Fresh Meat’s Second Term Success

Fresh Meat is back with a bang – quite literally. Now in its new second series, the Channel 4 sitcom forges deeper into ‘student life’ with its characters entering their second term together at the fictional Manchester Medlock University.

Despite its obviously fictional nature (fortunately, no actual lectures are shown), Fresh Meat manages to tap into the harsh realities of student life with alarming ease, all the while maintaining an entertaining perspective.

Above all else, the show’s characters are all relatable exaggerations of the types of people who we are all likely to meet at some stage at uni – be it the eager to self-reinvent Oregon, the arrogant yet naive former public schoolboy JP (cough…), or the straight-talking and wonderfully lovable – yet socially hopeless – Howard.

As the mysterious and unseen housemate Paul Lamb has now left in typically enigmatic circumstances, the first episode of the series charted the discovery of a new housemate, which introduced Josie’s friend Heather, and Dutch mature student Sabine to the show. Meanwhile, Heather and Kingsley also got to know each other, with drama ensuing.

Despite some initial worries over clunky plot lines and forced drama early on in the first series, the sitcom has very much found its feet – seeming to echo the real life second term confidence of first years.

Worrisome student topics such as security, finding housemates and facial hair experimentation are covered effortlessly. Student life is caricatured and somehow condensed into one house, and it is for the most part worryingly identifiable. If only my life was that funny too.