Sick Note

Daniel Glass is a lazy insurance worker in modern Britain whose job, home, and relationship are all falling apart. A doctor wrongly tells him that he has terminal cancer, and Daniel sees that his family, girlfriend, boss, and coworkers suddenly treat him with care. He chooses to hide the mistake because he likes the better life, while the doctor helps him keep the lie alive. Across two short seasons, the lie brings adultery, a possible murder, police trouble, drug dealing, blackmail, and a desperate attempt to escape. The tone is dark, rude, and silly, with serious danger played as farce.

The show puts its weight on dishonesty, selfishness, weak relationships, and the strange way people react to illness. Becca is a confident woman who is attracted to both men and women, but the detail stays tied to her cheating and need for attention. Season two adds Katerina West, a forceful boss's daughter, but her role serves the same blackmail and crime story. The series turns work, medicine, police power, and cruel bosses into comic plot pieces. The story keeps returning to sex, death, illness, and bad choices as its main comic material.