Idle gossip gets out of control in ‘The Trouble With Maggie Cole’

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Sundays at 7 p.m. – Created and written by Mark Brotherhood and starring Dawn French, “The Trouble With Maggie Cole” delves into what happens when idle gossip escalates out of control and starts to affect people’s lives.

Set in a picturesque fishing village, the series centers on Maggie Cole (French), the self-appointed oracle of this close-knit community. Maggie makes it her business to know a little bit about everyone’s lives. She certainly doesn’t pay attention to the cautionary adage that “those in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.”

When a radio journalist interviews Maggie for a small reportage piece about local life, she gives him far more detail – and embellishment – about the locals and their personal lives than he was counting on. In the days and weeks following the show’s broadcast, Maggie’s over-zealous chit-chat gets her into serious hot water, as the fallout from her very public gossip-fest disrupts the lives of her fellow residents. Packed full of comedy, intrigue and suspense, “The Trouble With Maggie Cole” is a warmly humorous yet distinctly cautionary tale about the perils of passing on unfounded gossip. An ensemble cast of characters feature alongside Maggie, including Peter (Mark Heap), Maggie’s husband of 31 years and headmaster of the local school; Maggie’s best friend Jill (Julie Hesmondhalgh); school secretary Karen (Vicki Pepperdine); and handsome part-time resident Marcus (Patrick Robinson), who rents a cottage where he writes his bestselling novels.