Back in 1997, Searchlight Pictures released “The Full Monty”, which became an international phenomenon and one of the biggest films in British history. The film tells the story of a group of unemployed men, who, after the steel mill they work at shuts down, decide to get involved in the stripping business to earn a living. They invest the money they have saved to get started.

Now twenty-five years, Disney has returned to Sheffield for a brand new eight-episode series, which follows the same band of brothers as they navigate the post-industrial city of Sheffield, and society’s crumbling healthcare, education, and employment sectors.

This new British drama series has a fairly slow pace, as it slowly builds up to the gang getting back together, but the striptease element of the story isn’t really an important part of the story like it was in the first film. Since this is an eight-episode series, it has much more time to explore the characters, who all have their own problems to deal. The show on a whole highlights the many problems and issues within the UK right now. There is very little doubt that this show, much like the original film, is full of political issues, highlighting how people have been abandoned by the government, especially as the world changes and not everyone is able to keep up. We get to see the problems with budget cuts to schools and how that impacts today’s generation, along with bullying, martial problems, and much more.

The show will no doubt play on the nostalgia of fans of the film, but if you’ve never seen the original film, (which is available on Disney+ in the UK), it really doesn’t make too much difference with this new series, since it does a good job in getting you up to speed with what happened and in many ways, the events of the original film have little impact on the initial right half of the show. Though even after twenty-five years, the characters still haven’t changed too much, though not character gets as much screen time as others.

This series does have many funny moments, but they can be a little few and far between, depending on your sense of humour, but it’s very bleak. With Disney dropping this entire series at once, the show obviously does allow for a binge-watch, but I’d recommend spreading out the episodes a little, as going back to back, does feel a little sluggish.  There are some rather odd storylines thrown into the series that seem a little strange, such as stealing a “Britain’s Got Talent” winning dog or selling a pigeon to a Korean Billionaire, that no doubt would never have made the cut had this been a film.

Overall, “The Full Monty” is a refreshing slice of British drama/comedy, with lots of political commentary on several different issues like adultery, sexuality, bullying, benefits, miscarriages, mental health, malnutrition, homelessness, and unemployment, that face the majority of us in the UK, be it the underfunding of schools or healthcare, all while having that bit of British humour, that made the original film a big hit. For those looking for a simple rehash of the original film, this probably isn’t it, since while it plays on nostalgia, it’s more about giving an honest look at real life in Britain today. I really enjoyed this series, and it’s an easy recommendation to watch.

Rating – 4 Out Of 5

“The Full Monty” premieres on Wednesday, 14th June 2023, on Hulu in the United States and on Disney+ around the world, including in the UK, Australia and Canada.

Roger Palmer

Roger has been a Disney fan since he was a kid and this interest has grown over the years. He has visited Disney Parks around the globe and has a vast collection of Disney movies and collectibles. He is the owner of What's On Disney Plus & DisKingdom. Email: Roger@WhatsOnDisneyPlus.com Twitter: Twitter.com/RogPalmerUK Facebook: Facebook.com/rogpalmeruk

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