This is England ‘88 Review

12th Mar 2012

The sequel to the gut-wrenching This is England ’86, two years have passed since the murder of Lol’s dad. Lol has had a child as a result of her brief affair with Milky and is struggling to raise her alone. But for Lol the normal responsibilities of motherhood are twinned with the guilt of having Combo take the responsibility for his murder. She lives with the ghost of her father tormenting her as a waking nightmare; he is still a terrifying presence and it’s so unfair that she still isn’t free of him.

Woody is plunging further into his suburban nightmare, with a girlfriend his parents love, a promotion at work and a very Christmassy jumper. Milky and Lol’s actions have meant that Woody has distanced himself from the gang. He and the gang literally stumble onto each other and a violent scuffle shows him that he misses them and his old life. It takes the drastic actions of Lol to forcibly bring her, Milky and Woody back together.

’88 is just as emotionally relentless, dealing primarily with the terror of Trevor haunting Lol and her excruciating pain. It’s lost a lot of the sub-plots of ’86 and primarily runs with the story of Lol and Woody, providing an ending that was missing from ’86. The familiar identifiers – the soundtrack and the period clothing are all there, which creates a backdrop of absolute authenticity. But it’s the unscripted, raw performances from all of the characters that make This is England so compelling and so genuine.

I would recommend seeing ’86 first; it won’t make sense without it, but it’s an interested finish for the previous series. The strongest British drama in years, This is England ’88 isn’t easy viewing, but it’s stark, raw and real.