S W

I haven’t finished watching, but I need to write this. In all my years of watching television and film, I have rarely been so moved, so captivated and so stunned by a scene as I was in Episode 3 of this drama. The first half was exciting, fast-paced, discomforting and a sorry but accurate (IMO) narrative of the state school system in too many parts of the country, but the second half of the episode… I struggle to find superlatives to explain the emotional roller coaster of the interview between the psychologist and Jamie. The fact that this was filmed in the way that it was, coupled with the sheer energy of the pair, was worthy or more awards than are currently on offer. To then take into account the youth of the protagonist, and the visceral, multi-layered performance he gave, the perfection of his acting and reacting, the strength of his timing, the visibility of his internal struggle, matched with the honesty of her focus, performance and delivery, I am hard-pressed to come up with a scene that has taken me on such an emotive, heart-wrenching and satisfying journey as this did. Kudos to all involved. The writing, acting, staging, filming and directing is a masterclass in television. I cannot wait (though I am taking a short break!) to watch the conclusion of this drama. Please, please, please, bring more of this to the small screen (and big) because it fulfills the purpose of the medium - to entertain, to educate and to reflect the reality of life in an honest way. Bravo Owen, Bravo Erin