Playing Nice premiered on ITV1 on Saturday, 5 January and has delighted audiences, with some viewers enjoying it so much they have already starting to binge watch the four part series on ITVX.
The drama follows couple Pete (James Norton) and Maddie (Niamh Algar) Riley whose life is turned upside down when they learn their son Theo is actually the biological child of Miles (James McArdle) and Lucy Lambert (Jessie Brown Findlay), who have their son David. As they try to uncover how and why the swap took place, tensions mount between the couples and drastic actions begin to be taken.
It’s no wonder viewers heaped praise on the show on social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter) and BlueSky, calling it a “fantastic” watch. But there were some who were unhappy with parts of the plot, arguing that the events that take place were “unrealistic”.
The first episode for Playing Nice introduced viewers to the basic premise, with Pete and Maddie meeting Miles and Lucy for the first time, except their first meeting with their respective children is something they organise themselves. Pete and Maddie bring Theo to Miles and Lucy’s home, where they meed David for the first time, and all of this happens without a mediator there — something that some viewers took issue with.
One person wrote on X: “Surely there would be some kind of professional mediation or social worker/lawyer present in a neutral zone.. not “oh pop round for a glass of champers while we have a little chat about everything” kind of situation! So of[f] the mark this”.
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Another viewer similarly wrote: “I cannot believe for a second that both couples would just be allowed to meet one another without professional mediation or supervision. Have the hospital authorities just shared addresses and told them to get on with it?”
Over on BlueSky, the complaints around the plot hole were much the same with one viewer writing: “Not a social worker in sight”
While one person who watched the show took issue with the fact Pete and Maddie were happy to let Miles and Lucy take care of Theo soon after their first meeting, writing: “Oh c’mon. As he’d happily let her babysit so soon onto her own. You really have to suspend belief with this story.”
In response to the complaints around the show, one person said simply: “#PlayingNice is a drama,it isn’t meant to be completely realistic or believable. Saying that, found it a bit too quick (strangers to best mates to taking them to court in one episode) but I will persevere. From the same writer/lead actress as Malpractice, which was phenomenal.”
Surely there would be some kind of professional mediation or social worker/lawyer present in a neutral zone.. not “oh pop round for a glass of champers while we have a little chat about everything” kind of situation!
So of the mark this #PlayingNice— Michelle (@MichZiff) January 5, 2025
As unrealistic as it is, #PlayingNice is a bit good. Miles is a complete weirdo but there’s gonna be a big twist at one point. Oh and James Norton is 🔥
— Melissa (@melissan2509) January 5, 2025
There was one viewer who also outweighed the bad with the good, writing: “As unrealistic as it is, #PlayingNice is a bit good. Miles is a complete weirdo but there’s gonna be a big twist at one point. Oh and James Norton is [hot]”.
But it wasn’t all bad, there were plenty of viewers who celebrated the series for how entertaining it is and even went so far as to watch all four episodes in one sitting. One viewer who did just that wrote: “Binged all of @ITVX’s #PlayingNice and it is fantastic! So glad it ended the way it did because I’ve never felt such hatred for a certain character before!”
Another viewer wrote: “Feel like I’m on death’s door but is anyone else hooked on #PlayingNice on @ITV @ITVX? Didn’t even mean to put it on but I can’t stop watching”
The show’s first episode centres on Pete, Maddie, Miles and Lucy trying to build a relationship with each other, only for it to be revealed at the very end of the episode that Miles wants to take Pete and Maddie to court. He wants to gain custody of his biological son Theo whilst also keeping custody of David.
This dramatic moment is the beginning of the troubles between the two couples, with Pete and Maddie scrabbling to find a way to keep custody of Theo whilst Mile manipulates everything they have ever said or done around him to his benefit. It is a dramatic turn of events, and one that matches what can be expected of thriller writer JP Delaney’s work.
It was this that made Norton want to work on the series, both as an actor and producer, as he told Yahoo UK ahead of the show’s release: “”[It] is the kind of work Kitty [Kaletsky, his producing partner at Rabbit Track Pictures] and I really set out to make, character driven [stories with] really nuanced, rich, complicated, relatable, individuals, and then throwing these types of people into these mad circumstances and seeing how they would navigate it.
“It’s the type of drama which we we love to watch and we wanted to make, and so when we read this in the first week of our company, it was a real no brainer.”
Playing Nice continues airing on ITV1 on Monday, 6 January at 9pm, and all four episodes are now available on ITVX.
