''Fleabag'' is a British

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

television series created and written by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, based on her

one-woman show A solo performance, sometimes referred to as a one-man show or one-woman show, features a single person telling a story for an audience, typically for the purpose of entertainment. This type of performance comes in many varieties, including auto ...

first performed in 2013 at the

Edinburgh Fringe Festival The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as The Fringe, Edinburgh Fringe, or Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest arts and media festival, which in 2019 spanned 25 days and featured more than 59,600 performances of 3,841 dif ...

. It was originally produced by Two Brothers Pictures for digital channel

BBC Three BBC Three is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes targeting 16 to 34-year-olds, covering all genres including animation, comedy, cur ...

in a co-production agreement with Amazon Studios. Waller-Bridge stars as the title character, a free-spirited but angry and confused young woman in London. Sian Clifford stars as Fleabag's sister Claire, while Andrew Scott joined the cast in the second series as 'Hot Priest'. The protagonist frequently breaks the

fourth wall The fourth wall is a performance convention in which an invisible, imaginary wall separates actors from the audience. While the audience can see through this ''wall'', the convention assumes the actors act as if they cannot. From the 16th cen ...

to provide exposition, internal monologues, and a running commentary to the audience. The show premiered on 21 July 2016 and concluded its second and final series on 8 April 2019. It received widespread acclaim from critics, particularly for its writing, acting, and the uniqueness and personality of the title character. Waller-Bridge won the

British Academy Television Award for Best Female Comedy Performance The British Academy Television Award for Best Female Comedy Performance was instituted in 2009. It is awarded by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), a British organisation that hosts annual awards shows for film, television, c ...

for the first series. The second series received 11

Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...

nominations and won six, with Waller-Bridge earning Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Lead Actress, and Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series; additional acting nominations were received by Clifford,

Olivia Colman Sarah Caroline Sinclair ( Colman; born 30 January 1974), known professionally as Olivia Colman, is an English actress. Known for her comedic and dramatic roles in film and television, she has received various accolades, including an Academy A ...

, and guest stars

Fiona Shaw Fiona Shaw (born Fiona Mary Wilson; 10 July 1958) is an Irish film and theatre actress. She is known for her roles as Petunia Dursley in the ''Harry Potter'' film series (2001–2010), Marnie Stonebrook in the fourth season of the HBO ser ...

and

Kristin Scott Thomas Dame Kristin Ann Scott Thomas (born 24 May 1960) is a British actress who also holds French citizenship. A five-time BAFTA Award and Olivier Award nominee, she won the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for '' Four Weddings ...

. The series received the

Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of ...

for Best Television Series and Best Actress for Waller-Bridge, and a nomination for Scott.

Background

The show is adapted from Waller-Bridge's 2013

Edinburgh Festival Fringe The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as The Fringe, Edinburgh Fringe, or Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest arts and media festival, which in 2019 spanned 25 days and featured more than 59,600 performances of 3,841 dif ...

one-woman play of the same name which won a Fringe First Award. The initial idea of the character of Fleabag came from a challenge by a friend, where Waller-Bridge was given the task of creating a sketch for a 10-minute section in a stand-up storytelling night.

Cast and characters

Main

* Phoebe Waller-Bridge as Fleabag (although never named in the script) * Sian Clifford as Claire, Fleabag's sister with whom she shares an uneasy relationship. * Andrew Scott as the "Hot Priest", with whom Fleabag falls in love (Series 2) and who is also never named in the script.

Supporting

as Fleabag and Claire's godmother, who began a relationship with their father not long after their mother's death and eventually becomes their stepmother * Bill Paterson as father of Fleabag and Claire *

Brett Gelman Brett Clifford Gelman (born October 6, 1976) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his role as Murray Bauman in Netflix's horror-supernatural series '' Stranger Things'' and as Martin on the BBC comedy '' Fleabag''. Gelman be ...

as Martin, Claire's husband *

Hugh Skinner Hugh William Skinner (born 6 January 1985) is an English actor. He is best known for starring in sitcoms ''W1A'' (2014–2017) and '' The Windsors'' (2016–2020), and his appearances in musical films ''Les Misérables'' (2012) and ''Mamma Mi ...

as Harry, Fleabag's ex-boyfriend * Hugh Dennis as Bank Manager, approached by Fleabag for a loan (series 1; guest series 2) * Ben Aldridge as Arsehole Guy, one of Fleabag's love interests, so named for his taste for

anal sex Anal sex or anal intercourse is generally the insertion and thrusting of the erect penis into a person's anus, or anus and rectum, for sexual pleasure.Sepages 270–271for anal sex information, anpage 118for information about the clitoris. ...

