Jill Halfpenny and Lee Ingleby's twisty thriller The Cuckoo lands on Netflix
The series premiered on Channel 5 earlier in 2024.
Channel 5 drama The Cuckoo has become the latest British TV show to be added to the Netflix library – giving subscribers another chance to watch the twisty thriller starring Jill Halfpenny and Lee Ingleby.
The series debuted on Channel 5 in April this year – with all four episodes broadcast on consecutive nights – and has already gone down a storm since its addition to Netflix, urging up to the second spot on the streamer's Top 10 list, behind only Outer Banks.
The series was created by Barunka O’Shaughnessy (who is also a co-creator of The Teacher) and follows husband-and-wife Jessica (Claire Goose) and Nick (Ingleby) as they move with their young daughter Alice (Freya Hannan-Mills) from the city to the countryside, where they plan on turning over a new leaf after suffering various financial woes and personal struggles.
Of course, that's not quite what happens – and when they decide to take in a lodger named Sian (Halfpenny) things start to spiral drastically out of control.
Sian strikes up a heartfelt connection with Alice and both parents become increasingly mistrustful of their houseguest, whose troubled past risks destroying the fragile life they've built.
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Speaking when the show was first premiering, Halfpenny described it as "fun" and "perfect for if you come in from work and you're tired after a hard day, looking to be distracted" – something which seems to be backed up by its newfound popularity on Netflix.
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She added: "It might feel familiar because there’s a nod to an older type of show that you might have watched when you were in your teens, and it’s intense, but we’re not out to rip you to pieces, it’s entertaining. And people will shout at the telly!
"You’ll have moments where you’re in complete disbelief watching people behave in a certain way."
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The Cuckoo is now streaming on Netflix – sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.
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