SEX AND THE CITY
The raunchiest, most explicit sitcom of all time is coming to British television. Ditch the Viagra and pass the prophylactics, here comes SEX AND THE CITY. ‘.'.'<:-'::s: Peter Ross
A TOWN CALLED
WHY DO TWENTYSOMETHING MEN DATE thirtysomcthing women'.’ Because they giye great head and they know a lot about wine. This isn’t the kind of line that you hear on Friends. hut it’s typical oi Sex And 'l'ln’ (it): the raunchy American comedy dratna which starts soon on (‘hanncl 4.
Based on the novel and .\'('n' York Observer column by high-flying hack (‘andace Buslmell. Sex Am/ The ('in centres on (‘arrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker). a Manhattan journalist who writes about sexual temptation in the Big Apple. liach episode is hased around a sexual issue that Bradshaw is coyering. such as '(‘an women have sex like men without feeling." and ‘Are men in their twenties the new designer drug." Bradshaw researches her column hy ohserying the sex liyes oi her three lt'ic‘ttds as well as considering her own relationships.
American TV has tried to take a mature look at modern relationships het‘ore. hut has always tended to eschew grit l’or gloss. smut l‘or schmaltl. You're neyer going to see Monica and Rachel go shopping l'ot' \‘ihrators. httt that‘s exactly what (‘arrie's lt'ic‘tttls do. And as for Ally McBeal's dancing hahy. the only thing the Sex And 7710 (‘it_\' women get hroody for is an exclusiyc pair of designer shoes.
This is a dil‘l'erent kind of show - one that doesn't shy away from good sex. had language and the kind of crotically charged conyersations that would make a deal pimp hlush. '\\'hy luck the girl in the skirt when you can fuck the girl in the ad for the skirt.” ponders one male character who is addicted to sleeping with models.
'\\'hat was missing from what I saw on tele\'isiott was a show that dealt in a really frank and funny tuanner with sex and relationships.‘ says producer Darren Star. who had preyiously trailhla/ed telly with lit)l'lll()liC-tll'CliL‘llCLi teen soaps .llr'lrus‘t' /’/(l('(' and Bt'i'r'r/m' [It/ls 902/0. ':\1 heart it deals with the kind of things that people are kind of going through. How often is normal in terms of sex‘.’ That’s a question that people wonder about themselyes. \Vow. atn I getting enough'.’ Am I getting too much'.’ Am I getting as much as eyeryhody else is getting'."
Star‘s feel for issues and dialogue means that Sui" AMI The ('in plays like a cross between l-‘rus'ir'r and Day) 'l'ltrnui. The most explicit sex scenes ever seen in a television comedy are played out against a backdrop of glamourous parties. restaurant openings and sophisticated dinners as Manhattan’s social elite discuss art. cinema and the power games inherent in anal sex. Talk about taking it up the gary glitterati.
But. despite heing apparently tailor-made for controycrsy. Sm Am! The ('I'Iy has ayoided too much condemnation in the States. It seems that the puhlic haye looked beyond the explicitness and found a show which is smart. lunny and real. Sarah Jessica Parker. the 'l‘\' and lilm actress who starred in [21/
16 THE LIST /' .1 h-:. '99“:
PHALLUS
Wood and Mars Attacks. and is married to Matthew Broderick. agrees: ’lt‘s ttot ottt to shock. It‘s not Vulgar. gratuitous or ol‘l‘ensiye. It's simply candid. forthright and honest.’
So hottest in fact that men have been tuning in to what could he regarded as a ‘woman‘s show’ in order to hettcr understand the l‘emale psyche.
'Men seem to feel like they‘re getting a secret Viewpoint.’ says Kristin l)a\'is. who plays the romantic art dealer (‘harlottc in the show. 'lt’s like they‘re getting inside women’s conyersations in a way they woulan normally he.‘
Any guys who do tune in for a \‘oyetlt'istic half
hour ol’ women talking l'ilth had hettcr prepare themselyes to he annoyed as men don‘t do to well in Star Am/ The (it): often lilling hit parts as one-night—
American nymphos: (from top) Kristin Davis as Charlotte, Kim Cattrall as Samantha, Sarah Jessica Parker as Carrie and Cynthia Nixon as Miranda
stands or being reduced to codcnames like Mr Big. (it‘oo\'y (iuy and Twenty- something Sam. In other words. they are ohiectil‘icd in the satne way as women on teleyision haye been for years. "l‘he way we women look at our liycs. we're the main characters.‘ says (‘andace Bushnell. ‘Men come and go. but you always haye your girll'riends.’ Sex And The City, begins on Channel 4, Wed 3 Feb, 10pm.
You're never
_ v going to see
Monica and Rachelgo shapping for vibrators, but that's exactly what Carrie's friends do in Sex And The City,