Junk-food telly with bite

James Nesbitt adds gravitas to another predictable tale in the daft Harlan Coben adaptation 'Run Away'

- Patrick Smith

Another year, another Harlan Coben adaptation arrives on Netflix with the inevitability of a new year hangover.

Run Away continues the streamer's wildly successful commitment to transforming the thriller writer's pulpy page-turners into glossy dramas that pile on the implausibilities with abandon. From Fool Me Once's nanny-cam resurrections to Missing You's improbable dating-app plot, the storylines are ludicrously daft, stuffed with more red herrings than a Nordic fish market.

But the real draw has always been the property porn, right? How can they all afford those kitchens? Those Shaker-style units? This time, James Nesbitt plays Simon, a father searching for his runaway daughter Paige (Ellie de Lange) in London’s grimmest corners. His family may be falling apart, but the kitchen remains impeccable: a cavernous open-plan, Farrow & Ball marvel that suggests whatever crisis he’s facing, it’s not negative equity.