"Tony" is the first episode of British

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

television series '' Skins''. It was written by

Bryan Elsley Bryan Elsley (born 17 May 1961 in Dalkeith, Midlothian) is a Scottish television writer, best known for the co-creation of E4 teen drama '' Skins'' with his son, Jamie Brittain. Other television dramas include ''Rose and Maloney'', '' The Young ...

and directed by Paul Gay.
Tony's episode at e4.com/skins It is told from the point of view of main character

Tony Stonem Anthony Stonem is a fictional character from the British television series '' Skins''. He is the protagonist of the first two series, which aired from 2007 to 2008. The character is portrayed by Nicholas Hoult and was created by Bryan Elsley. As t ...

. It aired on E4 on 25 January 2007.

Plot

The episode begins with Tony waking up in his room on an average morning. He distracts his angry, overly vocal father in order for his younger sister Effy to get inside unnoticed. Tony continues to irritate his father by locking him out of the bathroom and exiting through the window, leaving the door locked. Tony then leaves for

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') may be a tertiary educational institution (sometimes awarding degrees), part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further education institution, or a secondary sc ...

and on the way rings his friends and tries to organise a night out so they can help his best friend Sid lose his

virginity Virginity is a social construct that denotes the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. As it is not an objective term with an operational definition, social definitions of what constitutes virginity, or the lack thereo ...

. Tony and Sid meet for breakfast in a café where Tony tells Sid that they will get a girl "spliffed up" so she will have sex with Sid. Michelle and Tony tell Sid he is being set up with Cassie, who was recently in a

psychiatric hospital A psychiatric hospital, also known as a mental health hospital, a behavioral health hospital, or an asylum is a specialized medical facility that focuses on the treatment of severe Mental disorder, mental disorders. These institutions cater t ...

. Tony asks Sid to pick up some drugs off his dealer, Mad Twatter. Tony auditions for the city

chamber choir A chamber choir is a small or medium-sized choir of roughly 8 to 40 singers (occasionally called "chamber singers"), typically singing classical or religious music in a concert setting.Riemann, Hugo. Dictionary of Music'. Trans. J.A. Shedlock. A ...

and succeeds in getting a part. He then flirts with a

private school A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a State school, public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their fina ...

girl Abigail Stock and agrees to attend her house party with his friends. Most of his friends, however, have other plans. Tony's openly

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

friend Maxxie is taking

Chris Chris is a short form of various names including Christopher, Christian, Christina, and Christine. Chris is also used as a name in its own right, however it is not as common. People with the given name * Chris Abani (born 1966), Nigerian autho ...

and Anwar on a big, gay night out. Tony, now aware via Chris that

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

has

cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae that is widely accepted as being indigenous to and originating from the continent of Asia. However, the number of species is disputed, with as many as three species be ...

, tries to call Sid to tell him not to buy the drugs, but Sid has his mobile phone switched off. Mad bullies Sid into purchasing three ounces instead of the intended ounce. He then violently threatens Sid afterwards that he needs to pay the weed back with its profits. The gang arrive at Abigail's party and Sid meets Cassie. In Abigail's house, they are told to remove their shoes and not to smoke. Tony and Michelle scoff at the dull, lifeless party the wealthy "posh" kids and decide to show them up with seductive dancing. Sid goes to find Cassie, and they discuss her

anorexia Anorexia nervosa (AN), often referred to simply as anorexia, is an eating disorder characterized by Calorie restriction, food restriction, body image disturbance, fear of gaining weight, and an overpowering desire to be thin. Individuals wit ...

, where she confesses she'd taken pills earlier which causes her to become unconscious. While they talk, Chris, Anwar and Maxxie arrive. While Chris dirties the floor A fight breaks out after Tony punches a posh boy in the face. The fight is broken up as Sid runs in with an unconscious Cassie. The group, along with a posh Polish girl from the party, steal a Mercedes car and drive Cassie to the city hospital, where Cassie wakes. The gang then drive to the

harbour A harbor (American English), or harbour (Commonwealth English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences), is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be Mooring, moored. The t ...

. While parked, Sid accidentally hits the car's

handbrake HandBrake is a free and open-source transcoder for digital video files. It was originally developed in 2003 by Eric Petit to make ripping DVDs to a data storage device easier. HandBrake's backend contains comparatively little original code; t ...

