In March 2021, 33-year-old marketing executive Sarah Everard was murdered while walking home from a night out in South London. As vigils were held in Everard’s honour, the crime sparked a national conversation around violence against women, leading to calls for all men to be forced to stay home after dark to protect them.
This week, Paramount Plus explores an ‘alternative reality’ of what such a drastic move could look like in the provocative crime-thriller, Curfew.
The six-parter - based on the novel by Jayne Cowie - stars Bancroft’s Sarah Parish as no-nonsense DI Pamela Green, who’s called to investigate when a woman is found brutally murdered outside a Women’s Safety Centre.
While Pamela gets stuck into the investigation, we also meet two women who become central to the case: Sarah, an employee at the Women’s Safety Centre, played by former Doctor Who star Mandip Gill, with X Factor 2008 winner and West End star Alexandra Burke making her TV debut as Sarah's best friend Helen.
We caught up with Mandip and Alexandra to find out more about the controversial new drama...
What can you tell us about your characters?
Mandip: "Sarah works as a tagger at the Women’s Safety Centre and has her own reasons for supporting the curfew. Sarah’s under a lot of pressure when we first meet her. She’s struggling with a divorce, having an affair and she’s clashing with her teenage daughter Cass (Casualty’s Imogen Sandhu), who’s angry because the curfew has affected someone close to her."
Alexandra: "As a teacher, Helen’s all for the Women’s Safety Act, educating her students and wanting to support this curfew and the rules that are in place in this new world but she also questions: ‘Is it fair on everyone?’ Helen’s a complex character with a big secret, who finds herself torn between wanting to do the right thing while being loyal to her friends and loved ones."
What’s the dynamic like between Sarah and Helen?
Mandip: "Sarah and Helen have been friends for years and, like lots of people who become more like family than friends, Sarah can sometimes be quite mean to Helen. When life snowballs for Sarah she takes her frustrations out on the wrong person - the person she’d always go to for guidance and reassurance - and crosses a line."
Alexandra, you've starred in hit West End shows such as The Bodyguard and Chicago, it's hard to believe this is your TV drama debut...
Alexandra: "I know! I feel really lucky and very privileged to be among such talent. I have a love for acting that I've never truly explored properly because of a fear of not doing well enough. I'm not a trained actress. I go with my gut; for me that's my whole universe. So I go with that and, if it's not right, I'm always open to constructive criticism to make it better. I'm really pulled in a lot of different directions as Helen, and hope I performed as well as I could."
What impact does the curfew have on Helen's relationship with boyfriend, Patrick (Murder in Provence’s Oliver Alvin-Wilson)?
Alexandra: "The Women’s Safety Act isn’t just about curfew; Helen and Patrick have to go to a meeting at a ‘cohabitation centre’ to get permission to live together. Helen wants Patrick to be happy, but there's uncertainty in her heart because she’s worried he’ll mess it up. Helen wants things to be perfect - and not everything in life is."
Mandip, Sarah encounters a volatile situation at work where she feels forced to taser someone. We hear you enjoyed filming that…
Mandip: "Ha, ha! I don't remember saying that! Sarah’s a good person, who just does some messed up things, usually out of love for her daughter. In this instance, Sarah does something without thinking but her behaviour has serious ramifications and her life starts to spiral from that point. This scene really sets up my character for the journey she goes on."
What are your own views on a curfew like this being implemented in real life?
Mandip: "I do think there is a responsibility across the board to make women feel safer. I think that's a given. But would it make sense if that was via a curfew of men? No, I don't think it would work."
Alexandra: "I have some amazing men in my family and, if they had to go through this, I’d really feel for them. Not everyone has the intention to go out and hurt someone. But some women, like Sarah Everard, have been hurt. That then begs the question: what is in place to protect women? Curfew will hopefully start that discussion."
All six episodes of Curfew are available to stream now on Paramount Plus
