There is no doubt that most teenagers across all generations would have been presented with several staggering challenges to overcome. Very few people slide through those formative years unscathed by the ills of their surroundings. Nor the awkward bodily changes that accompany puberty. Any adult, typically between 40 and 75 years old, who tell you that your teenage years ‘will be the best years of your life’ are downright liars and scum. This axiom is usually passed down by naïve adults to vulnerable teenagers who want to get them off their back when they attempt to start a dialogue about their problems. Is this flippancy toward their child wrong? Absolutely. The equally naïve teenager will likely end up pursuing a path of drugs, play too many videogames, listening to strange music or consuming an excess amount of television to find someone or something relatable simply because their parent couldn’t give them a minute of their time. Luckily for me, I just fell into the last two categories. Similar to how rapper Nas wanted dead presidents to represent him back in 1994, I wanted the characters from Skins to represent me when the massively controversial British teen-drama hit TV screens on E4 in January 2007. However, as I grew older, it turned out that the main cast from The Inbetweeners depicted my teenage years far more accurately than Skins ever could, and perhaps many other people’s much more accurately upon its initial broadcast on E4 in May 2008.

 

Having just turned 13 in November 2006, I found myself at an existential crossroads pondering the following questions: Who am I? How do I fit in? Where do I fit in? Suffice to say, I knew I wasn’t getting rid of my Pokémon cards anytime soon, but I yearned to shed myself of my passive, nerdy demeanour. I was a boy who was more likely to be seen eating cheese sandwiches and drinking tea from a thermos flask in the school library rather than playing football on the concrete playground with a bunch of hormonal guys who would beat the daylights out of anyone if they committed the cardinal sin of kicking the ball the wrong way. For a boy with a somewhat sheltered existence away from drugs, sex and house parties, sneaking downstairs to watch Skins to watch the antics of Tony Stonem (Nicholas Hoult) and his friends and living vicariously through them on a Monday between 10pm – 11pm was exhilarating.

 

The focal point of this article will be series 1 – 2 of Skins (Skins began to lose its je ne sais quoi in series 3 and 4. It was lost completely in series 5 and 6) and series 1 – 3 of The Inbetweeners. Firstly, I must acknowledge that the life of every teenager is vastly different. Secondly, this article will contain spoilers. Thirdly, I will not be going over every single character in Skins.

 

One thing that both Skins and The Inbetweeners have in common is the fact that there are several farcical moments in both series. I would advise anyone reading this to come into this piece with some discretion as these moments were usually executed for a comedic effect or tragic effect.

 

While Skins is one of the greatest teen-dramas to ever grace television, there are many silly moments in the show. For instance, Osama: The Musical in series 2. Realistically, I doubt a musical of that nature would never happen in any college because of its politically incorrect nature. While I have no issue with satire and believe anything can be poked fun at, I still find it rather surprising that Osama: The Musical was approved by writers despite 9/11 only happening 7 years prior at the time. However, if the musical were to be executed by real Americans making fun of Americans (please don’t remind me of that God-awful American remake of Skins by MTV) rather than Brits, there is no doubt it would have caused a much larger uproar at the time. Other rather silly moments in Skins include the following: Cassie (Hannah Murray) and the College Director (Annie Hulley) dancing to ‘Funky Town’ by Lipps Inc to help her relax in the middle of the rescheduled A Level Philosophy exam in series two. Most College/Sixth Form directors are repugnant human beings. Need I say more? Chris (Joe Dempsie) being in a relationship with his psychology teacher, Angie, (Siwan Morris) is unrealistic. While I am sure that several teenagers have had weird crushes on teachers, Skins takes this trope to the next level. A Teacher-student relationship isn’t exactly widespread; however, it is likelier to happen than the short disco interval in the middle of an exam. Also, British people definitely wouldn’t be as accepting of such a relationship in comparison to the characters in Skins.   

