Carnal knowledge
THE MAKERS OF NETFLIX’S SEX EDUCATION EXPLAIN ALL…
1 IT’S NOT FOR THE FAINT-HEARTED
“You’ll get to see all the penises,” promises Asa Butterfield as Small Screen prepares to tour the South Wales set of Netflix’s eight-part dramedy
Sex Education. And he’s not kidding. The house that awkward, empathetic 16-year-old virgin Otis (Butterfield) shares, somewhat uneasily, with his sex-therapist mum (Gillian Anderson) is a riot of overtly carnal imagery. No wonder Otis decides to use his unique expertise to assist his fellow Moordale School students with their bedroom problems in his own sex-therapy clinic. “My mum visited the set with my little sister who’s just turned nine,” Butterfield grimaces. “She couldn’t wait to go home and tell everyone I spent the day with a load of plastic penises...”
2 JOHN HUGHES FANS WILL LOVE IT
Writer Laurie Nunn brought her first greenlit script to life with the help of director Ben Taylor (Catastrophe), whose love for John Hughes movies allows Sex Education to both embrace and subvert the tropes of the genre. “Those movies have an innocence, but deal with relationships in a frank, surprising way,” says producer Jamie Campbell. “There’s something nice and oldfashioned about the way Otis and Jean give advice, human to human, dealing with emotional issues at the core.”
3 IT’S ABOUT ONE BIG, THROBBING ORGAN
Sex Education is unapologetically – but never gratuitously – explicit. With the show’s dual purposes being to make us laugh and to open up conversation about sex, it practises what it preaches. “Grown-ups and teenagers are suffering equally in this show,” says Nunn. “We talk about sex all the time in life, but in a way that distances us from it because it’s usually dick jokes. These issues never really go away, and the answer is always communication. You just have to talk it out.” Butterfield adds: “It’s a coming-of-age story, a love story, a friendship story… Seeing these relationships develop is very funny, but there’s a lot of heart.”
4 GILLIAN ANDERSON BRINGS THE FUNNY
“I’ve been having a lot of fun,” smiles the star. “I don’t get to be funny very often in my career. I read for FBI agents, period stuff, women who commit suicide… People often forget that a good proportion of X Files episodes were comedic. I found I could do them as well, but I’m usually cast as the straight man, rather than getting to be goofy or humorously neurotic. These scripts were so refreshing, I laughed and laughed. I couldn’t say no.”
5 NEW STARS WILL BE BORN
From series creator Nunn through to a young cast who, Butterfield excepted, have precious little on-screen experience, this is a high-profile showcase for young talent. “I’m still getting my head around TV land,” marvels Ncuti Gatwa (playing Otis’ best friend Eric), “but the pay cheques are better [than theatre] so I’m here to stay.” As a result of their relative youth and inexperience, an intimacy consultant was present on set. “We had to spend a whole morning emulating the mating rhythms of snails to get into the vibe,” Gatwa laughs. “Weirdly, it was a really useful bonding exercise!” Gabriel Tate
Sex education starts on netflix on 11 january.