Liane Moriarty is one of the world’s pre-eminent writers of deliciously dark, bitingly contemporary novels that reign for months in the bestseller lists and go on to be adapted into buzz-worthy TV dramas. HBO’s adaptation of Big Little Lies was a genuine TV phenomenon, and if the more recent Nine Perfect Strangers didn’t garner as much popular and critical approval, the star-packed cast led by Nicole Kidman attracted plenty of headlines. Understandably, then, expectations are high – note the immediately post-Strictly prime-time scheduling – for this glossy adaptation of the Australian author’s bestselling 2021 domestic noir about a quartet of grown-up siblings who begin to suspect their cantankerous father (Sam Neill) might be behind the disappearance of their recently retired, tennis academy-owner mother (Annette Bening) when she goes missing on a trip to the mall.
Even if things get off to a slightly slow start, the opening episodes don’t disappoint. All the familiar tropes are there – luxurious lifestyles, marital rifts, nosy neighbours – in a tension-cranking plot. And the setting – supposedly Florida but shot on Australia’s Gold Coast – is gorgeous.
A “pudding you can eat for breakfast” is the main draw in the opening episode of John Torode and Lisa Faulkner’s returning series. The chocolate and orange traybake, a variation on bread-and-butter pudding, looks particularly delicious. It’s the first live show, and the 15 celebrities (Chris Mc.