Don’t you always feel blessed when, through a show, you can really leave your own experience and witness someone’s intimate thoughts and world-view? You are in for a treat in this new selection of shows about youth, full of rebellion and humour. Let’s get right into it!
My Mad Fat Diary (2013)
This show is so beautifully varied in emotion, ranging from gushing at boys to yelling at your mum, you feel right there with Rae. Social anxiety takes a real share of the spotlight -as it does in life- and the rendering techniques communicate it very well to the audience. Because of the diary and autobiographic format, you feel let-in this 16 year old’s most private thoughts and experience the world through her eyes. Welcome to the joys and dramas of being a teenager in a small English town in the 90’s.
IMDb rating & Synopsis: My Mad Fat Diary is a British television series that debuted on E4 on 14 January 2013. It is based on “My Fat, Mad Teenage Diary” written by Rae Earl. 8.4
Created by: Rae Earl
Betty (2020)
Based off Crystal Moselle’s 2018 short film “Skate Kitchen”, “Betty” finds its wheels in TV show format, as each character’s story slowly unfolds. Allow a little time for the stars of the show to settle into their roles, as they are all skaters first. Will make you want to head to the park.
IMDb rating & Synopsis: A diverse group of young women navigating their lives through the predominantly male oriented world of skateboarding. 6.8
Created by: Crystal Moselle
Derry Girls (2018)
So hilarious. Refreshing take on those awkward teenage years, not fantasised or viewed through a male gaze. In the background, a “Troubled” 1990’s Ireland.
IMDb rating & Synopsis: The personal exploits of a 16-year-old girl and her family and friends during the Troubles in the early 1990s. 8.4
Created by: Lisa McGee
Teenage Bounty Hunters (2020)
Maybe I was in a weird mood that day. but I absolutely loved this show. On the other hand from Derry Girls, this is completely playing into the unrealistic teenage genre and yet- it manages to surprise me. The characters feel fresh and new, bad-ass, layered. Who would have thought.
IMDb rating & Synopsis: After joining forces with a veteran bounty hunter, sixteen-year-old fraternal twin sisters Sterling and Blair dive into the world of bail skipping baddies while still navigating the high stakes of teenage life. 7.7
Created by: Kathleen Jordan
Anne with an E (2017)
A cottage-core dream, based on the Canadian classic “Anna of Green Gables”, written in 1908 by Lucy Maud Montgomery. The adaptation by Moira Walley-Beckett takes on many more themes, such as racism, gender inequality and trauma in alignment with the historical context. A truly formidable experience that will leave you wanting to dry flowers in the pages of a book.
IMDb rating & Synopsis: The adventures of a young orphan girl living in the late 19th century. Follow Anne as she learns to navigate her new life on Prince Edward Island, in this new take on L.M. Montgomery’s classic novels. 8.7
Created by: Moira Walley-Beckett