I’ve been on medical leave as I’ve been healing from something rather gnarly, and in that time I’ve been diving into series.
I think we all need comfort blanket TV right now, so if you’re looking for something that gives you comfort, nostalgia, and LOTS of sex, then you simply MUST watch Rivals, on Disney Plus.
Yes, the TV adaptation by Disney Plus of the Jilly Cooper novel.
Yes, THAT Jilly Cooper– famous bonkbuster author from the 80s and 90s.
Obviously it means this series is full of bonking galore, along with a smashing 80s soundtrack, and a reminder of a world before the internet when we weren’t glued to our phones or worried that drunken antics would get uploaded to TikTok.
Here are my 5 favourite things about Rivals as a sex coach.
💥 WARNING: Contains spoilers that I make absolutely no apology for 💥
1. LOTS of pussy action
From Cameron telling Rupert to pay more attention to her clit on a hotel balcony, Rupert’s famous line, “Well, I am a member of the cli-Tory party,” to Declan using his fingers expertly on Maud, to Freddie dripping champagne down Lizzie’s body.
I was highly gratified to see lots of attention being given to women’s vulvas!
2. Sarah Stratten aka Emily Atack was a sex symbol
I just loved how Emily Atack played Sarah Stratten.
It was clear that Sarah was ruthless, flighty, and her physical comedy was spot on– yet while we laughed at her antics and attitude, her body and weight were never the butt of the joke.
She was portrayed as sexy and desirable even though her body is deliciously curvy (for the screen, which we know makes people appear larger than in real life.)
It’s so refreshing to not have any reference to her weight!
Especially considering actor, Emily Atack has been regularly criticized for her weight for years too.
3. The sex scenes in general!
Seeing bonking depicted in TV shows and films was how I first connected with my own eroticism and high desire back when I was still a Christian and confused about being so horny too.
The scenes in Rivals weren’t just highly gratifying to me (YUM) they felt joyous and scrappy, showing a wide range of body types, ages, and orientations.
My inner voyeur was VERY satisfied.
Some scenes were tender (Declan and Maud, Taggie and Rupert), some were Carry On-esque (most of the scenes with Sarah, Archie and whoever he shagged, the Makeshifts), some were awkward (Daysee and Johnny Freidlander), some were all out lust (Charles and Gerald, Sarah and James, Rupert and Beattie, and some were just hot (any of them with Rupert, in my opinion.)
Bring back fun and clumsy on-screen bonking, please!
4. It explored slut shaming and the impact of rape culture
Successful women are often accused of “sleeping their way to the top”, and this show really explored this from different angles.
From Sarah Stratten obviously using her sex appeal to get ahead and get her way (snaring her husband, sleeping with Rupert, seducing her TV co-star) to the complex relationship between Cameron and Tony.
We see the staff at Corineum make snarky comments to Cameron about how she got her job, even though it’s obvious that aside from sleeping with her boss, she’s actually brilliant at it too.
It’s also complex where we see Tony coercing her into sex and promising a promotion, and yet she also seems to enjoy it too. We see Cameron as a multifaceted character who is both a power player but also controlled.
In the scenes where Daysee is horrifically assaulted by Reverand Penny, we see first the same old trope of being asked if she led him on, and then of women having to keep silent in order to keep her job and protect a politically important man.
5. It seemlessly integrated queer storylines and very real gay issues from the 80s
From including gay bonking scenes into the bonking montages, to the romance between Charles and Gerald, to the casual homophobia in the office, to referencing the damaging policies of Thatcher’s Section 28 to Reagan’s ignoring of the AIDS crisis.
I read an interview with the writer/producer, Dominic Treadwell-Collins where he said, “You can change the world a bit… by playing gay stories in the mainstream […] “I think telling queer stories in the mainstream is how you change the world – and people’s opinions.”
As a child of the 80s, 90s, and 00s myself (I was born in ‘89,) Section 28 coloured my own life as it wasn’t repealed until 2003– when I was in Year 8 and 9.
“Gay” was the most popular insult in the playground, and that’s just how it was back then.
While thank FUCK things have changed since then– it’s still not enough and we now face a new wave of threats to queer and trans rights.
While today in 2024, it’s awful to think that the happiest possible ending for the two gay characters- Charles and Gerald- is that Gerald can find a woman he can “bear to be married to” so that he can carry on seeing Charles in secret, so that nobody will suspect and he can pursue his political career- it’s a sobering reminder that this was how it was back then and in many places it’s still very much the case.
Being openly queer in the 80s in the UK was highly dangerous even without Ronald Reagan and Maggie Thatcher’s policies. I’m glad this series forces us to think about what barriers queer and trans folk still face today.
Also props to Disney+ for hiring real gay actors to play gay characters.
Final thoughts
Remember that Rivals– the book and The Rutshire Chronicles series– were written mostly in the 1980s by an author who was born in the 1930s.
It reflects the attitudes of the times. Fatphobia, homophobia, classism, racism, all the -isms and -phobias, were the norm and we think differently now.
It doesn’t mean that the books weren’t groundbreaking at the time, that Jilly Cooper isn’t a brilliant author, and they have left a lasting legacy.
Multiple things can be true at the same time.
I thought the show did a brilliant job of capturing the essence of Jilly Cooper’s message, the spirit of the 80s, and being fun and raunchy, while also catering to a 2024 audience.
Dominic Treadwell-Collins said in an interview, “We were very careful to create a tone that was funny, but that also makes you think.”
I think it definitely made me do that, what about you?
Do tell.
Lucy Rowett, CSC – Pronouns: She/Her/Her