Adolescence creator reveals inspiration behind the show

Award-winning screenwriter Jack Thorne has revealed his Emmy-winning script for Adolescence was influenced by his work on an adaptation of Lord of the Flies, saying the themes of William Golding’s classic feel strikingly relevant today.

Speaking to the Big Issue, Thorne said; “the savagery of the populism” explored by Golding in the 1954 novel has “a lot of parallels with where we find ourselves now”, adding that the two projects began to overlap as he worked on them simultaneously.

He said: “Some of Golding’s story slipped into Adolescence, and I’m sure a bit of Adolescence slipped into Lord of the Flies. Lord of the Flies looks populism in the eye.”

Stephen Graham’s co-creator Jack Thorne explained that Golding was examining “a moment of horror” and how easily societies can descend into division, something he believes is once again casting a long shadow across the world.

He said: “There is no doubt we are under the shadow of populism again, and we need to understand it. We need to understand how we behave and how others around us will behave. This has a lot of parallels with where we find ourselves now.

“And it’s got more stark since I started working on this story. I don’t just mean in the United States. We’re seeing it everywhere. Everyone feels safe dividing themselves.”

During the interview, Thorne also criticised comments made by Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy about the BBC’s coverage of last year’s Glastonbury Festival, saying her intervention crossed an important line.

He said: “Lisa Nandy’s comments on Glastonbury were really wrong. She went beyond the remit of what a culture secretary should do by demanding resignations.

“The charter renewal is a crucial moment, and I hope people within government treasure the BBC and realise how important it is.”

Thorne, who has won multiple BAFTAs and Olivier Awards and has written extensively for film, television and the stage, was speaking as part of a Big Issue feature marking 100 years since John Logie Baird first demonstrated a working television set in January 1926.

The full interview appears in the Big Issue’s Television Special.

Stephen Graham admits he lost his Golden Globe a day after receiving it – check out the full story here.

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