With Wimbledon having just gripped the nation, it’s the perfect time for Prime Video to launch its new 6-part tennis drama ‘Fifteen-Love’ starring Aidan Turner (‘Poldark’) and Ella Lily Hyland (‘Intruder’). Promising plenty of twists and turns, ‘Fifteen-Love’ the series will likely draw people in for Turner alone.
Promising tennis star Justine’s (Hyland) career is abruptly brought to an end by an injury. Five years later, Justine unexpectedly reconnects with her former tennis coach Glenn (Turner), while she’s working as a physiotherapist at her old tennis academy Longwood. That meeting triggers Justine, causing her to report Glenn to the police alleging that the two had an inappropriate relationship when he was her coach. With Glenn adamant that he never had a sexual relationship with Justine, and Justine sticking to her accusations, the two former colleagues are thrown into the middle of a messy legal battle.
For anyone that saw Turner in ITV’s ‘The Suspect’ last year, they’ll feel that ‘Fifteen-Love’ is covering very similar ground. In that series viewers were asked to try and figure out if Turner’s character Dr Joe O’Loughlin was guilty of nefarious behaviour. As Glenn, Turner turns in a very similar performance. There’s nothing wrong with that per se, but it can hardly be classed as a stretch for an actor who is capable of so much more. Hyland, a relative newcomer, fares better as she digs into the psychological trauma that Justine has been through during her short-lived career and its devastating aftermath.
Perhaps where ‘Fifteen-Love’ really misses an opportunity is by not fully exploring the abuse of power that goes on in tennis, and indeed the sports industry as a whole. That element of the story is surprisingly low-key throughout the series, with the show leaning into soapy melodrama rather than properly exploring its subject matter. That’s a real shame because with actors as capable as Turner and Hyland, I expected so much more.
Within two episodes, the show starts to reveal its hand and there isn’t much in the way of surprise along the way. The viewer isn’t left wondering for long who is telling the truth and who is lying, which honestly in a series like this a shame. Part of the fun, especially when a show goes down the soapy route, is the viewer trying to piece together the clues but ‘Fifteen-Love’ gives the answers too easily.
‘Fifteen-Love’ is perfectly entertaining and with only six episodes to consume, it’s not a huge commitment. As the series doesn’t ever truly break any new ground, it fails to reach its potential. If you’re stuck for a light summer watch, then ‘Fifteen-Love’ will definitely fit the bill and it’s worth watching for the stellar performances of both Turner and Hyland. Should you want to watch something truly original and gripping, you’re going to have to look elsewhere.
‘Fifteen-Love’ launches on Prime Video on Friday 21st July 2023.
