Rolling home late and drunk after a night on the town, sharp-dressed Antigua-born family man Barrington Jedidiah Walker isn’t lying when he reassures his angry wife Carmel that he’s never cheated on her with another woman.
What the 74-year-old Londoner (played by Line of Duty star Lennie James) isn’t telling his God-fearing spouse (Holby City’s Sharon D. Clarke) is that he’s actually been having a secret affair with his best friend Morris De La Roux (His Dark Materials actor Ariyon Bakare) for years! And on that same night, he decides his double life can no longer remain a secret…
This intricate love triangle is at the heart of the new eight-part drama Mr Loverman, adapted from the acclaimed 2013 novel by Booker Prize-winning author Bernardine Evaristo.
Here, Lennie gives his take on this life-affirming tale…
Lennie, what do you make of Barrington?
"I love the fact that at the heart of this story is such a complex man. You almost don’t know why you like him, and you’re not really sure why you are on his side, but you want things to turn out alright for him!"
How would you describe the dynamic between Barrington, Morris and Carmel?
"You’ve got the silent row that’s going on between Barry and Carmel; you have the promise that’s been made between Barry and Morris; and you have how Carmel feels being seen by the women whom she’s known since she was a child."
What prompts Barrington to take the momentous decision to tell the truth about his double life?
"There’s no hugely overt, insightful incident that makes Barry go, ‘Right, now, today’. When Morris asks him what’s happened, he says, ‘Something’s just shifted’, and that’s all it has taken."
Do you think viewers’ allegiances will shift as the characters’ backstories unfold?
"Yes, as things are revealed, the audience will be challenged to consider different aspects of the story. It’s not as straightforward as: Is Barry coming out or isn’t he coming out? And what might be the obvious consequences of that? There’s also a real exploration in this of the less obvious consequences – and that’s a testament to the storytelling."
Mr Loverman is an eight-part series that started on BBC1 on Monday, October 14 2024 at 9pm with a double bill. The show runs weekly with double bills on BBC1 in the same slot.
All eight episodes are available on BBCiPlayer now.
