What would you do if you woke up and couldn’t remember a year of your life after a head-on fall? It’s likely, after digesting the initial shock, you’d confide in your friends and family to fill you in on the blanks and help you recover. But what if you can’t trust those closest to you? The star of Channel 4’s outstanding thriller Close To Me must grapple with this unsettling reality – and what unfolds is, dare we say, better than a Harlan Coben series.
The show’s lead, Jo (Connie Nielsen), has to piece together the year-long blank after her head trauma. But, as she embarks on the trail, she quickly comes across inconsistencies in the behaviour of her husband, Rob (Christopher Eccleston), and her best friend, Cathy (Susan Lynch). Coupled with dramatic flashbacks and puzzling violent outbursts – was Jo’s life before as perfect as she imagines? Luckily, you don’t have to wait to find out, since all episodes are available to binge this week.
With the drama recently dropping on Channel 4, here’s everything you need to know about Close To Me, including the plot, cast and how to watch it.
What is Close To Me about?
Based on Amanda Reynold’s 2017 novel of the same name, the six-part series, which first aired on Channel 4 in 2021, introduces us to Jo Harding (Connie Nielsen) – a woman who seemingly has it all. She lives in a beautiful home in the country with her devoted husband, Rob (Christopher Eccleston), her children, Finn (Tom Taylor) and Sash (Rosy McEwen), have just flown the nest and she has a successful career as a translator.
However, we first meet her in a far less desirable state – splayed out across the bottom of her stairs with a bloody head injury. The impact of the trauma is so bad that Jo now has amnesia and can’t remember a single thing from the past year of her life – and did she really fall?
The mother struggles to piece together remnants of what happened to her, realising her life might not be as perfect as it seemed – she notices inconsistencies and strange behaviour in the people around her, including Rob, who is outwardly committed to her recovery. Why is he concealing the fact her dad, Fredrick (Henning Jensen), is in a retirement home battling dementia? And why did he lie and say their dog, who died last year, is with the neighbour?
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Adding to the unease, there’s an obvious rift between Jo and her long-term best friend Cathy (Susan Lynch), but she can’t remember why they fell out. Battling with both symptoms of her brain trauma and unpleasant side effects of the menopause, Jo also experiences sudden rages. We’re left wondering if Jo was the good-hearted woman she thought she was or if she has built a past version of herself that didn’t exist.
Who’s in the cast of Close To Me?
The cast of Close To Me includes:
- Connie Nielsen (Nobody, Nobody 2) as Jo Harding
- Christopher Eccleston (Unchosen, Doctor Who) as Rob
- Tom Taylor (Us, Doctor Foster) as Finn
- Rosy McEwen (The Letter Writer, Black Mirror) as Sash
- Susan Lynch (Save Me, Unforgotten) as Cathy
- Leanne Best (Young Wallander, Cold Feet) as Anna
- Henning Jensen (When The Dust Settles) as Fredrick
- Ellie Haddington (Enola Holmes, Motherland) as Wendy
- Ray Fearon (Da Vinci’s Demons, His Dark Materials) as Nick
- Nick Blood (Agents Of SHIELD, Strike) as Thomas
- Jamie Flatters (Liar, So Awkward) as Owen
- Lorraine Burroughs (Hard Sun, The Five) as Helen
Is Close To Me any good?
Yes – as we already mentioned, if you’re a Harlan Coben fan, you’re going to want to devour this series. We think it has all the best elements of his thrillers: the façade of a flawless domestic setup, unpredictable twists and not knowing which characters you can trust! We also liked that the writers explore the menopause – something we don’t usually see represented on the small screen.
How can I watch Close To Me?
You can watch Close To Me now on Channel 4.
What other thrillers can I watch now?
If you fancy another irresistible psychological thriller, you will want to check out Riptide, where Jo Joyner stars as Alison, a smitten newlywed in an idyllic beach home in Australia. One day, when her husband doesn’t return home from surfing, her life is torn apart at the seams and an explosive mystery unfolds. You can watch Riptide now on Channel 5. Another domestic thriller we’d recommend is Lie With Me. A wife on the brink, Anna (Charlie Brooks) moves with her family to Australia to try and mend her marriage that has been broken by her husband’s infidelity. When she hires a new nanny, Becky, a dark secret threatens to destroy the last of Anna’s sanity. You can watch Lie With Me now on Channel 5.
