🔗 Share this article

Looking back, we reflect on the television offerings of the past year, a handful of shows emerge not for their brilliance, but for their notable failures. From cringe-inducing spin-offs to confusingly bad documentaries, here are the programmes that had us utterly bewildered or just reaching for the remote.

And Just Like That

How to start with this divisive follow-up? Burdened with woeful scripts, painful character development (justice for Miranda!), and a paltry 71 seconds of beloved Samantha, the show fought to find its footing. For a moment, as the third series started, it seemed as if it had at last found its groove. Then came an installment centered on Seema’s natural deodorant. Little surprise the creator declared this would be the final season. It concluded on a low point; the closeup of Miranda’s toilet flooded with poo was just way too on-the-nose. Still, viewers certainly had a hoot dissecting every single “what on earth?” moment. And as Carrie – once again single – danced around her palatial townhouse to Barry White, who didn’t let out a little sob?

All’s Fair

‘Is Kim Kardashian an actress? Of course she can’t.’

But that was almost the least of this drama's problems. The recipient of a very rare no-star assessment, it was difficult to know where to start enumerating the problems. The laughably wooden dialogue? The tedious glorification of wealth and materialism? The seemingly deliberate procession of tropes? Performances so poor they felt borderline malicious? Let’s just say “all of the above” and forget about this series again. However, a new season has been ordered, so we’re likely going to have to.

AKA Charlie Sheen

Considering the restraining orders, domestic violence claims and parental shortcomings, it’s fair to say Charlie Sheen has been a troubled figure. Not that you’d truly have gleaned it from this three-part docuseries which smirked its way at Sheen’s various bouts of self-destructive excess while struggling to tell us a single thing we didn’t already know. Instead, it felt as if this loose cannon was being indulged, so any pity this show might evoke should be saved for the people who have had to suffer close contact with this charming but flippant narcissist.

The Iris Affair

Of course we knew it was ridiculous from the get-go: a drama about a supercomputer known as Charlie Big Potatoes that could either solve global crises – or annihilate all of humanity. We persevered out of sheer love for its leads … but by the end, it felt like even they had stopped bothering. One scarcely reacted when his character died, and the other ended up slicing Charlie with an axe … in super slow-motion. That's what you call giving up the ghost.

MobLand

Shady figures meeting in deserted boxing gyms? The Prodigy’s Firestarter jackhammering away in club scenes? The late 90s called and demands its gangland drama back.

In truth, that is unfair on the crime shows of the late 90s. Many look a bit dated now, but at least they didn’t suffer the embarrassment of having to indulge baffling accents. But there were plenty of other issues. Primarily that it was just really dull; a dispute over drug-selling territory between various London rogues which felt rather simplistic.

With Love, Meghan

Considering the extent to which she provokes the ire of certain performatively enraged commentators, it’s almost easy to admire the Duchess of Sussex’s televised ventures into quaint homemaking as deliberate provocations. But then you watch them and are forced to concede that in this case, they may have a point. It’s like watching a lifestyle catalogue come to life; a poster for evening drinks with delusions of grandeur; a procession of snoozing dogs, humming beehives, sentimental platitudes and pointless crafting “tips” you’ll not remember instantly. All underpinned by immense, mostly undeserved wealth. Ugh.

Victoria Beckham

There are clearly interesting things to be said about both Victoria Beckham and her struggles with career, identity, self-acceptance. But for some reason, this documentary series opted not to say them. Rather, the experience was like consuming a marketing brochure. She clearly has good reason to resent what she describes as her “stern” image. But sadly, she didn’t do herself any favours with this cagey non-event of a series.

The Inheritance

It had the potential to be the next cultural phenomenon – except even more extravagant, with a glamorous star as a deceased benefactor and a well-known personality managing her inheritance. What more could you ask for? As players competed, there was plenty of backstabbing and arguing. But the rules quickly became bewildering: it’s still too complicated to explain what precisely was happening. Even more disappointingly, we only saw brief appearances of the star via prerecorded videos. The series ended up reeking of a production that was trying way too hard to live up to something way beyond it.

Too Much

How does one succeed a show that captured a generation? The expectation was immense for this glitzy romcom about Jessica, a rosy-eyed New Yorker who arrives in London with a shattered romance. The star seized the opportunity by the horns and was a delight to watch, embodying Jane Austen levels of romantic ideals. But it was all very slick and, paradoxically, was insufficient. Plus, the sheer amount of celebrity friends involved felt uncomfortable.

Mitchell & Webb Are Not Helping

Not even good enough to be ‘patchy’.

Given the smart inclusion of gifted emerging comics, hopes were high. But sadly, most of it fell flat. A recurring sketch was a single joke stretched to a dry pulp but repeated in every episode. One star seemed too ready to slip into a familiar irate mode. The writing room sketches, in contrast, simply inspired the idea that they should probably have stayed in there a while longer.

The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox

This retelling of the story of Amanda Knox was executive produced by Amanda Knox and pretty much solely showcased the perspective of Amanda Knox. So, while there probably is an interesting drama to be made about the horrific 2007 murder, this isn’t it. The subject matter needed to be treated sensitively. Instead, the series struggled painfully to find the right voice, lumbering from oddly jaunty, slightly mannered farce to ultimately, real-life horror. Twisted? Arguably. A total mess? Very much so.

The Maths Genius Thriller

We admire the star … but did we believe him playing the greatest maths genius in history, a man so smart he’s on the brink of a breakthrough that could destabilise society? No! This international thriller about secret services targeting – and eliminating – academics honestly got more farcical by the second. Silliness-by-numbers.

1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story

This hagiography followed the online personality notorious for sexual exploits as she prepared for her biggest challenge yet. What on earth would motivate her? What we wanted was far greater interrogation of her true psychology, plus those of the men in the queue. They could at least have spoken to the now-famous mum who appeared to haul her son away from the queue. What we got was disturbing imagery and zero interrogation of her infamy whatsoever. It's staggering to consider, the documentary-maker has a young daughter too.