The Closest You'll Get to Prostitution Without Actually Participating

After news broke that Eliot Spitzer had been caught paying for sex, the public displayed a seemingly inexhaustible fascination in the woman involved. Secret Diary of a Call Girl, Showtime’s new series, seeks to tap into this interest by taking viewers into the world of high-end prostitution.

Based on The Intimate Adventures of a London Call Girl by Belle de Jour, the show centers on Belle (Billie Piper), a high-end prostitute based in the English capital. Immediately upon the show’s opening, Belle’s voiceover brings the viewer into her mind and life. She explains why she has chosen her profession, what measures she takes to both protect herself and keep her customers happy, and, most importantly, how she balances the rest of her life with her untraditional lifestyle. The most important thing is to keep her private and professional lives separate—she has different bedrooms, wardrobes, cell phones, and even different names: Belle is Hannah when she’s not working.

From her narration, everything in Belle’s life seems to be smooth and easy, not to mention pleasurable. Underneath, though, a tension begins to surface between Belle’s narration and reality. It seems that this will become more apparent and exacerbated throughout the season.

While a show about prostitution could easily turn into a moralistic tale or a mere excuse to show sex scenes, Secret Diary appears to have the attributes of a legitimate exploration of a world that is omnipresent in the news and movies, but distant in reality. It has a very strong script that manages to be audacious without ever becoming excessive or flamboyant. Moreover, Piper, appears very realistic in a role that could easily turn stereotypical. The mix of confidence and insecurity in her character is very palpable, but not cliché.

Nevertheless, the show’s premise leaves it open to prospective problems in the future. For one, it never strays from a strict focus on Belle’s life. She seems to be the only multidimensional character—everyone else in the show appear to be mere foils. After a while, one person’s life is bound to get boring or a little too realistic.

With such a strong writing and directing team, though, Secret Diary promises to be an intriguing look into the modern world of the earth’s oldest profession, if only in the short term.

Secret Diary of a Call Girl airs Mondays on Showtime at 10:30 pm.