Things You Should Have Done

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Things You Should Have Done
GenreSitcom
Created byLucia Keskin
Written byLucia Keskin
Directed byJack Clough
Starring
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes6
Production
Running time22–28 minutes[1]
Production companyRoughcut Television[2]
Original release
NetworkBBC Three
Release29 February 2024 (2024-02-29) –
present

Things You Should Have Done is a British television sitcom created and written by Lucia Keskin, first broadcast on BBC Three and also on BBC iPlayer from 29 February 2024. It stars Keskin as a 'stay-at-home-daughter' who is left to fend for herself after her parents unexpectedly die.

Cast and characters

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Recurring

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Episodes

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Series 1 (2024)

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No.TitleDirected byWritten byBBC Three airdate[2]
1"Learn to Drive"Jack CloughLucia Keskin29 February 2024 (2024-02-29)
After her parents die, Chi must fend for herself, beginning with driving lessons.
2"Get a Job"Jack CloughNathan Foad29 February 2024 (2024-02-29)
Chi begins looking for a job, but discovers a retirement home instead.
3"Learn to Cook"Jack CloughLucia Keskin7 March 2024 (2024-03-07)
Chi celebrates Pancake Day with the family.
4"Pay Your Bills"Jack CloughLucia Keskin7 March 2024 (2024-03-07)
After the lights in her house go out, Chi learns what bills are.
5"Do Something for Someone/Anyone"Jack CloughLucia Keskin14 March 2024 (2024-03-14)
To help her Aunt Karen relax, Chi organises a camping holiday for the family.
6"Get Out of Kent"Jack CloughLucia Keskin14 March 2024 (2024-03-14)
Chi looks to begin a new life by moving to Spain with Michelle.

Production

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On 24 May 2023, it was announced that the BBC had commissioned a sitcom created by Lucia Keskin.[3] Filming for the series took place at several locations in Thanet, Kent, including Broadstairs, Margate, and Ramsgate.[4][5] The series was inspired by the loss of Keskin's grandfather.[6]
In September 2024, it was announced that the BBC had renewed Things You Should Have Done for a second series.[7]

Reception

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Critical reception

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Things You Should Have Done has received mixed reviews from critics. Isobel Lewis, in a four-star review for iNews, praises Keskin's performance as "a deadpan masterpiece; it takes an incredibly sharp comic actor to play dim this well", and that "this is comedy built entirely around her tastes, and those craving a properly silly show will lap it up".[8]

In a review for Digital Spy, Jamie Windust writes that "Keskin's dark comedy perfectly cast and hilariously stupid" and "taps into comedic devices that twenty-something Brits love".[9] In comments for The Guardian, Coco Khan adds that the sitcom "showcases the best of Keskin's creative journey" and "her clear potential as a screenwriter with a knack for what audiences find funny and moving".[10]

In a three-star review for The Guardian, Lucy Mangan writes, "[the show] has a fine cast, some good moments [...] and plenty of unrealised potential on show", adding that "the death of Chi's parents is just a device – and a potentially wasted one at that: it doesn't make it in any way a show about grief, which might have provided more depth". She concluded that the show "stops feeling quite so much like a loose coalition of slightly underbaked ideas" when "Karen or Lucas ground it more firmly in reality – emotional or otherwise".[11] Lucy Sweet, writing for The Big Issue, states the show "is still a work in progress" and "the plot seems pretty unhinged and might be in need of some intervention", but adds that "it's worth it to see Keskin flexing her deeply weird skills".[12]

During an episode of the podcast Off the Telly, co-hosted by Joanna Page and Natalie Cassidy, Page branded the series as "shit" and "boring", adding that she "shouldn't have bothered [to watch it]". In response, Keskin reacted to Page's review with a TikTok video, later stating on Twitter that "there is a way of [criticising] without making someone feel terrible about their work whilst being in the industry themselves".[13] Page was subsequently criticised for her comments. Page's Gavin & Stacey co-star Mathew Horne however described the series as "the best thing on television right now".[14]

Accolades

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Year Nominee / work Award Result
2025 Things You Should Have Done[15] Royal Television Society Programme Award for Scripted Comedy Won
2025 Lucia Keskin[16] British Academy Television Craft Award for Best Emerging Talent: Fiction Won

References

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