It's a Sin is a British drama television series written by Russell T Davies. Set in London between 1981 and 1991, it depicts the lives of a group of gay men and their friends during the HIV/AIDS crisis in the United Kingdom. It's a Sin features a main cast consisting of Olly Alexander, Omari Douglas, Callum Scott Howells, Lydia West, and Nathaniel Curtis. Other actors cast were David Carlyle, Keeley Hawes, Shaun Dooley, Tracy-Ann Oberman, Neil Patrick Harris and Stephen Fry. The series was directed by Peter Hoar, produced by Red Production Company, and premiered in the United Kingdom on Channel 4 on 22 January 2021.

Its subject matter made the series a difficult sell to broadcasters. BBC One and ITV passed on the series, and Channel 4 took it on only after their commissioning editor of drama, Lee Mason, fought for it and the series was shortened from a planned eight episodes to five. Principal photography commenced on 7 October 2019. Despite its London setting, It's a Sin was filmed mainly in Manchester, with other locations used in Liverpool, Bolton, Eccles, Bangor, and Rhos-on-Sea. The series was executive produced by Davies, Hoar, and Nicola Shindler, with Phil Collinson serving as producer.

The show received critical acclaim for its emotional scenes, writing, performances and accurate depiction of HIV/AIDS. All episodes were released to Channel 4's online streaming service All 4 (now simply known as Channel 4), where it was viewed in its entirety more than 6.5 million times; making it the most binge-watched show to stream on the platform. The first episode also became Channel 4's biggest drama launch. The show was also credited for creating an upsurge in HIV testing in the weeks after its release. It was the most nominated show at the 2022 British Academy Television Awards, receiving twelve nominations, including Best Mini-Series and winning Best Director: Fiction for Peter Hoar.

Premise The series follows a group of gay men who move to London in 1981. They form a friendship group but the fast developing HIV/AIDS crisis in the United Kingdom impacts their lives. Over five episodes the group is shown living through an entire decade until 1991, as they become determined to live fiercely despite the threat HIV poses to them.

Cast and characters

Olly Alexander as Ritchie Tozer David Carlyle as Gregory "Gloria" Finch Nathaniel Curtis as Ash Mukherjee Shaun Dooley as Clive Tozer Omari Douglas as Roscoe Babatunde Callum Scott Howells as Colin "Gladys Pugh" Morris-Jones Tracy-Ann Oberman as Carol Carter Lydia West as Jill Baxter Keeley Hawes as Valerie Tozer Neil Patrick Harris as Henry Coltrane Stephen Fry as Arthur Garrison MP

Moya Brady as Millie Neil Ashton as Grizzle Nicholas Blane as Mr Hart William Richardson as Mr Brewster Ashley McGuire as Lorraine Fletcher Calvin A. Dean as Clifford Nathaniel Hall as Donald Bassett Jill Nalder as Christine Baxter Andria Doherty, as Eileen Morris-Jones Nathan Sussex as Pete Toto Bruin as Lucy Tozer Shaniqua Okwok as Solly Babatunde Michelle Greenidge as Rosa Babatunde Delroy Brown as Oscar Babatunde Ken Christiansen as Karl Benning David Fleeshman as father

Episodes

Production Development

Davies' plans to write a series depicting gay life during the 1980s and the UK AIDS crisis were based on his own and his friends' experiences, and to commemorate the generation who died from the illness. Davies first publicised these plans in January 2015, telling Ben Dowell from Radio Times in 2016 that it was "the most research-based piece I will ever do". Davies has claimed that the script was initially difficult to pitch to broadcasters due to the "tough" subject matter. Davies recalls being asked by a producer to start the show on an AIDS ward in the 90s, then flashing back to the 80s. He refused the idea, calling it 'unbelievably crass'. Davies spent a year trying to secure a deal, with two broadcasters declining to commission the show. It was originally pitched to Davies' first choice, Channel 4, but they declined to commission it. BBC One was then offered the series but they too declined, and ITV decided that they were not ready to broadcast such a series. Channel 4's Commissioning Editor of Drama, Lee Mason, had originally wanted his network to commission the show. He waited for a significant staff change before successfully pitching the idea. Davies originally envisaged the show as an eight-part drama; Channel 4 requested that it be limited to four episodes, and Davies was able to negotiate five.

On 22 August 2018 at the Edinburgh International Television Festival, Channel 4's commission of Davies' script was announced. The show was still titled The Boys and it was confirmed that production would commence in 2019. Davies developed the series with Nicola Shindler, who served as Executive Producer and had the assistance of her Red Production Company. Phil Collinson was hired as the show's producer and Peter Hoar as a director. Murray Gold was hired to create the music score for the series. In early 2020, it was revealed that the show was tentatively titled Boys instead of The Boys as previously reported. The original working title was then changed because it was too similar to the Amazon series The Boys.

Casting The majority of the show's casting was announced in October 2019. Olly Alexander, a vocalist from the band Years & Years was cast as Ritchie Tozer, a gay teenager who moves to London in 1981 during the early days of the crisis. In his television debut, Omari Douglas was cast as Roscoe Babatunde, a man from a Nigerian family who disown him because of his sexuality. Welsh actor Callum Scott Howells was cast in his first television role playing Colin Morris-Jones, a gay man from Wales. Lydia West plays Jill Baxter in the series. She would regularly host 1980s themed gatherings to help the cast cope with the show's emotional subject. Nathaniel Curtis successfully auditioned for the part of Ash Mukherjee. He was working in theatre when he first discovered the role and said he "instantly fell in love" with the script. David Carlyle plays Gregory Finch, a "vibrant" and "naughty" character who works as a bus conductor.

