One Day is a British romantic drama limited series based on the 2009 novel by David Nicholls as well as the 2011 film adaptation. It follows the 14-year relationship of Emma Morley and Dexter Mayhew, who meet at a graduation ball after graduating from the University of Edinburgh, and stars Leo Woodall and Ambika Mod in the lead roles.
Premiering on 8 February 2024 on Netflix, it received critical acclaim and was the most-watched series globally during the week of 12 February, with 9.9 million views.
Contents
Cast and characters
Main
Leo Woodall as Dexter Mayhew
Ambika Mod as Emma Morley
Recurring
Eleanor Tomlinson as Sylvie
Essie Davis as Alison Mayhew
Tim McInnerny as Stephen Mayhew
Jonny Weldon as Ian
Brendan Quinn as Callum
Billie Gadsdon as Jasmine
Toby Stephens as Lionel Cope
Joely Richardson as Helen Cope
Amber Grappy as Tilly
Adam Loxley as Graham
Tim Preston as Gary
John Macmillan as Aaron
Rebekah Murrell as Suki
Jodie Price as Sonya
Sophie Wolff as Tara
Joseph Pharoah as Andy
Will Hislop as Toby
Meghan Treadway as Kate
Ella-Rae Smith as Naomi
Mathilde Thomine Storm as Tove
Sam Swan as Damian
Beth Lindsey as Sarah
Mark Rowley as Mr. Godalming
Anthony Calf as Sid
Edouard Chény as Jean-Pierre
Production
Development
Netflix ordered a new One Day adaptation in November 2021 from Drama Republic. The writers' room was led by Nicole Taylor and consists of Anna Jordan, Vinay Patel, and Bijan Sheibani. Executive producers included Nicholls and Taylor as well as Roanna Benn and Jude Liknaitzky. Molly Manners was attached to direct the series.
Actress Ambika Mod said in November 2022 that the series would cover more of the novel than the 2011 film adaptation.
Casting
In June 2022, it was announced Ambika Mod and Leo Woodall would star as the leads Emma and Dexter respectively. Eleanor Tomlinson and Essie Davis joined the cast as Sylvie and Alison respectively, as announced in July and October.
Filming
Principal photography began in London on 4 July 2022 before moving to Edinburgh on 18 July. Filming took place on location at the University of Edinburgh's Old College, as well as the city centre, West End, and Old Town.
Music
Original music was composed by Anne Nikitin, along with Tim Morrish and Jessica Jones of the musical duo Vanbur.
Dedication
At the end of the series, a dedication is shown: "In loving memory of Justin Eely". Eely was a senior online editor, also known as a finishing editor, who had worked on the entire series before dying unexpectedly. This role is "a largely technical role designed to ensure that a project is transmission-ready". He had a career stretching back to 1996, worked on many successful shows, including Killing Eve, Good Omens, and The Crown as well as Wes Anderson's latest film Asteroid City.
Release
One Day premiered on 8 February 2024 on Netflix as a limited-run series.
Reception
The series received critical acclaim and was the most-watched series globally during the week of 12 February 2024, with 9.9 million views.
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 92% approval rating based on 49 critic reviews, with an average rating of 8/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Chronicling the passage of time with well-observed sweep, One Day is by turns giddy and somber but always swooningly romantic". Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 76 out of 100 based on 23 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Anita Singh of the Telegraph awarded the series four stars out of five, writing "David Nicholls's bestselling novel has been skilfully turned into an easily digestible drama series for the Netflix age."
It was a breakthrough for the careers of leads Ambika Mod and Leo Woodall.