. The car rolls into the harbour, destroying the three ounces of weed. The group, minus Chris and the Polish girl, climb out of the submerged car and walk home. By the end of the episode Tony and Sid retire to Tony's bed.

Main cast

Nicholas Hoult Nicholas Caradoc Hoult (; born Wokingham, 7 December 1989) is an English actor. He has received several accolades, including a nomination for a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe nominations, and a Primetime Emmy Award nomination. ...

* Mike Bailey as

Sid Jenkins Sidney "Sid" Jenkins is a fictional character in the British television series '' Skins'', portrayed by actor Mike Bailey. Initially introduced in the first series, Sid embodies the stereotypical "nice guy" persona. He is depicted as an awkward a ...

April Pearson April Janet Pearson (born 23 January 1989) is an English actress. Born and brought up in Bristol, Pearson was drawn to acting from a young age and appeared in local theatre productions as a child. She made her acting debut in 1998 at the age of ...

Michelle Richardson Michelle Richardson is a fictional character in both the British teen drama series '' Skins'' and its American remake. In the British version, she is portrayed by actress April Pearson, while in the American adaptation, the character is played ...

Hannah Murray Tegan Lauren-Hannah Murray (born 1 July 1989) is an English actress. She played Cassie in '' Skins'' (2007–2008, 2013) and Gilly in the HBO fantasy series ''Game of Thrones'' (2012–2019), for which she has been nominated along with her ca ...

Cassie Ainsworth Cassandra "Cassie" Ainsworth is a fictional character in the British television series '' Skins'', portrayed by actress Hannah Murray. Cassie is one of the central characters in the first and second series of the show and is known for her quirky, ...

Joe Dempsie Joe Dempsie (born ) is an English actor, best known for his roles as Chris Miles in the E4 teen comedy-drama '' Skins'' (2007–2008) and Gendry Baratheon in ''Game of Thrones'' (2011–2013; 2017–2019). Dempsie's earlier acting credits i ...

as Chris Miles *

Mitch Hewer Mitchell Scott Hewer (born 1 July 1989) is an English actor, best known for the role of Maxxie Oliver in the E4 teen drama '' Skins''. He has also starred in'' Britannia High'' as the all-round talent Danny Miller. Career In 2006, Hewer was ca ...

Maxxie Oliver Maxwell "''Maxxie''" Oliver is a fictional character in the British television series '' Skins'', portrayed by actor Mitch Hewer. Maxxie is introduced as one of the central characters in the first two series of the show, where he stands out as on ...

Dev Patel Dev Patel (; born 23 April 1990) is an English actor and filmmaker. List of awards and nominations received by Dev Patel, His accolades include a British Academy Film Award, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award and two Golden Globe A ...

Anwar Kharral Anwar Kharral is a fictional character in the British television series '' Skins'', portrayed by actor Dev Patel. Anwar is introduced in the first series as one of the central characters and is known for his charismatic, fun-loving personality and ...

Larissa Wilson Larissa Hope Wilson (born 5 May 1989) is an English actress and director, best known for her role as Jal Fazer in the first two series of the UK television series '' Skins'' (2007-2008). Other credits include ''Holby City'' (2008), '' Kingdom'' ( ...

Jal Fazer Jalander "''Jal''" Fazer is a fictional character in the British television series '' Skins'', portrayed by actress Larissa Wilson. Jal is introduced as one of the core characters in the first two series of the show and is known for her intellige ...

Siwan Morris Siwan Morris is a Welsh actress from Glynneath. Morris has appeared in various parts for the Royal Shakespeare Company. Morris' television roles have included Angie in series 1 and 2 of the teen comedy-drama series '' Skins'' (2007–2008), Ceri ...

Angie Angie may refer to: People * Angie (given name) * Ängie, a Swedish pop singer * Angie Vázquez, Mexican singer Arts and entertainment * ''Angie'' (Angela Bofill album), 1978 * ''Angie'' (Spill Tab album), 2025 * "Angie" (song), a 1973 single ...

Arc significance and continuity

Tony's home life

* The family tread carefully around an angry, unpleasant father, Jim, who swears too often and is easily angered beyond reasoning. * Tony has a younger sister, Effy, who despite being only in Year 10 of secondary school is out partying all night. * Tony's house looks to be in an upper middle class area of Bristol.