American actor Neil Patrick Harris plays Henry Coltrane, a character who dies from AIDS in the first episode. The actor said he was pleased with his casting and "incredibly proud" to appear in the series. Keeley Hawes and Shaun Dooley signed up to play Ritchie's parents Valerie and Clive Tozer. Stephen Fry was cast as Arthur Garrison, a Conservative MP who refuses to acknowledge his homosexuality. Fry was keen to appear in the series because he believed it paid tribute to friends that died of HIV. Producers cast Nathaniel Hall as Donald Bassett. Hall plays an HIV-positive character and is himself HIV-positive. Other castings included Andria Doherty as Eileen Morris-Jones and Tracy-Ann Oberman as Carol Carter, an acting agent who signs up Ritchie.

It's a Sin's cast includes a number of openly gay and queer performers including Alexander, Fry, Harris, Curtis, Howells, Hall and Carlyle. This casting was intentional; Davies stated "for my one programme, for these five hours, I wanted to create a safe space where gay actors could voluntarily come in and be themselves." Certain characters were influenced by Davies' real-life friends. The character of Ritchie is inspired by actor Dursley McLinden, who died of AIDS in 1995, while West's character, Jill Baxter, is "very loosely" based on Davies and McLinden's mutual friend Jill Nalder, who appears in the show as Baxter's mother. In the fourth episode, Ritchie appears in a fictional Doctor Who episode as a tribute to McLinden, who appeared in Remembrance of the Daleks (1988).

Filming Principal photography began in Manchester on 7 October 2019. Red Production Company went into partnership with Screen Manchester to accommodate filming. Bobby Cochrane, development manager at Screen Manchester told Adam Maidment from the Manchester Evening News that "we worked very closely with the production on their various filming applications across Manchester." It's a Sin is set in 1980s England and to reflect the times a series of period props were introduced to outdoor filming locations. Manchester transport officials helped the production gain necessary control over specific areas. Filming took place at Paton Street, Victoria Baths, The Embassy Club on Rochdale Road, The Star and Garter, the Thirsty Scholar on New Wakefield Street and Manchester Crematorium on Barlow Moor Road. Additional filming then took place at a shopping centre in Eccles, a residential street in Heaton Moor and Le Mans Crescent in Bolton.

Filming took place in the city centre of Liverpool in January 2020. The location shoot commenced on Water Street for scenes which appeared as New York City in the show. The street was closed to the public and rows of yellow taxis were parked in the street. In addition vintage cars and a New York-style hot dog cart were placed at the scene. Filming at the Cunard Building on Brunswick Street doubled as a London hotel. A series of 2D and CG VFX techniques were used to add to the location's authenticity. Additional interiors were filmed at the Old Wentworth High School in Eccles. Hospital scenes featured in the show were filmed at this location. Filming also took place in Rhos-on-Sea, Wales, which doubled for the Isle of Wight. Scenes featuring a beach and pier were filmed in the Welsh city of Bangor. Filming concluded on 31 January 2020, two months before the official lockdown in the UK due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Release and reception A first-look image was released on 14 January 2020, via a press release given to those in attendance at a Channel 4 press event. The series was originally scheduled for a 2020 release. On 2 October 2020, Channel 4 released the first official teaser trailer and with a statement that it would be broadcast in 2021. On 17 December 2020, a full trailer was released.

In Ireland and the UK, the series premiered on 22 January 2021 on Channel 4. Shortly after the broadcast of the first episode, all episodes were available to stream for free on Channel 4's on-demand streaming service, All 4. Coinciding with the broadcast, Alexander's band Years & Years released a cover of the song "It's a Sin", which was originally performed by the Pet Shop Boys. The release, used to promote the series was also used to raise money for the George House Trust, a charity supporting those living with HIV. It was released on DVD and Blu-ray in the United Kingdom on 22 February 2021.

It was announced in December 2019 that HBO Max had joined the production and acquired the US rights. It was released in the United States as an HBO Max Original on 18 February 2021.

Red Production Company partnered with All3Media for international distribution of It's a Sin. In Australia it was released on the streaming service Stan on 23 January 2021 as well as TVNZ in New Zealand. Amazon Prime Video acquired the rights to stream in Canada and aired on Canal+ in France. Other countries the drama has been distributed to include South Korea on its streaming service Watcha Play, Nederlandse Publieke Omroep in Netherlands, RTBF in French-speaking Belgium, Canvas in Flemish Belgium and Amedia in Russia. In Greece, the series was shown back to back on Cosmote TV on 21 March and is also available watch on-demand via their platform. In Germany, it aired on public broadcaster ZDFneo and its streaming platform.

Ratings The first episode was watched live by 1.6 million viewers on Channel 4, a benchmark for a drama launch previously hit a year earlier by Deadwater Fell. It was the network's best-performing drama among young viewers (16–34) in three years. Catch-up views hit 2.5 million within three days of the live broadcast.