When a medical emergency leaves Amanda fighting for her life, her husband Mike signs her up for Rivermind, a high-tech system that will keep her alive.

Anyone who has ever signed up to a boiler service agreement is familiar with the premise of the brilliant opener to the seventh season of Charlie Brooker’s Black Mirror. The Standard package will get you an annual service and 48 hour call-out. Gold Cover includes radiators and 10% off parts. Gold Cover Plus includes parts and upgrades you to same day call-out. And then there’s the Platinum package… Now, imagine that marketing model applied to your ability to stay alive, where Standard Cover is basic existence but if you want quality of life you have to choose whichever premium package you can afford.

That’s the dilemma facing Amanda (Rashida Jones) and husband Mike (Chris O’Dowd) after a life-saving procedure only available with these marketing strings attached.

In some ways the story is predictable, but the simplicity works in its favour, making it more than just a bitter satire on the private health insurance industry, but a genuinely affecting essay on the nature of what makes life worth living, especially when every moment has a cash value.

The script is flawless; O’Dowd and Jones are on top form, making us really care about what happens to them; there’s a brilliantly wince-inducing turn from Tracee Ellis Ross as Rivermind’s sales rep; and the pacing and production are pitch perfect. The only downside to this episode is that, despite one or two acrid gags, it might well be one of the most terminally depressing hours of genre TV I’ve ever sat through. It is genuinely tragic.

Verdict: Not to be watched if you’re feeling financially insecure or worried about your health, but if you can brave it, then Common People is Black Mirror at its very best. 10/10

Martin Jameson

www.ninjamarmoset.com