(series 1; guest series 2) *

Jenny Rainsford Jennifer "Jenny" Rainsford is an English actress. A native of Watford, Rainsford graduated with a degree in English from University of Oxford, before studying acting at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, from which she graduated in 2011. As w ...

as Boo, Fleabag's deceased best friend and business partner

Guest

* Jamie Demetriou as Bus Rodent, one of Fleabag's love interests (series 1) *

as Fleabag's counsellor (series 2) *

as Belinda, a successful businesswoman who meets Fleabag at an awards ceremony presented by Claire (series 2) * Ray Fearon as Hot Misogynist, who serves as Fleabag's lawyer and one of her love interests (series 2) * Christian Hillborg as Klare, Claire's Finnish business partner and love interest (series 2) * Jo Martin as Pam, who works at the priest's church (series 2) * Angus Imrie as Jake, Martin's teenage son and Claire's step-son (series 2)

Episodes

Series 1 (2016)

Series 2 (2019)

Distribution and broadcast

Fleabag at The Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2013

BBC Three was the original broadcast channel for the show with a repeat run broadcast on

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream a ...

between 21 August and 25 September 2016. The second series was broadcast on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

at the same time as being released on BBC Three, by this time only available online. It was picked up by the on-demand

Amazon Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, also known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming and rental service of Amazon offered as a standalone service or as part of Amazon's Prime subscription. The service pr ...

(formerly Amazon Video) service and premiered in the United States on 16 September 2016. ''Fleabag'' is also available on IFC in the US. In the Netherlands, it was picked up by Net5. The show has been remade for French television by Jeanne Herry. Titled '' Mouche'' (French for 'fly', the insect), it started airing on 3 June 2019 on pay channel

Canal+ Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flo ...

. ''Mouche'' is a close remake, though set in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

with Camille Cottin in the starring role.

Reception

Critical response

Both series of ''Fleabag'' received widespread acclaim from television critics. At review aggregation website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

, both series received approval ratings of 100%. The first series received an average rating of 8.5/10, based on 42 reviews, with the site's critical consensus reading: "Clever and viciously funny, ''Fleabag'' is a touching, wildly inventive comedy about a complicated young woman navigating the aftermath of trauma." The second series received an average rating of 9.3/10, based on 97 reviews, with the critical consensus stating: "''Fleabag'' jumps back into the fray with a bracing second season that upholds its predecessor's frenzied wit and delicate heart, replete with Phoebe Waller-Bridge's indefatigable charisma". At

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

, the first series received a weighted average score of 88 out of 100, based on 19 critics, while the second series received a score of 96, based on 21 critics, both signifying "universal acclaim". Emily Nussbaum of ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

'' described the first series as "a precision black-humor mechanism, a warped and affecting fable about one single woman's existence." Maureen Ryan at '' Variety'' called it "scathingly funny", concluding that "long after it’s pulled you in with its irreverence and jokes about sex, and beguiled you with its cutting wit and messily human characters, it reveals that it’s actually a tragedy".

Hank Stuever Hank Stuever (born 1968) is an American journalist who writes about popular culture for the ''Style'' section of ''The Washington Post''. Early life and education Stuever was born and raised in Oklahoma City, where he attended Bishop McGuinn ...

of ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large n ...

'' characterised it as a "funny, highly profane but surprisingly poignant dramedy". Mike Hale in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' praised the show for its "restless, almost feral energy and its slap-in-the-face attitude."

Mary McNamara Mary McNamara (born 1963) is an American journalist and television critic for the ''Los Angeles Times''. She won the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for Criticism. Biography McNamara moved from Baltimore to Westminster in elementary school. She graduated fro ...

of the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...

'' commended its unpredictability, acting, and "clear eye for truth that often becomes, like all good comedy, quite devastating". Serena Davies of ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...

'' lauded the second series as "a near-perfect work of art". Mary Elizabeth Williams of ''

Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon ( ...

'' praised its "brilliant swan song", finding the series's conclusion satisfying and "well-earned". For ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'', Alan Sepinwall wrote that the "tragicomic masterpiece reaches new heights in its second outing". James Poniewozik of ''The New York Times'' wrote that "the new season feels immediately confident, if inevitably less groundbreaking. Yet it continues to push its form". Hannah Jane Parkinson of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...

'' described the conclusion as "the most electrifying, devastating TV in years", writing of the second series that "it seems as though many who either did not watch the first series, or who didn’t think it lived up to the hype, have been converted". According to Metacritic's aggregate of decade-end lists, ''Fleabag'' was the second-highest ranked show of the 2010s. In 2019, it was ranked 8th on ''The Guardians list of the 100 best TV shows of the 21st century. Former United States President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

named the second season of ''Fleabag'' among his favorite films and television series of 2019. In his annual list, which he released on Twitter on 29 December 2019, he added a small addendum with the title, "and a quick list of TV shows that I considered as powerful as movies: ''Fleabag: Season 2'', '' Unbelievable'', and '' Watchmen''. In 2022, ''Rolling Stone'' ranked ''Fleabag'' as the fifth-greatest TV show of all time.

Accolades

Music

Waller-Bridge's sister, Isobel Waller-Bridge, composed the music for both series.

Home media

References

External links

* * {{Amazon Video original series 2010s British black comedy television series 2010s British comedy-drama television series 2016 British television series debuts 2019 British television series endings Amazon Prime Video original programming BBC comedy-drama television shows Best Musical or Comedy Series Golden Globe winners Casual sex in television English-language television shows Fictional characters who break the fourth wall Metafictional television series Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series winners Primetime Emmy Award-winning television series Self-reflexive television Television series about sisters Television series based on plays Television series created by Phoebe Waller-Bridge Television shows set in London Television series by All3Media Television series by BBC Studios