Series relevance

* We are introduced to the series regulars: :* Tony Stonem A manipulative,

narcissistic Narcissism is a self-centered personality style characterized as having an excessive preoccupation with oneself and one's own needs, often at the expense of others. Narcissism, named after the Greek mythological figure ''Narcissus'', has evolv ...

and intelligent teenager who is the group's leader and has a girlfriend, yet

flirt Flirting or coquetry is a social and sexual behavior involving body language, or spoken or written communication between humans. It is used to suggest interest in a deeper relationship with another person and for amusement. Flirting can change ...

s with other girls. :* Sid Jenkins A self-conscious "

sidekick A sidekick is a close companion or colleague who is, or is generally regarded as, subordinate to those whom they accompany. Origins The first recorded use of the term dates from 1896. It is believed to have originated in pickpocket slang of ...

" to Tony, forever in his friend's shadow. Sid is a virgin and is in love with Tony's girlfriend, Michelle. Sid sleeps a lot and is doing poorly in college. :* Chris Miles A party-goer and experimentalist with various drugs. Chris does anything for fun and is in love with his

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...

teacher, Angie. He has a sweet "schoolboy" love for her and every day offers to carry her books. He even badmouths his own Health Science teacher for making Angie upset. :* Maxxie Oliver A gay dancer and actor whose current ambition is to include a

tap dancing Tap dance (or tap) is a form of dance that uses the sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of percussion; it is often accompanied by music. Tap dancing can also be performed with no musical accompaniment; the sound of the taps is its ow ...

routine in ''

Death of a Salesman ''Death of a Salesman'' is a 1949 stage play written by the American playwright Arthur Miller. The play premiered on Broadway in February 1949, running for 742 performances. It is a two-act tragedy set in late 1940s Brooklyn told through a ...

''. Despite being gay, he is best friends with Anwar, who is a

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

. This unorthodox relationship causes problems toward the end of the season. :* Anwar Kharral A

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

i descent. Despite being a Muslim, Anwar consumes alcohol and drugs and hopes to lose his virginity before marriage. His best friend is Maxxie, who is gay, which causes problems later in the series. These, along with his English accent, indicate that Anwar grew up in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

rather than Pakistan. Whether he is British by birth or immigrated to Britain is never stated. :* Jal Fazer Daughter of (fictional) famous

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

and

grime Grime may refer to: * Dirt, in the form of black, ingrained dust Music * Grime music, a genre of music * ''Grime'' (album), a 2001 album by Iniquity * "Grime", a 2023 song by Macklemore from ''Ben'' * "Grime", a 2024 song by Kittie from ''Fire ...

artist Ronny Fazer, she is a dedicated

clarinet The clarinet is a Single-reed instrument, single-reed musical instrument in the woodwind family, with a nearly cylindrical bore (wind instruments), bore and a flared bell. Clarinets comprise a Family (musical instruments), family of instrume ...

ist. She is portrayed as slightly more conservative and prudent than the others, but not excessively so. :* Michelle Richardson Tony's girlfriend, she has been best friends with Sid and Tony for years. She puts up with continuous insults from Tony including him nicknaming her "Nips" because "her nipples are funny" and "one breast is bigger than the other". She seems to love Tony more than he loves her despite him being flirtatious with other girls. :* Cassie Ainsworth is an anorexic

sex addict Sexual addiction is a state characterized by compulsive participation or engagement in Human sexual activity, sexual activity, particularly sexual intercourse, despite negative consequences. The concept is contentious; sexual addiction is not a ...

. She refuses to eat, but instead has regular

casual sex Casual sex is sexual activity that takes place outside a romantic relationship and implies an absence of commitment, emotional attachment, or familiarity between sexual partners. Examples are sexual activity while casually dating, one-nig ...

and does drugs, but not weed because "it makes you hungry". She also suffers from mild OCD and likes to arrange food in people's cabinets. She is spacey and says "wow" very often in a dazed tone and is very blunt. She has a crush on Sid. :* Effy Stonem is Tony's little sister, initially introduced as a recurring character, she later becomes a main character in season three after Tony leaves for university and she begins college. For almost the entirety of the first season, she does not speak; however she is a wild club-goer who drinks, smokes and parties all night despite her young age of fourteen. * Sid purchases drugs on credit from Mad Twatter and loses them in the harbour. * Sid fails to lose his virginity, but does strike a connection with Cassie.

