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In a quiet suburb of the city, an individual can be found in his driveway, wearing a sleeveless jumper and expressing his thoughts. “It seems like myself getting quieter. More invisible,” states the main character, looking up at the night sky. “Circumstances have evolved and now it seems unless I take action, I will continue in this quiet, unremarkable life.” Hungry Paul, his closest companion, reflects on this statement. “That's perfectly fine,” he responds, his bathrobe flapping gently. “Better than attempting to leave an impact and ending up damaging things.”

For anyone exhausted by the chaos and rat-tat-tat of today’s TV terrain, the show steps in similar to a warm cover with a hot drink of Ribena.

In line with its gentle leads, the series – a six-episode show developed by Richie Conroy and Mark Hodkinson, adapted from the novelist’s quiet 2019 novel – takes a dim view on contemporary society; looking skeptically above its spectacles toward anything that involves disturbances, quick actions or – heaven forfend – too much drive. The series is, instead, an ode to introversion; a quiet celebration to people happy to wander out of the spotlight. However. He (a further uniquely quirky turn by the actor) is uneasy. He feels a creeping “urge to throw open the entryways in my existence … slightly.” The recent death of his mother has yanked the floor away from his feet and Leonard, a ghost writer, now finds himself doubting the choices that have brought him to this point (alone; sporting facial hair; writing a range of kids' reference books for a man who signs off messages with the phrase “ciao for now”).

Therefore Leonard launches an exploration for emotional fulfilment, accompanied by the somewhat braver Paul (the actor) functioning as his close companion, mentor and partner in a weekly gaming session which acts as debate (“Is the pool warm because kids pee in it, or is it that kids pee as it's heated?”) and refuge.

(How did Paul get his nickname? It's unclear. The source of this name is shrouded in mystery. Maybe Paul previously devoured a snack unusually quickly, or answered to a tense moment by panic-peeling four scotch eggs with his teeth).

Into Leonard’s gentle world cartwheels a new colleague (Jamie-Lee O’Donnell), a new energetic co-worker who happily suggests to eliminate the awful manager (the actor) during the office fire drill. The rushing noise noticeable represents Leonard's calm life undergoing a shake-up.

Elsewhere in the initial show of this program focused less on story and centered around what a modern audience may refer to as “atmosphere”, viewers encounter Paul's father (the ever-wonderful the actor), a battered sofa of a man who covertly observes, saves and reviews trivia competitions to dazzle his adoring wife using his trivia skills.

Leading the audience amidst this gentle kindness we hear a narrator that sounds very much like – and truly is – the famous actress. Yes, the celebrity. Should you wonder, “certainly the inclusion of a big-name celebrity is at odds with the series’ unshowy MO and starts off as just a distraction?” you're right. However, Roberts does a good job, and lines such as “The issue with Leonard is that he lacks an expression of discovery” assist in making sure that first reservations yield if not quite to appreciation, then certainly understanding.

But that’s enough grumbling at this time. Leonard and Hungry Paul’s heart is in the right place: which is “sitting on a park bench in the company of gentle comedies, pointing out its favourite duck.” This is a show that moves gently wearing its simple clothes, sometimes gazing upward at the stars, at other times looking at its feet, serenely certain that there is nothing in the world as heartening as passing time with dear pals.

Throw open the portals in your existence, just a bit, and let it in.