Evolving from a novel written by Jacquie Lawrence, this UK web series aims to increase lesbian visibility and positive representation on our screens.
‘Different For Girls’ could be another L-Word, only this time the women are in their 30s and 40s, it’s set in London and it’s a three-45-minute-episode web series. You can find it on lesbianboxoffice.com.
‘Different for Girls’ brings a group of mature London lesbians into the foreground, each fighting her own issues and problems. As they spill over into one another’s lives, conflicts arise, relationships are threatened and the women must find a way to navigate their 21st-century concerns.
The series sees the women, who are by no means perfect, all struggling to be the best versions of themselves, while often falling back on the mistakes and bad behaviour that is their default when they feel out of control. The characters are relatable and feel like real people, and ‘DFG’ is an empowered reaction to the all too common ‘dead lesbian trope’ we so often see to on mainstream TV.
Victoria Broom plays Fran
Cam has just found out she’s pregnant, which under normal circumstances for a lesbian would mean celebration, after months, or even years, of planning for a new arrival. Problem is, Cam’s girlfriend Fran doesn’t know she’s pregnant. Cam’s drunken one night stand with Tom her business partner, has left in her a very unenviable position, especially given that Tom is Fran’s twin brother!
Cam implores Gemma to tell Fran for her (hmm… I think do your own dirty work Cam!), but Gemma’s not so sure. She’s in the throes of a “can’t-keep-your-hands-off-one-another” romance with Jude. Meanwhile, Jude can barely conceal her resentment for Kirby, Gemma’s fiancé, engaged to Gemma as a front for his career and to keep Gemma’s politician father happy.
Rachel Shelley plays Brooke
Jude’s bored ex, Nicola, is now not-so-happily married to Brooke, and the couple have two young daughters. Nicola and Jude still share a close relationship, which bothers Brooke enormously, and Nic always seems to have the perfect excuse to spend time away from home. The couple also suffer from a case of the dreaded cliché “lesbian bed death” and the pilot certainly sets up the possibility of Nic casting a wandering eye over other available women.
There are a whole raft of kids, as well as other friends and relatives – Jude has a son, Gemma has a daughter, as well as Brooke and Nic’s two girls; there’s Fran’s brother Tom, gay partners – and best friends to Nic and Brooke – Ivan and Claude, the crazy Dasha, Cam’s mum, and all the other characters that are involved in the lives of these London-based lesbians.
Written by Jacquie Lawrence, directed by Campbell X, produced by Fizz Milton and starring Rachel Shelley (Helena of L Word fame) as Brooke, Caroline Whitney Smith as Nicola, Guinevere Turner as Jude, Sarah Soetaert as Gemma, Victoria Broom as Fran and Tuyen Do as Cam, with music by Heather Peace – this is a lesbian web-series that will be over all too soon and you’ll be wishing for more episodes!
@SanjaKatich