Men Behaving Badly: Simon Nye and Sitcom Adaptations in America (Part 2)

Simon Nye

As promised: part 2 of an interview with Simon Nye, the writer of the original British version of the long-running sitcom, Men Behaving Badly (with some light editing for clarity). Part 1 is here if you missed it! Now, without further delay…

Have you watched many American remakes of British sitcoms, and/or, do you like any of them? If so, why? Is there a ‘magic sauce’ for a ‘successful’ American adaptation?

I watched the American Coupling which didn’t seem to work, but Veep (if that counts) and The Office obviously did spectacularly. They just oozed confidence, and were their own thing. The lesson from the US Office seems to be: just get a brilliant “local” show-runner in and give them their freedom to make it their own.

I am a member of the Iowa Writers Collaborative. We are from around the state and contribute commentary and feature stories of interest to those who care about Iowa. We are more than 80 professional writers who write on the Substack platform about topics important to Iowa and its residents.

You can learn more about the group and our myriad topics, here: Iowa Writers Collaborative. All paid subscribers to any Iowa Writer’s Substack are also welcome to join the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative’s Office Lounge on Zoom - the last Friday of every month.