 

On the surface, it can be said that comparing Skins and The Inbetweeners is like comparing apples and oranges. While Skins is meant to be a much more extreme depiction of teenage life, The Inbetweeners is seemingly a lot more realistic. However, according to Skins’ co-creator Brian Elsley, the average age of the show’s writing team is 21 and there were several ‘teenage consultants’ who contributed to the show. Also, two of the most prominent writers of the show, Daniel Kaluuya, who also plays one of the most underrated characters, Posh Kenneth and Jamie Brittain (the son of 46-year-old Brian Elsley) were 18 and 22 respectively when series two was being broadcast on E4. Due to the fact that the show had contributions from teenagers, the extent to which Skins reflects teenage life becomes likelier than The Inbetweeners because some of the writing will inevitably be rooted in more recent teenage experiences of the writers due to age, in turn, making the scripts more authentic. In terms of age, in contrast, The Inbetweeners was solely written by Damon Beesley and Iain Morris who were 36/37 and 34 respectively when the show was released. While their age alone may suggest they are out of touch with the youth, this may not be necessarily true. If a something which is intended for teens is researched and written well enough, the characters can have universal appeal. Noel Clarke wrote the British drama film Kidulthood when he was 30/31. The movie contains an array of characters whose personalities are seen in state schools everywhere in Britain i.e., Sam (the alpha bully who isn’t afraid to intimidate anyone).  

 

There are some silly moments in The Inbetweeners (ok there are quite a few), but what would you expect from a cringe comedy? Ineptitude is at the forefront of the show and the style of comedy itself. In the first episode, Will (Simon Bird) is sent to Rudge Park Comprehensive School and made to wear a giant badge stating he is a new student. Despite Rudge Park being a state school and arguably having a worse quality student than Will’s better private school, new students being made to wear badges wouldn’t happen in any school (yes, even Eton) because it would result in the badge-wearer being bullied intensely rather than helped out. Also, let’s not forget about Mr. Kennedy. Schools are unlikely to employ a paedophile due to extensive background checks, much less keep someone who so blatantly attempts to groom students. Yet, it is likely that in the majority of schools, some students will suspect that a teacher is paedophile either for arbitrary reasons or because of rumours which may or may not be rooted in truth.

 

I will give The Inbetweeners praise because of its frank depiction the male teenage friendship dynamic. The features which define the main characters will inevitably have been seen among groups of British teenage boys everywhere: Will McKenzie, pretentiousness and social awkwardness. Simon Cooper (Joe Thomas), extreme anger and cynicism. Jay by Blake Harrison), empathy and slowness. Sex, or perhaps I should say a lack of it, underpins the majority of their conversations, and is generally always the forefront of the teenage mind.

 

Skins, however is better in terms of representation, due to the diversity of the main characters in series 1 and 2. This diversity is not only demonstrated by the skin colour of the cast (all of the main cast of The Inbetweeners are white), their characterisation is a lot more complex than the cast of The Inbetweeners. For instance, Cassie Ainsworth (Hannah Murray) is portrayed as an anorexic girl with a slew of mental issues. Her severe undereating and deteriorating mental health are largely ignored or downplayed by those her around her (Alan the taxi driver (Alan George) is arguably an exception to the rule), especially by her parents. Likewise, Anwar Kharral (Dev Patel) is a quirky, liberal Muslim who shows little restraint when it comes to pre-marital sex, drugs and alcohol despite contradicting Islamic values concerning purity.

 

In light of representation, Cassie being used to depict eating disorders and mental illness is a double-edged sword: on one hand, having these things which are still very much taboo shown in a forthright way is a good thing because it may potentially allow a teenage girl suffering from an eating disorder and/or mental illness to have someone she can identify with, therefore demonstrating she is not alone. On the other hand, identification may have the opposite effect and instead it may be possible for Cassie to be idolised by girls with eating disorders. In the case of journalist Megan Sutton, she found Cassie to be a source of inspiration for her disordered eating and saw her as a staple in many pro-anorexic blogs.

