Flatmates

Flatmates is a British comedy drama television series that follows five teenagers sharing a flat as they take their first steps into adulthood. It was created by Gary Parker, Steven Andrew, and Raymond Lau, broadcast on BBC iPlayer from 2019 to 2021, and ran for 18 episodes in two series.¹ The show is a spin-off of the CBBC series Millie Inbetween, following three of that show's older characters on their next step into adulthood.¹

Production and commission

The BBC ordered the series for its iPlayer video-on-demand service from Banijay-owned Zodiak Kids as a 10 × 30-minute comedy drama. Steven Andrew, Zodiak Kids' creative director, executive produced, with Raymond Lau producing.³ Trade press described it as an iPlayer-only teen drama joining the BBC's growing slate of such commissions.⁴ The show was shot on location in Belfast, with a single-camera setup and location production.¹

The writing team comprised Gary Parker, Esther Bishop, Bronagh Taggart, Jess Kedward, and Kirsty Peart; directors were Dez McCarthy and Louise Ní Fhiannachta.¹ Parker, McCarthy, and several cast members had already worked together on Millie Inbetween, the CBBC comedy drama from which the series takes its characters.⁵

Broadcast history

Series 1, ten episodes, was released on BBC iPlayer on 5 August 2019.¹ In November 2019, episodes of series 1 also received overnight repeats on BBC2, in slots such as 2:30am and 4:50am.¹

Series 2. In March 2021 the BBC announced that eight new episodes of the Manchester-based coming-of-age comedy drama would land on iPlayer in April.⁶ All eight were released on Thursday 1 April 2021, under the titles "The Kiss", "Bad Connections", "Losing It", "Disasterchef", "The Philosopher's Tone", "Gorilla Warfare", "The Date", and "Spring Fling".⁷ The second series picks up after Lauren kisses Yaz and leaves for London; when she decides to stay there, the remaining flatmates compete over her room, and Craig invites his cousin Zak to move in.^{8 • 7} The final episode, "Spring Fling", aired on 1 April 2021.⁹

Reception and availability

On IMDb the series holds a rating of 6.0 out of 10 from 112 user votes, with episodes running about 28 minutes.¹⁰ Viewer discussion on the British Comedy Guide forum was critical, with posters describing weak stories and a lack of humor.¹¹

The series has become difficult to watch legally. JustWatch records it as unavailable to stream in the United Kingdom, having last been available on BBC iPlayer until May 2025.²

Other works titled Flatmates

Several unrelated productions share the title:

• The Flatmates was an online English-language learning soap opera from BBC Learning English, following four young adults sharing a flat in London: Alice, a British nurse; Helen, an Anglo-Chinese student; Tim, a would-be entrepreneur; and Khalid, a language student from the Middle East. A new episode was published weekly with MP3 audio, and the audience influenced storylines through an online vote.¹²
• Flatmates (New Zealand, 1997) was a reality show following six strangers living together in a segregated house, with webcams throughout and an elimination every three weeks; it is described as an obvious precursor to the Big Brother format.¹³
• Flatmates (Channel 4, 2000) was a one-hour observational documentary in the First Cut strand, surveying the competitive world of flat sharing in London and internationally, from flat viewings to speed flat-mating events; Tim Hincks was executive producer.^{14 • 15}
• My Flatmates is a Nigerian situational comedy first released in 2016, centered on four guys who share a flat, in English, Pidgin, and Igbo, running to nine seasons.¹⁶
• Flatmates (India, 2019) is a Hindi comedy series in which Tandon and Batla share a 1BHK flat in a Tom-and-Jerry style relationship; six episodes were released from 19 December 2019, starring Puneet Batra and Tarun Singhal.¹⁷
• Flatmates (Germany, 2019) is a 25-minute series pilot directed by Federico Peduzzi, following Paolo, an idealistic young Italian painter trying to build a life in the Berlin art scene while moving between flat shares.¹⁸
• Flatmates (2026) is a comedy series on Zee5 in which Davy and Gavy, having lost their flat, move in with two women, Riya and Tarushi.¹⁹

References

1. Flatmates, British Comedy Guide
2. Flatmates (2019) streaming, JustWatch
3. BBC finds Flatmates with Zodiak Kids, C21Media
4. More BBC News, Broadcast
5. BBC Programme Index, CBBC schedule 6 January 2018
6. Flatmates press clippings, British Comedy Guide
7. Flatmates Series 2 episode guide, British Comedy Guide
8. Flatmates episode guide, British Comedy Guide
9. Flatmates, TVmaze
10. Flatmates (TV Series 2019–2021), IMDb
11. Flatmates forum thread, British Comedy Guide
12. The Flatmates teaching ideas, BBC Learning English
13. Chapter Two – Background, AUT open repository
14. Flatmates, DLT Entertainment distribution catalogue
15. Elsden 2022 PhD thesis, University of Birmingham
16. My Flatmates, MultiChoice Studios
17. Flatmates (2019– ), IMDb
18. Flatmates (WT) series pilot, Crew United
19. Flatmates episodes, Zee5

Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Adapted and franchise screen series › Reboots, revivals, and spin-off series

Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026

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