Russell Tovey interview

Russell Tovey talks to Metro about his sitcom Him & Her, being part of sci-fi series Being Human and his love for Star Wars.

As love's young sleazers Steve and Becky fill in the spaces between s**gging - mostly with their deranged rhomboid of friends - Him & Her feels more like reality TV than TV comedy.

Russell Tovey and Sarah Solemani have the kind of kinky chemistry you can't fake. Things have moved on from the first series and Becky has moved in to Steve's flat but the trickle of slacker erotica - most episodes feature Steve taking a pee without closing the bathroom door - remains undiluted.

In a way, writer Stefan Golaszewski is celebrating old-fashioned romance, in the sense that the central idea of Him & Her is that, somewhere out there, your perfect mate exists.
Steve and Becky, united by dubious hygiene and an inability to get dressed, are made for each other, right down to the tips of toes you know need a good clipping.

If I was to carp, I'd say Him & Her could do with a few more laughs but I'd find it hard to credit that these two aren't living at the end of my street.

TV review: Him & Her

Every couple should try to be more like Steve and Becky. Here's why...

Him & Her series 2 episode 1 review

Filmed exclusively in one location, the genius of Stefan Golaszewski's writing is that whilst nothing really happens, what does occur is very watchable, and indeed at times extremely funny.

Review: Him & Her, 2.1 - "The Move"

BBC Three's Him & Her returns for a second series, which I'm sure will delight and depress viewers in equal measure.

The sitcom about the couple who don't really get up to much is back. This new series sees Becky finally moving out of her parents' and into Steve's flat. Hardly a seismic shift, but it does almost immediately allow them to find out a little more about each other's character traits: "All the hangers have to face the same way ... it's neater." Flat-warming drinks let new viewers meet the supporting cast in one go as they all pop round to welcome Becky to her new home, but mostly so they can inform her that Steve's old girlfriend is back in town.

Series Two of the bedsitcom opens with Becky moving in with boyfriend Steve.

And I know the perfect house-warming gift for her: a massive Do Not Disturb sign to stop any more unwelcome interruptions from the endless stream of ­visitors who keep ­dropping in on the pair of them.

Tonight, they're politely humouring Becky's borderline fascist sister Laura and her sociopathic fiance Paul, who demands Steve be his best man and lay on some violence and lap-dancing in Newcastle.

Despite sounding like X Factor rejects from the groups section, Him & Her (beautifully played by Russell Tovey and Sarah Solemani) are a real rarity - a couple who love each other in identical amounts.

Their lifestyle may be reduced almost to the level of basic bodily functions, but they're so content in their togetherness they make staying in and doing nothing look positively aspirational.

Gay Tovey loves screen sex with Solemani

Him & Her actor Russell Tovey loves filming his sex scenes with co-star Sarah Solemani - even though he's gay.

TV preview: Him & Her

Joe Wilkinson, a newcomer to the top ten weirdest, and funniest, neighbours in domestic sitcoms, reckons that the comedy business hates Him & Her, which makes a welcome return this week. "Other writers go: 'But you guys never move out of the front room! Now every show is going to have to be like this and never go to nightclubs or anywhere! You've spoiled it for us all!'"

It's BBC3's most successful sitcom ever, so of course it's back for series two. Writer Stefan Golaszewski's low-key, handily low-budget visits to the flat inhabited by laid-back Steve (Russell Tovey) have barely changed, with the main development being that Steve's sexy, tolerant girlfriend Becky (Sarah Solemani) has moved in, not that she's got round to unpacking much.

Interrupting their regime of toast, sex and lying about are the friends and family who bring the funnies in from the outside world. They're lazy smiles rather than belly laughs, making this a show that requires your mood to match its own - but Steve's ex Julie (Katie Lyons) dropping in, this series promises a bit of drama, too.