Starring and co-created by Stephen Graham, Adolescence tells the story of 13-year-old Jamie Miller (Owen Cooper) who is arrested for the violent murder of a teenage girl from his school.
Launched at a special screening at Soho Hotel with over 40 people from organisations working to end violence, the drama shines a light on online misogyny and its dangerous impact on young people today.
Tender CEO Susie McDonald MBE joined Adolescence co-creators Stephen Graham and Jack Thorne, and producer Jo Johnson to explore their motivation for the series and the action they hope it will inspire.
As specialists in healthy relationships education, Tender strives to prevent violence and abuse before it starts with innovative programmes that embed positive values like equality, while challenging the dangerous rhetoric so present in young people’s lives.
However, not enough children and young people have access to the high quality RSHE needed to combat this critical issue. Adolescence is a powerful demonstration of the influences young people are facing, and how the lack of effective RSHE is putting both boys and girls at risk.
Speaking at the event, Stephen Graham said:
‘There’s been lots of incidents of young boys. They’re not men, they’re boys – attacking girls. I just thought, why, what’s going on where? Where are we at as a society that this is happening? So many people could have made a difference to Jamie’s life and that’s the tragedy of it.’
Susie McDonald MBE, CEO of Tender, said:
‘We are proud to work with the Adolescence team on this powerful, important production.
‘Adolescence is a dynamic portrayal of the troubling attitudes spreading through our schools – and the horrific impact they can have. As Adolescence so aptly illustrates – this is impacting both boys and girls, as well as their families and communities.
‘Young people are being bombarded with harmful content, and too many are left without the skills and understanding to challenge these beliefs.
‘Our young people are at serious risk – and it’s time to take action. Big problems demand big solutions: we call on our government to support our schools and our communities, ensuring every child has access to high quality, expert RSHE.’
Media enquiries
Tender CEO Susie McDonald MBE is available for interview.
For interview requests and further media enquiries, please contact katevine@tender.org.uk (Mon-Tues) / isadora@tender.org.uk (Wed-Fri.)
Images are available via WeTransfer.
For enquiries regarding Adolescence, please contact Hollie Hart – hollieh@netflix.com.
