The Story of Leonard and Hungry Paul Overview: A Gentle Comedy Featuring the Voice of the Famous Actress Brings the Perfect Remedy to Contemporary Living

In a peaceful area of Dublin, a man can be found on the pavement, dressed in a vest and expressing his thoughts. “I notice my voice is fading. More invisible,” says the main character, staring into the darkness. “Events have unfolded and at this point it seems if I don’t do something, my life will proceed in this quiet, unremarkable life.” Hungry Paul, his only confidant, reflects on the idea. “There's no harm in that,” he responds, his dressing gown swaying with the wind. “Preferable to striving for recognition and ending up damaging things.”

For viewers exhausted by the bluster and constant stimulation of current streaming terrain, the show comes as a warm cover and warming mug of blackcurrant juice.

Similar to its harmless protagonists, this comedy – a half-dozen installment show created by its authors, based on Rónán Hession’s quiet 2019 novel – looks disapprovingly on contemporary society; looking skeptically above its spectacles at anything related to disturbances, quick actions or – perish the thought – an abundance of ambition. The series on the contrary, a tribute to quiet people; a quiet celebration of those content to wander away from attention. But. He (another sublimely idiosyncratic turn from Alex Lawther) is uneasy. He senses an increasing “need to open the entryways of my life … slightly.” The passing of his mother has pulled the carpet from under his slippers and Leonard, a ghost writer, now feels questioning the decisions that directed him to this point (alone; with a protective mustache; working on multiple educational volumes for an employer who concludes correspondence using the words “see you later”).

Thus Leonard begins on a journey for emotional fulfilment, alongside his more outgoing Paul (Laurie Kynaston) serving as his close companion, life coach and partner during their regular board games evening functioning as both discussion (“Does the pool feel warm from kids relieving themselves, or do kids pee in it because it’s warm?”) and safe space.

(What's the origin of "Hungry" Paul? It's unclear. The origin of the moniker is shrouded in mystery. It could be that the postal worker previously devoured a snack very fast, or answered to a tense moment by panic-peeling four scotch eggs using his teeth).

Arriving in Leonard's calm existence cartwheels a vibrant character (the performer), a new spring-loaded associate who lightheartedly proposes to eliminate Leonard’s appalling boss (the character) in a workplace safety exercise. The rushing noise noticeable is Leonard’s gentle world being turned upside down.

In another part in the first episode of this program not heavily plotted and more by what the under-30s could describe as “atmosphere”, we meet Hungry Paul’s dad (the ever-wonderful Lorcan Cranitch), a battered sofa of a man who covertly observes, saves and reviews television game programs to dazzle his adoring wife with his general knowledge.

Leading viewers amidst this minor-key niceness we hear a narrator that is unmistakably – and actually is – the famous actress. Indeed, the celebrity. In case you're considering, “certainly the presence of such a famous actor contradicts the program's low-key style and starts off as just a diversion?” you would be correct. However, the actress performs admirably, and dialogue for example “The issue with Leonard is the missing a ‘eureka’ face” contribute to ensuring that first reservations fade if not quite to appreciation, then at minimum tolerance.

Enough complaining at this time. The series' spirit is in the right place: that place is “resting on a bench in the company of gentle comedies, pointing out its favourite duck.” The program that ambles along in its sleeveless jumper, sometimes gazing upward toward the sky, sometimes downward toward the ground, serenely certain that no experience is in life as uplifting as spending time alongside good friends.

Open the doors and windows in your existence, slightly, and allow it entry.