BBC Better viewers switch off as new Leeds drama is…

BBC Better viewers switch off as new Leeds drama is 'nothing like Happy Valley'

Better had viewers underwhelmed as the BBC One thriller aired on Monday night.

BBC One's gritty new Leeds -based crime drama aired tonight (February 13). The new five-part thriller follows the life of DI Lou Slack, played by Leila Farzad, and her battle to find redemption. For her, it will hopefully come in the shape of bringing down Col McHugh, played Andrew Buchan, who previously she came to care for like a brother to her but is now head of a Leeds criminal underworld.

The first episode of Better, which is set and shot entirely in Leeds and West Yorkshire, aired tonight as viewers hoped it would fill in for the popular series which finished earlier this month, Happy Valley. But viewers didn't seem to think the new Better police officers had a patch on Sarah Lancashire as they were left underwhelmed.

Viewers saw many recognisable filming locations across Leeds and some familiar faces too. Soap star Charley Webb features in her first role since leaving Emmerdale, along with several other famous faces - including some of the cast from Happy Valley.

The first episode saw bent copper DI Lou Slack make dodgy dealings, creep into a house where a murder victim had been brutally done in and deal with her son in hospital.

It would seem that the crooked police officer plot confused some viewers who don't seem too thrilled with BBC's latest crime drama as some added Catherine Cawood would make a better police officer for the job than DI Lou Slack, played by Leila Farzad.

@Kazters tweeted: "Please tell me #better on bbc 1 gets better? 15 min in and blah"

@Nayvee6 added: "Well done @BBC on giving another boring , slow effort of what you call 'Drama'"

@xniamhamelia said: "I know just the people for the job #Better #BBC" (with a picture of Sarah Lancashire playing Catherine Cawood).

Others have said it has been a 'very slow' start to the new crime drama. @ASuperGav said: "Oh dear. After a promising start, we’ve gone into BBC mode of a very slow crawl #Better"

@monkstermonk wrote: "You know when you just can't warm to the main character. Too far fetched for me. Lost count how many times I have said "as if" really wanted to like it but.....nah not for me!"

@MissNarali added: "A northern female police officer "it's the new Happy Valley"... It's not even the new The Bill"

@whowatme said: "#Better is no way like #HappyValley. Catherine Cawood wasn’t bent. She was a proud grandmother and mother first, a decent law abiding cop the latter. Battered and bruised, beaten several times doing her utmost to serve. Did anyone see that she had sessions with work psychologist."

@maffie71 said: "Less than half an hour in but.. Yet another drama with ridiculously expensive houses, lifestyles, cars, beauty... I think that's part of the reason why #HappyValley was so brilliant: it was believable & closer to real life, even with TLR!"

While others have picked up on the actor's accents. @RobynVinter said: "I'm watching Better on BBC One and these accents are a wild ride."

The series is described as being "set in a world where everyone has their own version of 'right' and 'wrong'" but when can we expect the drama to land on our screens? Here's everything we know so far about BBC 's Better.

Better is on on Mondays on BBC One at 9pm. All episodes will be available to stream as a box set on iPlayer as well.

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