Five Stars: “a brilliant rom-com with as much bite as it has heart…a must-watch.” – The Standard
“Award-winning playwright David Ireland’s funny, sexy, six-part romantic comedy is the kind of intoxicating show that lodges itself under your skin and you can’t stop thinking about it afterward.” – Heat Magazine
“Johnny Flynn and Roisin Gallagher as Seamus and Janet have compelling chemistry in ‘The Lovers.’” – Financial Times
“darkly funny.” – Daily Mail
Watch Full-Season Now – Screeners.com
NEW YORK – November 21, 2023 – Acclaimed Sundance Now Original romantic comedy The Lovers is set to premiere in the U.S. and Canada with two episodes on Thursday, December 7, exclusively on Sundance Now and AMC+, with additional episodes dropping weekly on both platforms. Set in Belfast, Northern Ireland, The Lovers is a sexy, funny, fight-y love story about two people who appear to be utterly wrong for each other – yet may just be utterly right.
The six-part series follows Janet (Roisin Gallagher, The Fall, The Dry), a bad-tempered, hilarious, Belfast supermarket worker who couldn’t give a s–t about much of anything at all, including her life, and Seamus (Singer/Songwriter and Critics Choice® Awards-nominee Johnny Flynn, Emma., Lovesick, Genius), a handsome, self-centered, political broadcaster with what looks to be a perfect London life and a celebrity girlfriend. When Seamus unexpectedly drops into Janet’s world (literally over the wall and into her backyard) they instantly clash – and yet also find themselves inextricably drawn to each other…
SAG® Award-nominee Conleth Hill (Game of Thrones, Suits) also features in the series as Janet’s supermarket boss, Philip, and Alice Eve (Bombshell, Star Trek Into Darkness) plays Frankie, Seamus’ girlfriend.
The Lovers is written and created by award-winning playwright David Ireland (Cyprus Avenue, Ulster American) and directed by BAFTA® Award-winner Justin Martin (Together, Prima Facie). Executive producers are Roanna Benn, Rebecca de Souza and Hannah Pescod. Producer is Chris Martin. The series is a Drama Republic production for Sky Studios and co-produced by Sundance Now.
EPISODE DESCRIPTIONS
Episode 1 – Premieres Thursday, December 7 on Sundance Now and AMC+
When political broadcaster, Seamus O’Hannigan (Johnny Flynn) arrives in Belfast to host a new show, he doesn’t expect to meet bad-tempered supermarket worker Janet (Roisin Gallagher). Intent on ending her life, Janet could just end up saving his…
Episode 2 – Premieres Thursday, December 7 on Sundance Now and AMC+
Seamus and Janet meet in Belfast and after a glorious night of laughter and sexual tension Janet makes a suggestion: they should have an affair!
Episode 3 – Premieres Thursday, December 14 on Sundance Now and AMC+
Seamus’ girlfriend whisks him away for the night and drags Janet along too! An agonizing night of lies and subterfuge ensues…
Episode 4 – Premieres Thursday, December 21 on Sundance Now and AMC+
At last, the day has come: the affair is on! But when they realize they’ve both ‘caught feelings,’ things take a different turn.
Episode 5 – Premieres Thursday, December 28 on Sundance Now and AMC+
Janet visits London for the first time to be with Seamus and have touristy fun. But it becomes clear the lovers are keeping secrets from each other…
Episode 6 – Premieres Thursday, January 4 on Sundance Now and AMC+
It’s over between Janet and Seamus but Janet’s boss urges her not to give up on the relationship… Can they face the truth about their pasts and find a way back to each other?
NOTE TO EDITORS
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About Sundance Now
AMC Networks’ Sundance Now offers cross-genre escapism for insightful viewers seeking fresh perspectives, thought-provoking experiences and transportive journeys to far-off places. With a rich selection of engrossing dramas and romance, imaginative fantasy, gripping mysteries, to riveting true crime and intelligent thrillers, Sundance Now programming features empowered characters telling one-of-a-kind of stories from around the world – all streaming commercial-free. Sundance Now houses critically-acclaimed and award-winning original and streaming exclusive series including popular supernatural thriller A Discovery of Witches (Matthew Goode, Teresa Palmer), multi-Emmy winner State of the Union (Rosamund Pike, Chris O’Dowd; Patricia Clarkson, Brendan Gleeson), recent breakout dark comedies SisterS (Sarah Goldberg, Susan Stanley) and Totally, Completely Fine (Thomasin McKenzie), glamourous coastal drama Riviera (Julia Stiles), British true crime thriller Des (David Tennant), French spy drama The Bureau, Australian psychological thriller The Secrets She Keeps (Laura Carmichael), acclaimed Swedish drama The Restaurant, Motherland (Anna Maxwell Martin, Lucy Punch, Joanna Lumley), and Total Control (Rachel Griffiths, Deborah Mailman), to name a few; alongside riveting true crime series including Dating Death, The Heiress and the Heist and the True Crime Story franchise. Sundance Now can be enjoyed for $6.99/month or $4.99/month with an annual membership. No cable subscription is needed. Facebook: @SundanceNow – Twitter: @sundance_now
About AMC+
AMC+ is the company’s premium streaming bundle featuring an extensive lineup of popular and critically acclaimed original programming from AMC, BBC America, IFC, and SundanceTV and full access to targeted streaming services Shudder, Sundance Now and IFC Films Unlimited, which feature content such as A Discovery of Witches, Creepshow, and Boyhood. The service features a continually refreshed library of commercial-free content, with iconic series from the AMC Networks portfolio including Mad Men, Halt & Catch Fire, Hell on Wheels, Turn: Washington’s Spies, Rectify, Portlandia, Orphan Black and series from The Walking Dead Universe, among many others. The service also offers a growing slate of original and exclusive series including Gangs of London, Dark Winds, and the first two series in a new Anne Rice universe, Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire and Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches. With new movies released every Friday, AMC+ is the newest destination for exclusive film premieres direct from theaters all year long. AMC+ is available in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Spain and is available in the U.S. through AMCPlus.com, the AMC+ app, and a number of digital and cable partners.