Love makes you do weird things
The awkward giddiness of budding romance is captured in new series Alice & Jack, which follows two lovers over 16 tumultuous years
On their first highly charged date in a bar, via a dating app of course, successful finance worker Alice relentlessly grills sweet but lonely biomedical researcher Jack about his job before taking him back to her flat to seduce him. The next morning she kicks him out, after making him promise not to call her. To commitment-phobe Alice, it’s simply a one-night stand — but Jack is desperate for more. The scene is set for a rollercoaster of a relationship over 16 years.
Channel 4 drama Alice & Jack, created by Mad Men’s Victor Levin, stars Andrea Riseborough and Domhnall Gleeson as a couple whose seemingly unbreakable bond is tested to the limits.
‘Alice and Jack have an extraordinary, unconventional coming together,’ says Andrea. ‘I love the idea that they are at every turn awkward — it’s embarrassing to be human, to be in love.’
‘They come to each other like children with that giddy feeling, that frustrated longing we have when we’re in love, which often doesn’t look like you might expect. It’s intoxicating to watch.
‘And it’s hysterically funny. When we’re in love we’re weirdos, you make the stupidest decisions. I think it’s refreshing and a relief to see imperfect behaviour, because it’s happening all the time.’
Jack is a sensitive soul who’s the polar opposite of Alice, yet is determined to pursue her even if it breaks his heart. ‘They can’t live without each other,’ he says. ‘But sometimes their love is killing them, and other times it’s the only thing keeping them alive.’
Domhnall (40) first read the script a few years ago. He’s known Andrea since they starred together in the 2010 sci-fi hit Never Let Me Go. ‘She’s exceptional in every way,’ he says. ‘She was on this project before me and that was part of the reason for me joining up in the first place.’ The supporting cast is gold standard in terms of comedy talent. As well as Sunil Patel, Sex Education’s Aimee Lou Wood stars as Alice’s friend Maya, while comedian Aisling Bea appears as Lynn, a lover of Jack’s.
‘People came on board who we never thought we’d be able to work with,’ says Andrea. ‘Aisling is extraordinary, Sunil is hilarious and Aimee is also a fantastic writer, so if ever anything wasn’t quite hitting the mark there was a completely immediate, spontaneous and improvised response.’
■ Alice & Jack starts on 14 February on Channel 4.