The A Word
| The A Word | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Drama |
| Created by | Keren Margalit |
| Developed by | Peter Bowker |
| Written by | Peter Bowker |
| Directed by | Peter Cattaneo |
| Starring |
Morven Christie Lee Ingleby Greg McHugh Vinette Robinson Max Vento Molly Wright Christopher Eccleston |
| Composer(s) | Rob Lane |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 6 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
Keren Margalit Peter Bowker Patrick Spence Lucy Ritcher BBC Sara Johnson Keshet Avi Nir Keshet |
| Producer(s) | Marcus Wilson |
| Location(s) | Lake District, Keswick, Cumbria, Thirlmere, The Space Project |
| Editor(s) | Jamie Pearson |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Production company(s) |
Keshet UK Fifty Fathoms |
| Release | |
| Original network | BBC One |
| Picture format | 16:9 1080i |
| Audio format | Stereo |
| Original release | 22 March 2016 – present |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | Yellow Peppers |
| External links | |
| Website | |
| Production website | |
The A Word is a BBC drama television series based on Yellow Peppers by Keren Margalit. The series follows a 5-year-old boy and how his dysfunctional family cope with the revelation that he is autistic. Following filming in the Lake District from October 2015, a six-part series began airing on 22 March 2016.
On 26 May 2016, the BBC announced that a second series of The A Word had been commissioned.[1]
Synopsis
Five-year-old Joe Hughes displays clear signs of communication problems and consistently isolates himself by playing rock music, mostly to himself, through large blue headphones. He has encyclopedic knowledge of the songs he listens to and accurately sings along with the lyrics. His parents, Alison and Paul, seem oblivious to the disorder and wonder why Joe is ostracised by other children of the same age. However it is later discovered by Joe's grandfather Maurice that Alison and Paul have been taking him to hospital for his communication problems. Other family members know there is a problem however their attempts to intervene are met with obstruction from Joe's parents. After originally believing Joe had hearing problems, their otolaryngologist refers Joe to a specialist who diagnoses him with autism. The story then follows how the dysfunctional family, including Rebecca (who feels invisible), Eddie and Nicola (who are coping with their own relationship problems) and tactless granddad Maurice, cope with Joe's situation and their own apparent social disorders.
Cast
| Actor | Character | Role | Episode |
|---|---|---|---|
| Max Vento | Joe Hughes | Five-year-old boy who is autistic | 1-6 |
| Lee Ingleby | Paul Hughes | Joe's father | 1-6 |
| Morven Christie | Alison Hughes | Joe's mother | 1-6 |
| Molly Wright | Rebecca Hughes | Joe's 16-year-old half-sister | 1-6 |
| Greg McHugh | Eddie Scott | Alison's brother | 1-6 |
| Vinette Robinson | Nicola Daniels | Eddie's wife | 1-6 |
| Christopher Eccleston | Maurice Scott | Joe's grandfather | 1-6 |
| Pooky Quesnel | Louise Wilson | Maurice's music teacher and lover | 1-6 |
| Matt Greenwood | Tom Clarke | Rebecca and Luke's friend | 2-6 |
| Thomas Gregory | Luke Taylor | Rebecca's boyfriend | 2-6 |
| Daniel Cerqueira | Dr Graves | Insensitive family doctor | 1-5 |
| George Bukhari | Terry | Worker at Paul and Alison's cafe | 1-6 |
| Adam Wittek | David Nowak | Worker at the Scott's brewery | 1-6 |
| Tommie Grabiec | Pavel Kaminski | Worker at the Scott's brewery | 1-6 |
| Julia Krynke | Maya Petrenko | Joe's babysitter | 2-5 |
| Lisa Millett | Maggie White | Joe's speech therapist | 3 |
| Ralf Little | Stuart | Rebecca's biological father | 5-6 |
Production
Writer Peter Bowker was approached by Keshet who produced Yellow Peppers who wanted him to remake the Israeli series but with an original story line. Bowker drew on his own experiences and observations as a teacher and with his family to write The A Word.[2]
Filming took place from October 2015 at locations in the Lake District, including Keswick, Broughton-in-Furness, Coniston and Thirlmere Reservoir, and at The Space Project studios in Manchester[3][4][5]
Episodes
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | UK air date | UK viewers (million) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Episode 1" | Peter Cattaneo | Peter Bowker | 22 March 2016 | 6.65 |
| Alison and Paul continually make excuses for their 5 year old boy's uncooperative behaviour but will they listen to other family members who suspect something more serious? Meanwhile Nicola and Eddie move in next to Alison and Paul, hoping to make a new start in the Lakes, but will Eddie be able to forget Nicola's infidelity, especially as it has become public knowledge? | |||||
