Rivals is lauded as 'gloriously trashy' and 'riotously OTT' by critics (original) (raw)

Rivals is Disney+'s camp, glamorous, unrelentingly racy adaptation of Jilly Cooper's novel of the same name, which has been hailed by critics for being the best example of "guilty-pleasure TV" in years.

The steamy drama centres on the rivalry between showjumper-turned-politician, and shameless lothario, Rupert Campbell-Black (Alex Hassell) and TV executive Lord Tony Baddingham (David Tennant). The latter is desperate to tear the other down, and begins his mission to do so by hiring Irish journalist Declan O'Hara (Aidan Turner) to become the new face of his TV station.

Read more: What to expect from Jilly Cooper’s Rivals on Disney+

When Declan and his family —wife Maud (Victoria Smurfit), and daughters Taggie (Bella Maclean) and Caitlin (Catriona Chandler)— move to the fictional Rutshire they are thrust into the decadent lifestyle of England's elite. It's full of excess and no one is faithful to their respective partners if they can help it, it is quintessentially Jilly Cooper.

David Tennant features as Lord Tony Baddingham, controller of Corinium Television and Rupert’s single-mindedly ambitious and egotistical adversary in Rivals. (Disney+)

Rivals has been hailed by critics for being the best example of 'guilty-pleasure TV' in years. (Disney+)

Critics were delighted by the series, with several commending the unabashed approach to Cooper's iconic novels, and the cast's willingness to bare all (figuratively and literally) for the drama.

The Telegraph's Anita Singh wrote that the series was "sex, class and the Eighties in one riotously OTT package", writing how Hassell has "bags of charisma (and the author’s seal of approval)" that makes him a standout of the ensemble cast.

Watch the trailer for Rivals:

"It sags a bit towards the end, when the script concerns itself more with the business of regional television franchises than love and lust and shirtless hunks. But, on the whole, it’s a marvellous antidote to modern life," Singh writes.

The critic went on to say how the series is "more than just a romp" because "like the author herself, it has bags of heart."

This was something similarly felt by Evening Standard's Nick Curtis who wrote: "Rivals is gloriously trashy and arch, the epitome of guilty-pleasure TV, everyone smoking and smirking in between the schtupping: even the predatory male sexism looks innocuous from the viewpoint of today’s toxic culture."

Alex Hassell features as the dashing ex-Olympian, Member of Parliament, incorrigible rake, and dangerously charismatic Rupert Campbell-Black in Rivals. (Disney+)

Alex Hassell has been described as having 'bags of charisma' as lead Rupert Campbell-Black in the show. (Disney+)

Curtis went on to say that writer Dominic Treadwell-Collins and director Elliott Hegarty understand Cooper's "primarily silly, absurd" approach to her stories well, because the TV series is much the same. He added: "Is Rivals good TV? God, no. It’s brash, obvious, cartoonish. Is it great entertainment. Phwoar, yes."

Digital Spy's Rebecca Cook described the series as being as "campy and tongue-in-cheek" as one might expect, writing: "When it's playing out like a brilliant episode of EastEnders or a Carry On film, Rivals goes down as easy as the bubbly they're constantly knocking back."

Danny Dyer and Lisa McGrillis as Freddie and Valeries Jones in Rivals. (Disney+)

Critics were delighted by the series, with several commending the unabashed approach to Cooper's iconic novels, and the cast's willingness to bare all (figuratively and literally) for the drama. (Disney+)

Cook went on: "When the show isn't straying too far from the sex, money and chicanery, it's good soapy fun – albeit with a stonking cliffhanger that might leave you frothing at the mouth, since we don't know if Disney will be game to sink another whopping budget into more. You will blush. You will cackle. You will gasp."

The Times' Carol Midgley wrote that the Disney+ show was "a daft but highly entertaining watch", saying that the series is a "lush, plush adaptation" that "does everything to excess and turns the dial up to the max" and feels like the perfect form of escapism.

"How much you enjoy Rivals will depend on how much of a Jilly Cooper fan you are (I think she is fabulous)," the critic said. "But even if you’re not au fait with the books you can tuck in to a lavish series that takes you back to a decade (it is set in 1986) before mobile phones and when people still got steaming drunk at lunchtime."

Rivals premieres on Disney+ on Friday, 18 October.