U.S. version

This episode is remade almost shot-for-shot for the U.S. adaption of ''Skins''. Differences include *The show's setting was changed from Bristol to an unnamed Eastern seaboard city. *Tony's surname is changed to Snyder *Chris's surname is changed to Collins *Effy is renamed Eura *Cassie is renamed Cadie *Sid is renamed Stanley *Abigail does not appear *Maxxie is replaced by Tea Marvelli, an out

lesbian A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexu ...

Soundtrack

* "

Right Thurr "Right Thurr" is the debut single of American rapper Chingy. Written alongside The Trak Starz. It was released on April 14, 2003, by Capitol Records, Priority Records, and Disturbing tha Peace as the lead single from his debut album, ''Jackpot (C ...

" by

Chingy Howard Earl Bailey Jr. (born March 9, 1980), better known by his stage name Chingy, is an American rapper. He toured as an opening act with fellow St. Louis rapper Nelly in 2002, and signed with Georgia-based rapper Ludacris' record label, D ...

* "Finer Truths, White Lies" by

Napalm Death Napalm Death are an English grindcore band formed in Meriden, West Midlands, in 1981. None of the band's original members have been in the group since 1986, but since ''Utopia Banished'' (1992), the lineup of bassist Shane Embury, guitarist Mi ...

* "As Serious as Your Life" by

Four Tet Kieran Miles David Hebden (born September 1977), known as Four Tet, is an English electronic musician. He came to prominence as a member of the post-rock band Fridge before establishing himself as a solo artist with charting and critically acc ...

* "Dirt" by

Death in Vegas Death in Vegas is an English electronic music group, for which Richard Fearless serves as frontman. The band was formed in 1994 by Fearless and Steve Hellier and signed to Concrete Records under the name of Dead Elvis. Owing to an Irish record ...

* "

On the Street Where You Live "On the Street Where You Live" is a song with music by Frederick Loewe and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner from the 1956 Broadway musical ''My Fair Lady''. It is sung in the musical by the character Freddy Eynsford-Hill, who was portrayed by John M ...

" by

* "Bounty Hunter" by

Barrington Levy Barrington Ainsworth Levy (born 30 April 1964) is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall artist from Clarendon, Jamaica. Career In 1977, Levy formed a band called the Mighty Multitude, with his cousin, Everton Dacres; the pair released "My Bla ...

* "Drop Ya Thangs" by The Game * "

Star Guitar "Star Guitar" is a song by English electronic music duo the Chemical Brothers, released as the second single from their fourth album, ''Come with Us'' (2002). It reached number eight on the UK Singles Chart, number two on the US ''Billboard'' ...

" by

The Chemical Brothers The Chemical Brothers are an English electronic music duo formed by Ed Simons and Tom Rowlands in Manchester in 1992. They were pioneers in bringing the big beat genre to the forefront of pop culture. Originally known as The Dust Brothers, th ...

* "All Around the World" by

Lisa Stansfield Lisa Jane Stansfield (born 11 April 1966) is an English singer, songwriter, and actress. Her career began in 1980 when she won the singing competition ''Search for a Star''. After appearances in various television shows and releasing her first ...

* "Monkey Ska" by

Derrick Harriott Derrick Clifton Harriott OD (born 6 February 1939) is a Jamaican singer and record producer. He was a member of the Jiving Juniors with Herman Sang before embarking on a solo career. He has produced recordings by Big Youth, Chariot Riders, ...

* "Totally Wired" by The Fall * "Flesh and Bone" by

Brendan Benson Brendan Benson (born November 14, 1970) is an American musician and singer-songwriter. He plays guitar, bass guitar, keyboard, and drums. He has released eight solo albums and is a member of the band The Raconteurs. Recording career ''One Mis ...

* "Witness (One Hope)" by

Roots Manuva Rodney Hylton Smith, better known by his stage name Roots Manuva (born 9 September 1972), is a British rapper and producer. Since his debut in 1994, he has produced numerous albums and singles on the label Big Dada, achieving commercial succ ...

References

External links

Skins at Channel 4

{{Skins 2000s British television series premieres 2007 British television episodes British LGBTQ-related television episodes Skins (British TV series) episodes