The Gathering

Update: I've now seen all 6 episodes, I gave it 8 stars because the endings of these dramas are usually weak but now it gets a 10 (and I never give 10s!). I never thought I'd type this but: It's better than Happy Valley.

None of us know what we will do in a situation until that situation arises, this drama tells us that we will probably behave very badly. One character in this drama could be described as a 'high functioning sociopath' all the rest seem like ordinary people who find themselves behaving very badly to each other.

I've seen the first 2 episodes and will definitely be watching the rest.

Good acting, strong and original plot and interesting sub-plots make this one worth watching. Be warned that the language is bad and the 'sex acts' quite realistic (traditional sex seems to have gone out of fashion).

I never have expectations when I watch any new drama series. Because to do so can set one up for disappointment.

So I was delighted to be gripped from start to finish. Firstly, the script was a knock-out, superbly written and created by Helen Walsh, copperfastened by very intelligent directing by Gareth Bryn. But is was the standard of the acting for me that truly astonished me: I was amazed at how so many new and young actors mastered their skill by delivering first-class and resoundingly authentic and believable performances. Bazi and Jess were excellent but Kelly ( Eva Morgan ) and Adam in particular shone in performances that had me hooked from start to finish. I hope and trust we will see a lot more of them on TV in the future.

I can most easily highly recommend this drama series which pulls no punches and can be an eye-opener for parents of teenagers...

Enjoy!

1 star less for the random and unnecessary porn moments, please just cut the camera, if you want me to believe they are children then don't expect me to be comfortable watching them in adult moments!

Ignoring that, what a truly fantastic and believable unravelling of events, the contrast of the working class and the upper class was brilliant, the location and actors were 100% believable as Scouse or from the Wirral which is a refreshing change! The writing was brilliant, every twist and turn, the web of connections, I just loved it, best TV show I've watched in years! We ended up watching over two evenings. I'm not sure the synopsis does this TV show justice as to the content its clearly not just about social media, its social connections, social classes, the underbelly vs the elite, its just brilliant.

The lead actress playing Kelly was amazing, I cannot believe this is her first role, I'll look forward to seeing her in the future, the whole cast were brilliant but her and Adam (Sonny) really stood out as brilliant.

8/10. When I saw a trailer for this I thought it probably is a bit too teenagey for me. But I gave it a go anyway. And once started it quickly became binge worthy. Starting by looking at characters in the sports world, it quickly developed into other life problems as well. The writing allows you to love and hate certain characters and also tries to express why not to judge a book by its cover. Some brilliant acting performances and the best channel 4 drama in a good while. Personally for me Adam (sonny walker) and Kelly (Eva Morgan) were outstanding. But there's lots of characters other different ages and genders will warm too as well. Give this one a chance. You won't regret it.

The first two reviews absolutely sum up the quality of this engaging drama. There's very little to add - extremely well written, founded on some generational and social issues for relevance, has well paced and focused direction, and outstanding performances across the board - highlighted by the lead, Eva Morgan, astonishly in her debut role. There wasn't one weak or sub-par contribution from any of the cast. Industry stalwarts like Coyle and Brown add acting weight and grounding. Whilst all of the young talent on show here perform their socks off to suggest they have very bright futures indeed. Highly recommended viewing.