| 2 | "Episode 2" | Peter Cattaneo | Peter Bowker | 29 March 2016 | 6.13 |
| Alison pulls Joe out of school and emotionally blackmails the rest of the family into home schooling. She also became dismissive of alternative ideas from Paul putting a strain on their marriage. Nicola and Eddie's relationship is also put to the test when Alison asks Nicola to seek a second opinion from her former fling Michael. All the while Rebecca is left to fend for herself and the only one who seems to care is her Uncle Eddie. | |||||
| 3 | "Episode 3" | Peter Cattaneo | Peter Bowker | 5 April 2016 | 5.94 |
| Speech therapist Maggie arrives and manages to make some progress with Joe whilst telling the family some home truths. She avoids speaking about her school history with Alison and abruptly halts her visits, ignoring Alison's pleas for her to stay. Does Maggie have a grudge to bare? Meanwhile Maurice reconciders Louise's proposal, Nicola settles into her new job while Eddie struggles with his and Rebecca is feeling more and more ignored by her mother. | |||||
| 4 | "Episode 4" | Dominic Leclerc[6] | Peter Bowker | 12 April 2016 | 5.85 |
| Alison observes Joe playing with two other children and invites them for a sleepover during which Joe falls ill. While recovering Joe demonstrates empathy for his mother while they look at photos of his late grandmother, misleading Alison to believe he's cured of Autism. Luke is ignoring Rebecca and she turns to Eddie and Nicola while Maurice realises he too misses his late wife more than he thought and perhaps his friends-with-benefits relationship with his music teacher wasn't such a good idea. Meanwhile, is Paul carrying a torch for an old flame? | |||||
| 5 | "Episode 5" | Dominic Leclerc | Peter Bowker | 19 April 2016 | 5.61 |
| The police investigate Maya and discover she is an illegal immigrant. Despite Alison's desperate attempts to persuade family friend and police officer Bob to turn a blind eye, Maya is deported and Alison is worried for the effect it would have on Joe. Meanwhile Rebecca's relationship with Luke turns sour and Eddie's plans to move to Manchester are not popular with Nicola or Maurice. | |||||
| 6 | "Episode 6" | Susan Tully[6] | Peter Bowker | 26 April 2016 | 5.94 |
| After their fall out over differences of wanting more children Alison and Paul reconcile in time for the opening of their new restaurant. Maurice leaves Joe with Louise's son Ralph and Joe goes missing. As a mass search ensues, some uncomfortable truths are revealed. | |||||
Broadcast and reception
BBC One began airing the first six-part series in a Tuesday 9 pm slot, replacing Happy Valley, starting from 22 March 2016. SundanceTV has acquired rights for broadcasting the show in America.[7]
Overnight figures revealed the first episode was watched by 4.7 million viewers and had a 23% share of the audience.[8] BARB later reported a consolidated figure of 5.91 million.[9] Reaction to the first episode was mostly positive among viewers. Many people praised the show on social media, partly for the quality of the acting but also for the way it dealt with the subject of autism.[10] The Guardian interviewed a father and his autistic daughter who expressed mixed views about the authenticity of how autism was portrayed in the show.[11]
Home media
A DVD featuring all episodes from the series, was released on 19 September 2016, with a short behind the scenes documentary as an extra.
References
- ↑ "BBC Drama announces three new commissions for BBC One and BBC Two". BBC Press Office. 26 May 2016. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
- ↑ Ritman, Alex (22 March 2016). "Autism Drama Writer Talks BBC, Sundance's 'The A Word'". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
- ↑ "The A Word". BBC Media Centre. 26 October 2015. Retrieved 24 March 2016.
- ↑ "The A Word filming in Keswick". Times & Star. 15 January 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
- ↑ Clarke, Tom (26 October 2015). "'The A Word' goes into production at The Space Project". The Space Project. Retrieved 24 March 2016.
- 1 2 "The A Word". Keshnet International. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
- ↑ Littleton, Cynthia (8 January 2016). "SundanceTV Acquires BBC, Keshet Autism Drama 'The A-Word'". Retrieved 23 March 2016.
- ↑ Johnson, Niall (23 March 2016). "BBC One's autistic family drama The A Word opens with 4.7m". Mediatel. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
- ↑ "Weekly Top 30". BARB. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
- ↑ Debnath, Neela (23 March 2016). "The A Word: Viewers praise Christopher Eccleston drama tackling autism". Express. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
- ↑ Hattenstone, Simon (2016-03-22). "The A Word: a father and his autistic daughter give their verdict". the Guardian. Retrieved 2016-05-11.