During the lockdown of 2020, when the world was forced into isolation, people needed to find a way of coping with social distancing and being confined to their homes. These were unprecedented times and many struggled to find something to help them through the long hours of being housebound, often with limited interaction with the outside world. Some people exercised with Joe Wicks, some found the Tiger King and all of the madness that came with him, others threw themselves into jigsaws and puzzles. But, for many, one man helped them through more than most…that man was, Ted Lasso.

Ted Lasso was originally created to promote the English Premier League in the USA where matches were being shown on the NBC network. The humerous skits played on the fish-out-of-water nature of an American Football coach being employed by a soccer team in the top flight of English football. By the time Ted had been commisioned for a series in October 2019 he had become so much more than just a parody.

Ted Lasso was developing into the man that we wanted to be. He was about to become the hero that we needed.

I think that it would be fair to say that, from the outset, it had the potential to be a disaster. Not due to the people involved – the cast, writers and producers were all exceptional. But, transferring the character seen in the NBC promos without it feeling like a spoof or parody would be an extremely difficult task. Luckily, we were in safe hands.

The fish-out-of-water theme continues as Ted takes over as head coach at struggling Premier League team AFC Richmond. It is obviously a large part of the plot and a source of much of the humour, but it never descends into farce, the comedy is grounded in the reality of the situation for Ted, the team and his boss, Rebecca.

The immense likeability of Jason Sudeikis shines through in Ted, the character is so well developed that you immediately believe in him and that is a testament to the excellent writing and acting on display.

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The supporting cast are equally well developed and we quickly become invested in their lives as they build their own relationships with the moustached man at the helm.

Brett Goldstein, Juno Temple and Phil Dunster bounce off each other with a joyous ease and Brendan Hunt and Nick Mohammed are superb wingmen for Ted. As Rebecca, Hannah Waddingham is an ice cold businesswoman with a soft centre and Jeremy Swift is her right hand man and founding member of the Diamond Dogs.

Even the members of the Richmond first team are given an opportunity to make their mark on the series, when it would have been easy for them to have been purely bit part characters.

It is rare for a television show these days to be so unashamedly positive and heartwarming, it is almost unfashionable. But, Ted the man, and Ted the show, make no apologies for it. However, don’t think that it will be a walk in the park. There are many parts of the show that will make you laugh, there are parts that will tug at the heart strings. And, there are parts where you may just want to have an excuse handy for when your eyes start watering.

It is not always easy to predict a success when it comes to TV shows, even with such a talented and experienced pool of actors, writers, directors and producers. But, the show has quickly become a firm favourite amongst fans and critics alike. Awards have come thick and fast from the Golden Globes to the Writers Guild of America to the Critics Choice Television Awards.

If you haven’t seen Ted Lasso yet, we would recommend setting aside an evening and beginning on series one before jumping straight into series two which is currently streaming on Apple TV.

We would love to hear your thoughts on Ted Lasso and the cast and crew.

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hackpost@ordinaryhorse.com