How Channel 4's binge-worthy new sitcom was inspired by classic rom-coms from the '80s and '90s

After much anticipation, Break Clause premiered on Channel 4 earlier this month, with viewers fascinated by the will-they-won't-they story of Ben (Samuel Bottomley) and Lil (Lara Ricote).

The British sitcom follows the two characters as they agree to split up, only to find that they still need to live together due to a tenancy agreement. Naturally, they both want to move on, but being in close proximity doesn't exactly help matters.

Featuring Jessica Knappett and John Thomson in supporting roles, the six-part series brings a fresh approach to the rom-com genre by incorporating modern themes, though writer-creator Jess Bray stressed that she was still influenced by past works.

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"As a writer it's such a joy to work with actors like Lara and Samuel, who are just completely magnetic and make my writing feel so much better," she said. "Every member of the cast brought something surprising and unique."

"It felt so exciting watching them every day, bringing stuff out of the script that I didn't even know was in there," continued Bray, who noted that When Harry Met Sally, Notting Hill and While You Were Sleeping were all key influences.

"I can also hand over so much of the credit to our brilliant director Alice Snedden, who came to this project with a real love and passion for '80s/'90s rom-coms," she added. "We really wanted to emulate the colour palettes and aesthetics of those classics.

"She worked really hard with our Director of Photography, Will Hanke, to make this show beautiful. Every single person on the crew brought something so special. Nauseatingly, I just had the loveliest time and felt lucky every god damn day."

Bottomley, who has appeared in California Schemin' and How to Have Sex, also spoke about the sitcom's visual style, noting: "The visual style is really interesting, because our Director of Photography Will Hanke is just so switched on when it comes to camerawork."

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"We've got a really amazing crew filled with really talented people. The set we had was amazing. It really did feel like we were in a flat in London. When you were in there for a few hours, you started to forget where you really were," he added.

Since its premiere on 1 October, where it was released in full, the rom-com garnered a mixed response from viewers, with IMDb currently reporting a middling user rating of 5.9/10 from 188 logs.

Break Clause is streaming on Channel 4.

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Reporter, Digital Spy George is a freelance writer who specialises in Movies and TV. After graduating with a degree in Film Studies and Journalism from De Montfort University, in which he analysed the early works of Richard Linklater for his dissertation, he wrote for several websites for GRV Media.  His film tastes vary from blockbusters like Mission: Impossible and John Wick to international directors such as Paolo Sorrentino and Hirokazu Kore-eda, and has attended both the London and Berlin film festivals.