Review: Psychological drama Insomnia might induce drowsiness rather than the opposite

Aidan Smith on how new drama Insomia made him rather sleepy.

“Hey Mum, does Dad always wear that smelly old Mott the Hoople t-shirt in bed?” The wife, sighing heavily: “’Fraid so.” Lucky Vicky McClure, then, in her designer silk pyjamas which match the powder blue walls of her lovely home. She cannot sleep in Insomnia, which is a dangerous name for a psychological drama. This one won’t give you nightmares, which presumably had been the intention. Indeed it might well induce drowsiness, not much of a recommendation.

Vicky McClure in Insomnia

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It seems vaguely familiar, too, and a check of the credits reveals the source material is a novel by Sarah Pinborough, as was Netflix’s Behind Her Eyes a couple of years ago, and also involving a woman on the verge of a nervous breakdown and sleep terrors. That one was silly but qualified for a special category where once Andrea Newman dramatisations resided - “irresistible bilge”. Insomnia, unfortunately, is all too resistible.

McClure is Emma - lawyer, wife, mum, loony. Actually, that’s unfair. She had a traumatic upbringing involving a children’s home, a pond and a tricky sister. Now she’s being accused of killing her mother, having neglected to tell her family the woman hadn’t died when they thought and was banged up in a psychiatric hospital. No, hang on, now she’s being accused of driving a car at the sister.

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“Ten days ago we were fine, we were happy,” she sobs to her husband. “How can everything change so fast?” Well, you see, psychological thrillerdom is a fiercely competitive scene. In any given week Channel 5 could be rolling out a potboiler over consecutive nights, the gas turned right up to 11. So the lighting must stay gloomy and the soundtrack must stay clangy and Emma, fast approaching 40, the age her mum had her breakdown, must don the shimmering silks and go on wondering: “Am I just as mad?”