Dr Foster or Liar... so who is winning TV’s most toxic ever battle of the sexes?
Are you rooting for Gemma? Do you believe Laura? Do you despise or pity the men they’re f ighting in the hottest dramas on the box? And are you, like us, asking:
A TROUBLED heroine is pitted against a handsome, charming man she accuses of destroying her life.
That’s the set-up for the two most talked-about shows currently on television, and millions of viewers are hotly debating whom to trust.
In Doctor Foster on BBC1, Gemma Foster (Suranne Jones) will stop at nothing in her bitter struggle with cheating ex-husband Simon (Bertie Carvel) after he moves back to town with Kate, his young mistress who he has now married.
Over on ITV, i n Liar, school teacher Laura Nielson (Downton Abbey star Joanne Froggatt) has told the police she was drugged and raped by surgeon Andrew Earlham (Ioan Gruffudd) after the pair had enjoyed a date.
Viewers are on t enterhooks wondering what the increasingly desperate women will do next.
Last week Gemma’s scheming led her to seduce Simon. Meanwhile, Laura has resorted to blackening Earlham’s name by posting her allegations against him on social media. But there are nagging doubts that both men are victims of injustice and two women’s impassioned hunger for vengeance.
Here The Mail on Sunday takes a close look at Liar and Doctor Foster to find out which show has the edge in these shock-packed battles of the sexes.
The manipulative men (or just misunderstood?)
DR FOSTER It is hard to disagree with Gemma when she claims her ex-husband is behaving like a complete and utter s**t. Not content with breaking her heart with his marriage to Kate, Simon now wants her to up sticks and leave the area so he can have sole custody of their teenage son Tom.
LIAR The jury is still out on heart-throb surgeon Andrew Earlham because we have no idea if he is a rapist or the victim of a false accusation. But we do know that questions remain about the suicide of his wife 11 years ago. WINNER Dr Foster wins with the coolly sociopathic Simon.
The jaw dropping ‘did she really do that?’ scenes
DR FOSTER In last week’s episode, Gemma stripped down to her underwear and seduced Simon in her kitchen. Even after he discovered her ruse to film him in a compromising position, he still couldn’t resist.
LIAR In her desperation to prove Andrew’s guilt, Laura breaks into Andrew’s flat to look for incriminating evidence.
WINNER Dr Foster, thanks to Gemma’s shocking turn as a taboo temptress.
Those VERY intoxicating plot twists
DR FOSTER Gemma is rarely without a glass in her hand, but is her own worst enemy when drunk – as when she learns her son Tom doesn’t love her and confronts him only to learn about his shocking assault on a girl. LIAR What was in the glasses of wine that Laura downed with Andrew on the fateful night? This is the question at the very heart of the investigation. WINNER Dr Foster – by a large measure.