Buffering review: Buffering (ITV Hub) is billed as a sitcom. Unfortunately it’s just a sit. Almost devoid of comedy: which is extremely disappointing given that its creators are two accomplished comedians, Iain Stirling and Steve Bugeja who plays Finn.
It’s not even a dramedy, despite part of the storyline in episode two.
What we have is a group of disparate house sharing millennials: Rosie (Jessie Cave), who, thanks to her late granny, is the owner of the house and therefore the landlady. Rosie thinks her late boss is haunting her mobile Scrabble app: as puerile as it is unfunny.
Ashley (Rosa Robson) and Greg (Paul G Raymond), an unlikely couple who take to sexting each other even though they co-habit. Greg however is not proficient at sexting so enlists the assistance of Thalia (Janine Harouni) to spice up his missives. This she does but, as we are not privy to whatever it is she writes nor indeed to what she photographs, the whole sequence of events falls flat. In one scene the couple are lying back to back in bed sexting each other. More an indictment of technology based modern relationships than a moment of comedy.
The fifth housemate is our protagonist, Iain, a children’s TV presenter, predictably not enamoured with his audience. Iain is in a relationship with his producer, Olivia (Elena Saurel) from whom he splits. Hence the need for the house share. Through a dating app he then pursues a dalliance with promiscuous single mum Steph (Sam Womack). Iain and Olivia’s past relationship develops into a tragic situation at the end of episode two. Again pushing this production in the opposite direction to comedy. Only strong comic characters can withstand scenes of such pathos.
An oasis of relief appears in this comedic desert when Ashley and Greg take a cookery class with Chef Diane (Lolly Adefope) who delivers the only laugh out loud lines in the first two episodes.
The cast did their best with a rather mundane script. Maybe the other four episodes develop the characters and the comedy but, as there is nothing particularly likeable about any of them so far, it’s doubtful.
Might need to do a Buffering review update after watching more but unlikely that this is a slow burner.