Bingewatching: for me and 40m others, one episode is never enough | Television & radio
This is how addicted to television I am: I once thought my lunch break would be a good time to watch the Red Wedding episode of Game of Thrones. I couldn’t wait until that evening because of potential spoilers lurking everywhere, and I haven’t read the books, so I got a cheese and pickle baguette and blithely pressed play. I finished the episode. The sandwich went in the bin.
It’s a relief to know that I’m not alone in these compulsive viewing habits. Or rather, I am alone, but in a more positive sense, we all are: more of us than ever are sacrificing communal TV watching for our own shows on our own schedules on our own screens. As Ofcom has confirmed, there are now 40 million bingewatchers in the UK, who all admit that just one episode of their favourite is not quite enough. I have glanced at enough phones on the bus to know that plenty of people think it’s acceptable to squeeze in a Breaking Bad before work.
A promising new US web series called Everything Is Okay has just been released online, and it’s being billed as cross between Broad City and Black Mirror. Both are shows responsible for stealing entire weekends of my life, as “one episode†became “just one more episodeâ€; and then it was Monday morning. In the opener, the lead, Alice, buys a robot version of herself to go to parties and to work, so she can dedicate her entire life to watching her favourite TV show. It did not seem quite as far-fetched as it should. I suspect most of us would have despatched a robot version of ourselves to a night out if we were ensconced enough in Stranger Things and desperate to find out Barb’s fate.
There are times when TV feels less like entertainment and more like a commitment you can’t get out of, and 30% of people admit that bingewatching is making them tired. I get it. But I have not seen the following shows: The West Wing, Atlanta, Narcos, Seinfeld, and it feels good to admit it, to come to terms with it. I have not seen them because there is simply not enough time in the day to keep up with all the brilliant TV that’s out there. Once you accept that it’s fine to binge selectively, you will find inner peace, flip down your laptop lid, and get more sleep.
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