When you first hear the premise for the latest TV offering from the BBC, it sounds like the set-up to a particularly good joke. Being Human is actually an off-beat drama about two twenty-somethings, George (Russell Tovey), the werewolf, and Mitchell (Aidan Turner), the vampire, who decide to try their hand at living the normal life by renting a house together. Upon moving in, they realize that their home is already occupied by Annie (Lenora Crichlow), the ghost of a previous tenant.
Despite their particular "shortcomings," each tries very hard to lead a human life. The brooding and dangerous Mitchell may kill people because his blood lust gets to be too much, but all he wants is to forget his century of casual carnage and make friends with the neighbors. Annie, the friendly ghost, has unfinished business, or so she's told, but she likes haunting the place and making enough cups of tea and coffee to cover every flat surface because it leaves her closer to her still breathing fiancé, the landlord. And George is socially inept even without his condition (turning furry and running lose in the woods every full moon), making it impossible for him to have any sort of relationship. His last girlfriend, Julia, whom he abandoned after getting clawed by a werewolf, reappears briefly in the pilot and sees him transform. Going for levity, she tells him, "I thought you were gay." He replies, "That would have been easier."
But there's some humor, albeit dark, to lighten the mood and when that doesn't work, Aidan Turner gets his shirt off, or, much more often, Russell Tovey runs around naked with only his hands for cover:
Digital Spy: You strip off quite a lot in the show. Are you comfortable with that?
Russell Tovey: "Do I enjoy being naked in the woods with people watching? No, not really. Your pride just goes out the window. It's quite cold in the woods in Bristol, so being a male, that was not beneficial. I didn't realize last year on the pilot how naked I was going to be -- it seemed like every ten minutes they were like 'can you just take your pants off?' This year my agent drew up a nudity clause but I don't think that's been followed!"
The good news is the show's been recommissioned for a second season. The bad news is that BBCAmerica won't be airing the first season until later this year (whatever that means). But YouTube, our savior in more than one tight situation, is hosting the amazing pilot in its entirety [note -- this is the pilot from 2008, a new one has been filmed with a few cast changes, but at least you can get an idea of the premise of the show (thanks vampirefan!)]
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