Not to be dramatic or anything, but Such Brave Girls might actually be the greatest comedy release of 2023. Never before (and I might be revealing too much about myself here) have I felt like a TV series truly gets me as much as Such Brave Girls - the show that acknowledges that however bad life gets, there will always be a group of women ready to crack jokes about their trauma.
In this case, the group of women are single mum Deb (Louise Brealey, Sherlock) and her two daughters Josie (Kat Sadler) – a depressed lesbian – and Billie (Lizzie Davidson, Kat’s real-life sister), who’s perpetually getting ghosted by a boy.
As they navigate the trauma of being abandoned by their father, new relationships, figuring out their sexuality, dealing with mental health and the impending death of their nan – seriously there’s a lot going on - with jokes, we as the viewers grow to love (and occasionally loathe) these incredible and funny women.
Yes, madness! It turns out a female-led sitcom with only minor male characters can actually be funny, nay hilarious. And while I adored the series that feels like it was made for me, naturally a sitcom about mental health won’t be for everyone.
Catching up with Such Brave Girls’ writer and star Kat Sadler on the day of the series’ release, I ask Kat how she’s feeling as the reviews (and Twitter comments) start rolling in.
'I’ve been sitting in this flat having a complete breakdown to be honest,' she tells me. 'It’s such a big day for me but I’m trying not to think about it too much. I’ve been on Instagram a bit, but I’m not letting myself look at Twitter. All I’ve seen on Twitter is a man saying, "Defund the BBC" so I think we can safely assume that Such Brave Girls wasn’t one for him.'
But for the people that do watch Such Brave Girls and love it, Kat Sadler hopes that they’ll get a lot out of the series.
She explains, 'I hope it might make them laugh and feel stronger. Laughing about things makes them feel less scary or taboo or embarrassing which can only be a good thing. I want them to watch Such Brave Girls and feel seen. Laughing about something horrible not only brings some joy, but it also brings some power back to you in a situation that could destroy you.'
While Such Brave Girls is about women and primarily produced for women, the guiding hand of director Simon Bird (The Inbetweeners) means that the BBC series will strike a chord with all its viewers, male or female.
Speaking about the role that he played in the show’s success Kat tells us, 'Simon sent us a letter after watching the pilot and explained what his priorities would be if we let him direct it, and they aligned so strongly with mine and Lizzie’s that it was like a dream come true. Plus, he’s my sister’s idol so she would never have let me say no. We were nervous at first to have a male director help tell this story about women, but actually it was really good to get his perspective on things. He helped us realise what was only funny to Lizzie and I and what would work on a wider level.'
Kat Sadler’s younger sister Lizzie Davidson also played a major role in bringing Such Brave Girls to the screen, both in helping Kat with the script and subsequently in starring as Billie.
And whilst most people would struggle to work with family members, Kat Sadler admits that she loved it. 'It was great fun working with Lizzie, and also completely freeing because she completely got it and was amazing,' she says. 'Me giving her feedback was a bit of a change in our dynamic and she didn’t love that at first, but eventually she would ask for me to be on set for scenes that I wasn’t actually in. During the intimacy scenes especially, she wanted me to be there and make sure that she was comfortable.'
Perhaps the greatest scene – although it is hard to choose - in Such Brave Girls is a physical fight between Josie and Lizzie in episode three, in which Josie gets a whole bottle of ketchup squirted on her new dress. For viewers with siblings, that scene will especially strike a chord.
'Ketchup features a lot in this series,' Kat jokes. 'We had to film that scene over and over again so eventually the ketchup was starting to stink and crusting on my dress. Plus, I was getting a headache from having my head smashed into the carpet multiple times. Ultimately though, I think it was completely worth it.'
Normally, a series about trauma make some of us want to cry, and Such Brave Girls does too, only this time it’s with laughter and we’re all the better for it.
Stream Such Brave Girls now on BBC iPlayer
Daisy Hall is a news and entertainment writer for Grazia, specialising in TV and film, meaning you can always count on Daisy for the latest (and best) viewing recommendations.