to be suffering from

dissociative amnesia Psychogenic amnesia or dissociative amnesia is a memory disorder characterized by sudden retrograde episodic memory loss, said to occur for a period of time ranging from hours to years to decades. More recently, "dissociative amnesia" has been d ...

Cast

Main characters

Minor characters

Production

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

commissioned the series, based on a novel by Clara Salaman under the pen name "Natalie Daniels", in September 2019. The series was produced by Snowed-In Productions. ''Too Close'' was filmed on location in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

, with scenes between Watson and Gough filmed at

HM Prison Holloway HM Prison Holloway was a closed category prison for adult women and young offenders in Holloway, London, England, operated by His Majesty's Prison Service. It was the largest women's prison in western Europe, until its closure in 2016. Hist ...

. Writer Salaman and lead actress Watson are old friends.

Release

The series first aired in the United Kingdom, from 12 to 14 April 2021 on

. All3Media International handled the international sales of the series. ''Too Close'' premiered on

AMC+ AMC may refer to: Film and television * AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain * AMC Networks, an American entertainment company ** AMC (TV channel) ** AMC+, streaming service ** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company *** AM ...

in the United States on 20 May 2021. The series premiered in

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

on Yle TV1 under the title ''Under the Skin'' (, ) on 9 May 2021.

Reception

Critical

Critical reception to the series in the United Kingdom was positive.

Lucy Mangan Lucy Katherine Mangan''England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916–2007'' (born 1974) is a British journalist and author. She is a columnist, features writer and TV critic for ''The Guardian''. A major part of her writing is related t ...

gave the series five out of five stars. The ''

London Evening Standard The ''Evening Standard'', formerly ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), also known as the ''London Evening Standard'', is a local free daily newspaper in London, England, published Monday to Friday in tabloid format. In October 2009, after be ...

's'' Katie Rosseinsky and ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

's'' Ed Cumming rated the series four out of five stars. John Anderson of ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

'' praised Tully's direction and the performances of Watson and Gough.

Public

The ITV premiere drew 4.8 million viewers, a 20.6 percent share of the viewing market.

References

External links

* * {{Improve categories, date=July 2021 ITV television dramas 2021 British television series debuts 2021 British television series endings 2020s British drama television series 2020s British television miniseries English-language television shows Television series by Snowed-In Productions