''Pleasureland'' is a 2003

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

feature-length television drama focusing on a group of

teenagers Adolescence () is a transitional stage of human physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with ...

in Liverpool who feel pressured to grow up. Written by Helen Blakeman, directed by

Brian Percival Brian Percival is a British film director, known for his work on the British television series ''Downton Abbey'' and '' North & South'', as well as the feature film '' The Book Thief''. Biography He was born in Liverpool, England, in 1962 and a ...

and produced by

Kudos Kudos may refer to: * ''Kudos'' (computer game), a life simulation game produced by Positech Games * Kudos (production company), a UK-based film and television production company * Kudos, a fictional currency used by the Dwellers in '' The Alge ...

, the makers of the

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...

espionage series '' Spooks''. The drama was based on the John Adams opera ''Pleasureland'' and was filmed on location in

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

as part of the Channel 4's

Adult at 14 season An adult is an animal that has reached full growth. The biological definition of the word means an animal reaching sexual maturity and thus capable of reproduction. In the human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social ...

Plot

A modern tale of teenage sex, ''Pleasureland'' is the story of Jo, a 14-year-old

Scouse Scouse ( ), more formally known as Liverpool English or Merseyside English, is an Accent (dialect), accent and dialect of English language, English associated with the city of Liverpool and the surrounding Merseyside. The Scouse accent is h ...

r, who wakes up one day and decides she has to change her virgin status. In fact, she makes a promise to herself: 'I, Joanna Mosscroft, aged 14, year nine, almost year 10, promise me, Joanna Mosscroft, to have sex.' She is also motivated to have sex because it seems as if that is what all of the girls at school seem to be talking about; thus, she feels pressured to lose her virginity. With that, she sets off on a rollercoaster journey of first-time-for-everything. Jo soon becomes embroiled in a world of sex, drugs and betrayal.

Cast

Source: * Katie Lyon as Joanna Mosscroft * Claire Hackett as Julie Mosscroft * Michael Dunn as Greg Mosscroft * Melissa Edwards as Michelle Mosscroft * Michael Bailey as Greg Mosscroft * Tara Wells as Katie * Leah Whittaker as Sophie * Claire Bailey as Lisa *

Philip Olivier Philip Lawrence Borg-Olivier (born 4 June 1980) is a British actor, model and stage performer best known for playing the role of Tim "Tinhead" O'Leary in the soap opera ''Brookside''. Career Olivier's first role was in 1995 in the Channel 4 ...

as Ben *

Barry Sloane Barry Sloane (born Barry Paul Sloan;''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916–2005''; at ancestry.com 10 February 1981) is an English actor. He has appeared in numerous television shows, and in the RTS Royal Television Socie ...

as Darren * Holly Shwenn as Leanne * Letitia Denny as Chantelle * Mark Fenna as Rocky * Clive Moore as Mr. Stevens * Guy Parry as Guy in Bar * Sarah Harvey as Train Girl

Critical reception

The show attracted criticism by children's campaigners over the way in which it depicted teenage sex. Victoria Segal writing for ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' praised Katie Lyons performance as the protagonist and labelled her as 'one to watch'. She also selected ''Pleasureland'' as her 'Pick of the day' in the TV section of ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

'' on November 16, 2003, despite describing it as 'difficult and unpleasant viewing'.

Awards

References

External links

''Pleasureland'', ''Channel 4''
*
Article in the Observer

Article in The Daily Post (Liverpool)
Channel 4 television dramas 2003 television specials Films about virginity British television films Films directed by Brian Percival {{UK-tv-film-stub