It was one of the most nominated shows at this year’s Emmy Awards, with its star Owen Cooper becoming the youngest-ever male winner at the awards, but what is Adolescence about? And why has it sparked a national conversation?
The Netflix show features This Is England star and co-creator Stephen Graham as Eddie Miller, the father of 13-year-old Jamie, played by Cooper, 15, who sees armed police burst into his home to arrest his son.
Eddie is then chosen as Jamie’s appropriate adult, accompanying him at the police interview and learning the extent of what his son is accused of doing.
The programme examines so-called incel (involuntary celibate) culture, which has led to misogyny online and bullying using social media.
Adolescence has prompted a national conversation around online safety, with Graham and co-creator Jack Thorne accepting an invite to a parliamentary meeting on the subject by Labour MP Josh MacAlister.
Speaking to Parliament’s Women And Equalities Committee (WEC) during an evidence session, Thorne spoke about being subjected to “personal criticism or even abuse” since it began streaming.
He said: “You know that I’m a bald, skinny, weird-looking man, and some people have made something of the fact that I’m a bald, skinny, weird-looking man, and saying these things and that somehow my masculinity is the reason why I’ve questioned other people’s masculinity.
“Well, if you look at how Stephen Graham looks, he looks more male than anyone else on the planet, I think, and so we’re a combination of things and we work together on it all.
“So, yes, my looks have been put under the microscope a little bit by it all but I’m absolutely comfortable with those questions being answered, and that’s the thing, when I talk about boys feeling that they need to look a certain way.”
He said the comments about his appearance were a symptom of the issues the show is highlighting.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has also praised the show, urging Parliament and schools to watch it, and saying he had watched the show with his own children.
During an edition of Prime Minister’s Questions in March, Sir Keir said: “This violence carried out by young men, influenced by what they see online, is a real problem, it’s abhorrent, and we have to tackle it.”
The show also received plaudits for the way it was filmed in a one-shot format, which sees each of the four episodes filmed in a single shot.
Speaking about the show ahead of its release, Cooper, who beat Scott Jacoby’s long-held record for youngest male Emmy winner, said he got the role after sending in a tape.
Talking about the impact the show had on him in February, Cooper said: “One week before filming, it was my last day in school before I was off for six weeks and at the final assembly my head of year told the whole school something like, ‘Owen is going on a journey and making this show for Netflix…’, and I was like, ‘oh my God’.
“So it went from two or three people knowing to suddenly the whole year knowing about it and everyone coming up to me and asking about it. It was a bit weird but everyone is fine with it.”
At the Emmys, co-star Erin Doherty, who plays psychologist Briony Ariston, won best supporting actress in a limited series, dedicating the award to her older sister while Graham picked up the award for lead actor in a limited series.
Doherty, 33, also worked with Graham in Disney+’s A Thousand Blows, where she played Mary Carr, the leader of a crime syndicate called the Forty Elephants and she has also played the Princess Royal in The Crown.
Adolescence recently scooped two gongs at this year’s National Television Awards (NTAs) including the new drama award and best drama performance for Cooper.
