- Gripping new four-part drama Adolescence has hit Netflix
- Each episode is filmed in one long continuous take
- What is the plot of this new Stephen Graham series?
New Stephen Graham series Adolescence has just landed on Netflix.
Directed by Boiling Point’s Philip Barantini, the show takes a sobering look at an tragic issue that’s on the rise. It’s told in a way that heightens its nail-biting storyline too. Each episode unfolding in one long and unflinching extended take.
Read more: Is Adolescence based on a true story?
The show is written by Graham and Jack Thorne. The pair have previously collaborated on equally hard-hitting dramas like This is England ‘86, ‘88 and ‘90 alongside The Virtues. Each aired on England’s Channel 4 and each portrayed a different yet equally stark portrayal of troubling elements of British life.
With Adolescence, the pair are at it again but this time on Netflix. Here, viewers across the world to tune in to their new story. It’s left many wondering what their latest series is about.
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Read on for everything we know about the Adolescence plot.
Adolescence plot: What happens in the show?
Adolescence is a limited series consisting of four episodes, each roughly an hour in length.
The series plays out in real time and follows the fallout of a murder that takes place at a school in England. At the centre of all of this drama is Jamie (Owen Cooper), a 13-year-old who is accused of killing a teenage girl at his school.
The show begins with Jamie’s house being raided by local police, with Jamie taking in for questioning after being accused of the murder. Initially, Jamie is insistent that he is innocent and has done nothing wrong although as each episode progress and new evidence comes to light, viewers get the full picture of this harrowing story.
Pulled into this narrative is Jamie’s father Eddie (Stephen Graham). A plumber by trade, this ordinary guy is forced to come ask himself some troubling questions about how much he knows about his own son.
Soon, he learns some sobering facts that point less towards a who-done-it crime mystery and more towards a startling realisation about someone he felt he knew.
Is it based on a true story?
The show deals with the rise of knife crime in the UK. However, despite this all-too-frequently-occuring source material, the show isn’t based on a true story.
“The idea came as – over the past 10 years or so – we’ve seen an epidemic of knife crime amongst young lads, up and down the country,” Graham told the Radio Times earlier this year.
“And for me, there were certain instances that really stuck out where young boys – and they are young boys, you know, they’re not men – were killing young girls.
“When I mentioned it to Phil [Barantini, director], it just really hit me hard. I just thought, ‘Why? What’s going on? What’s happening? Why is this the case?'”
