The acclaimed memoir by author Paris Lees is coming to the small screen in the upcoming queer Y2K drama What It Feels Like For A Girl. BBC has shared the tantalizing first trailer for the eight-part miniseries and a release date less than a month away.
What It Feels Like For A Girl is based on the 2021 memoir of the same name by Lees. It chronicles the author’s coming-of-age journey from small town loner to queer found family member against the backdrop of the early 2000s nightlife scene.
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“Life explodes in a rush when Byron escapes to Nottingham’s vibrant underworld, discovering a realm of drink, drugs, and a chaotic family of troublemakers: The Fallen Divas,” the official synopsis reads.
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The gange of Fallen Divas include Lady Die (Laquarn Lewis), Sticky Nikki (Alex Thomas-Smith), and Dirty Damian (Adam Ali). Even as the gang is described as “kindred spirits,” Byron forms an “intense rivalry” with the “beautiful, acid-tongued” Sasha (Hannah Jones).
“Between them, they beg, steal and skank their way on a rollercoaster ride of hedonism at the heart of the UK’s early 2000s club scene,” the description continues. “The party can’t last forever though, and when Byron is seduced by bad-boy Liam, a shocking encounter occurs that will change life forever.”
The cast is led by Ellis Howard (Catherine the Great), who plays the working class teen Byron. Lees has previously described the difficulty in finding the right cast, and why Howard struck her as the perfect choice.
“This is a proudly working-class story, and it needed a cast who could bring it to life authentically,” Lees said. “We’ve struck gold with these highly talented actors, some of whom are already familiar faces – and some who are about to be.
“The biggest challenge was always the lead role – we’re following someone who’s going from, in the eyes of the outside world, a schoolboy, right up to a trans woman starting university, and all that’s in between.
“The moment I saw Ellis, I recognised something in him – a cheekiness, a delicateness, a complexity – and knew he was the one. And he rose to the challenge, again and again. The chemistry between El, Hannah, Laquarn and the rest of the Fallen Divas is something you can only dream of in drama.”
What It Feels Like For A Girl will air premiere on BBC Three and iPlayer June 3rd.
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