James Corden swaps bonhomie for barely suppressed rage as Jamie Buckingham, a chef whose gilded life collapses when he intercepts messages revealing his pregnant wife Amandine’s affair. The six-part series, written by Jez Butterworth and James Richardson, tracks Jamie and his deadpan brother-in-law Colin Morgan as they tail suspects through country pubs and coastal caravan parks, a detective duo whose own marriages are disintegrating in parallel.
While Jamie obsesses over deleted WhatsApps, Sally Hawkins steals scenes as his sister Lue, a children’s author who escapes into a Technicolor fantasy sequence where she tap-dances with sea creatures rather than confront her husband’s infidelity. Director Stephanie Laing keeps the tone slippery, cutting from domestic farce to sudden violence, all scored by Graham Coxon’s surf-guitar twang.
Amazon released the full season on 11 November 2022; critics split 67% positive on Rotten Tomatoes, praising Corden’s against-type acidity but faulting the plot for circling rather than advancing. The title’s double meaning, the animal instinct beneath marital civility, is announced in episode one and repeated until it loses flavour.
Production Details
Prime Video / 1 Season / 6 Episodes / 2022
Created by: James Richardson, Jez Butterworth
Showrunner(s): Jez Butterworth, James Corden
Writer(s): Jez Butterworth James Richardson
Producer(s): Jez Butterworth Dee Collier Georgina Lowe
Main Cast
James Corden as Jamie Buckingham
Colin Morgan as Jeff Wilson
Melia Kreiling as Amandine Buckingham
Sally Hawkins as Lue
Isla Gie as Greta
Kemal Shah as Neighbour
Tiana Khan as Bree
Gabrielle Sheppard as Jilhani
Umulisa Gahiga as Liv