 

In the case of Anwar, the relationship between Eastern and Western principles is dichotomic due to the portrayal of Islam as a homophobic religion and Maxxie’s sexuality. Although Maxxie is written as being gay through the stereotypes of loving musical theatre and dance, he always regards himself as ‘one of the lads.’ His friend status is emphasised by the group’s accepting of his sexuality, this doesn’t become a point of contention until further into the series. While the aforementioned stereotypes may well be outdated, there are definitely LGBTQ+ teenagers who will see Maxxie as a representation of them, possibly because of having ‘feminine’ hobbies, but it is also perhaps because he is the only truly gay character in series 1 and 2. There are, however, elements on LGBT visibility in Tony and Cassie. It is implied that Cassie has sex with several different women in series 2 to make Sid jealous after his mistreatment of her. Likewise, during the ‘Maxxie and Anwar’ episode in series one, Tony also attempts to give Maxxie oral sex while Michelle is passed out.

 

The Eastern-Western dichotomy is highlighted straightaway in the first episode of series one entitled ‘Tony.’ When Tony begins calling his friends to see who will be going to Abigail Stock’s (Georgina Moffat) party and seeing who will help Sid (Mike Bailey) lose his virginity, he eventually calls Anwar to see what he’s up to. However, Anwar is pulled by the ear out of the prayer room by his uncle and is made to leave the City Masjid Mosque for speaking during prayers. As soon as Anwar is outside, he tells Tony that him and Chris (Joe Dempsie) promised Maxxie (Mitch Hewer) they will go to his big gay night out. Anwar’s motivation for going is that the hot women there will be so desperate because there is nobody to shag apart from him and Chris. The plot point of Maxxie being Anwar’s gay best friend is a central conflict in series one. In ‘Maxxie and Anwar’ (episode six), Anwar is labelled a hypocrite by Maxxie for being disgusted at the prospect of Maxxie bringing a big Cossack guy to have sex with in their shared accommodation during a school trip to Russia, yet he is more than happy for Maxxie to bring a girl back. Anwar’s reply to Maxxie of not knowing what to think about the issue because he is Muslim and stating ‘gay is just wrong’ paints the religion as intolerant toward gay people. However, in the final episode of series one (‘Everyone’), Maxxie’s confession of always existence gay to Anwar’s father (Inder Manocha) is met with understanding and sensitivity. This scene is pivotal for LGBTQ+ youth as it represents the plight of some who are repressing their sexuality, particularly from those who don’t seem accepting of it, and having no idea how to broach the subject with people in their lives. It shows that they shouldn’t be scared to start a conversation about their sexuality.         

 

It is fair to say that Skins and The Inbetweeners were two shows which captured the zeitgeist of the 2000s for British youth. This rather bumpy time was seemingly captured by both sets of writers in different ways. As a 27-year-old man, I cannot speak for all teenagers, though I am confident that the traditional British teenage trajectory is an amalgamation of both shows, but it will never be an outright 50:50 split. I don’t think either show can fully represent the lives of teenagers due to its inherent complexity. If you are seeking introspection, you are looking for it in the wrong place by watching Will, Jay, Neil and Simon constantly failing to get some sex.    

 

Bibliography:

 

genius.com. Nas – The World Is Yours. [online] Available at: https://genius.com/Nas-the-world-is-yours-lyrics

 

Armstrong, S. (2009). Loyalty points. The Guardian. [online] 10 May. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/media/2009/may/11/branding-tv-shows

 

Sutton, M. (2019). Even Skins’ well-intentioned portrayal of anorexia had dangerous consequences for me. [online] Digital Spy. Available at: https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/a27127055/anorexia-mental-health-skins/

 

The Independent. (2008). Teen writers show their “Skins.” [online] Available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/teen-writers-show-their-skins-780666.html

 

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