Barely anyone could have predicted exactly what a smash Netflix's Sex Education has become, least of all its cast. Patricia Allison, who plays the no nonsense Ola in the comedy series that has become an instant cult hit, says that when they started shooting she and the rest of the cast were excited - but had no idea how far the show would reach.
'This is really my first big job,' she tells Grazia. 'I loved the script when I read it and I thought it was going to be fun. There was no way we had any idea how big it was going to be.'
Netflix revealed that the first series of the show, about a sexually awkward teen Otis (played by Asa Butterfield) and his sex therapist mother (played by Gillian Anderson) had attracted a mind blowing 40 million viewers. Since the second series dropped earlier this month it has steadily been in the top ten most viewed shows on Netflix's homepage.
Patricia, 25, says, 'When it came out we were told it was going to be airing in all these countries - in two days my Instagram went mental. Viewers from South America, Italy, South Africa, people are reaching out from all over the world to me to tell me that in their country they have a problem with talking about sex and they are telling me how much the show has meant to them. It’s amazing that it’s a global conversation.'
Within two days of series one airing, Patricia says her Instagram account started 'going crazy' and she's now gone from around a hundred followers to closer to 600,000 since series two dropped - and immediately attracted a new army of fans. She says that she wants to use her platform 'as a tool' to help others.
Something which she says she thinks sets Sex Education apart from anything else currently on our screens is its unashamedness in depicting sex in all its pleasurable and embarrassing glory. 'We give permission for it to be very awkward,' she says. 'We don’t often see sex scenes that don’t go that well or are a little bit awkward or devastating which is reality. People want to see that on the screen instead of just showing off women's bodies on screen.'
The first day of any job is daunting. For Patricia, her first day of the five month shoot in Wales for series one was also her first time filming with acting goddess Gillian Anderson, who plays sex therapist Jean. Luckily, says Patricia, Gillian made her feel comfortable straight away: 'She has a very generous way of behaving with other actors. She has the most amazing aura. The whole cast is so close. We’re all very passionate about this show and that energy is incredible.'
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