Adultery Review: A Risible Tale of Middle-Aged Car Sex and Chaos 2026

Adultery, the new six-part series from writer Danny Brocklehurst, is a risible tale of middle-aged car sex, rat poo, and rickety furniture that aims to explore the complexities of extramarital affairs but often lands in unintentional comedy. The show, which stars Romola Garai and Dominic Cooper as two fortysomethings drawn into an affair, offers a handful of valuable life lessons—chief among them: don’t bother.

But if you do bother, avoid doing it with the father of your son’s girlfriend or the mother of your daughter’s boyfriend. And if you do mess around with such a person, make sure nobody’s got anyone saved in their phone under the moniker “Dickhead Dave.” Because he is not going to help matters.

The Plot: A By-the-Numbers Affair

Beth (Romola Garai, far too good for this by-the-numbers effort) is a bored, beleaguered fortysomething mother of two who has recently lost the personal-trainer business she was passionate about. She is also mourning the loss of her best friend, whose husband is facing an assault charge.

Tom (Dominic Cooper, ditto) is a fortysomething father and GP, married to charity fundraiser Hannah (Shelley Conn), who has been struggling with her mental health for a bit. So when Beth comes along, he is helpless before her. They look at each other like two equally stunned halibut, first in a hospital waiting room (they meet when she knocks him off his bike and injures his wrist, the one he uses for foreshadowing), then across a garden party at Tom’s posh home (where Beth – who I should mention is Lancastrian so, you know, darling – trails her fingers reverentially across book spines).

Key Takeaways from Adultery

• The series struggles to balance drama and comedy, often veering into risible territory.
• Romola Garai and Dominic Cooper deliver strong performances despite the material.
• The plot relies on contrived coincidences and heavy-handed symbolism.
• Middle-aged car sex is depicted with all the grace of a rickety piece of furniture.
• Rat poo makes an unexpected and unwelcome appearance.

Character Development and Performances

Garai and Cooper are both immensely watchable, but they are let down by a script that gives them little to work with beyond the obvious. Beth’s dissatisfaction with her life is painted in broad strokes: lost business, lost friend, lost sense of self. Tom’s dissatisfaction is similarly generic: stressed GP, mentally ill wife, midlife crisis.

The supporting cast, including Shelley Conn as Hannah and a scene-stealing turn from the actor playing “Dickhead Dave,” do their best with underwritten roles. But the show’s attempts at depth—such as Beth’s Lancastrian heritage being used as shorthand for “authentic”—feel forced.

Themes and Execution

Adultery wants to say something profound about marriage, desire, and the messiness of middle age. Instead, it settles for cliché. The affair is ignited by a meet-cute involving a bicycle accident and a wrist injury—the same wrist Tom later uses to foreshadow his impending downfall. Subtlety is not this show’s strong suit.

The sex scenes, including the much-vaunted car sex, are more likely to induce giggles than arousal. The aforementioned rat poo, which appears in a scene involving a garden shed, is presumably meant to symbolize decay but instead just feels random. The background to this story is set out in Celebrity: latest articles. A related thread runs through Nicolas Cage War Film Fortitude Sparks $105 Million Lawsuit.

Comparison with Other Adultery Dramas

What to Watch Next

If you’re in the mood for a more compelling take on infidelity, consider Doctor Foster or The Affair. Both offer sharper writing and more believable characters. Adultery, by contrast, feels like a missed opportunity. Earlier coverage in Elvis Presley Estate Sues Anthropic Over AI Training Songs shows how the argument developed. A closer look at the same subject appears in Barcelona vs Real Madrid: El Clásico Live Coverage and Lineups.

For those who enjoy watching talented actors elevate mediocre material, Garai and Cooper make Adultery watchable, but just barely. The series is unlikely to satisfy viewers looking for either serious drama or genuine laughs. Anyone following the wider picture can start with Cabinet Split Over Rosebank Oilfield Approval Decision. The same theme surfaces in Terland Strikes Late as United End Manchester City's WSL Winning Start, which takes a different angle.