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| The Guardian - Culture: TV & Radio | | | | | | The 50 best TV shows of 2021, No 8: Alma's Not Normal | | by Hollie Richardson Dec 13, 2021 | | Sophie Willan’s brave, joyous comedy – which won a Bafta on its pilot alone – invites us to laugh in the face of life’s lemons It can be a bit jarring when you catch yourself hooting at Alma’s Not Normal. A woman recalling a grim childhood she describes as being spent like “the baby in Trainspotting, if she’d lived” shouldn’t be funny … right? But creator Sophie Willan, who won a Bafta for the pilot of this show based on her own upbringing, has a razor-sharp wit – one that can find a punchline in any shitstorm. This unabashed sense of humour, along with authentic storytelling, is an invitation to acknowledge life’s lemons and laugh in the face of them. And that is how a series about a thirtysomething woman in Bolton brought up in care unravelled to be one of the most joyous comedy dramas of the year. When we meet Alma – dressed in a bright faux-fur coat like a pink flamingo – her toxic boyfriend has just left her, she is desperate for work and she is navigating relationships with her addict mum Lin and her Tinder-swiping, Spam-loving grandma Joan (played to absolute perfection by Siobhan Finneran and Lorraine Ashbourne respectively). Luckily, Alma has a brilliant friend by her side: Leanne (Jayde Adams), who has “the mannerisms of a truck driver and the rock’n’roll sex appeal of Debbie Harry”. After they spend a night on the booze with kebabs and karaoke mics, it’s time for Alma to get her act together once and for all. Continue reading... | | | | | |
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