Lenny Henry says he hopes his new Windrush-based drama Three Little Birds will prevent the “Disneyfication” of the racism his parents’ generation encountered and generate a conversation among children.
The ITV series, which Henry wrote and stars in, is based on stories from his family and friends that he discussed with executive producer Russell T Davies. It shows the trials and racism faced by three women emigrating from Jamaica to England in the 1950s.
In one scene they see a sign in a window that says, “no Blacks, no dogs, no Irish” and racist graffiti saying “wogs out”.
Speaking at the launch of the show, Henry denied suggestions their inclusion was too blunt, explaining that as he grew up, a local politician had the slogan “If you want an N-word for a neighbour vote Labour” – and Enoch Powell had made his “rivers of blood” speech in nearby Wolverhampton.
He said: “We existed in a time of overt racism. What’s so brilliant about these people who came to this country and walked cold streets [and] overcame … is they did survive and they made friends, had allies and had relationships here.
“This is not a Disneyfication of it but it’s not as hard as it could have been portrayed. We were advised sometimes: ‘Perhaps it might be nice not to have that. There is a riot in episode two, but perhaps it could be a nice riot? Could they all be friends at the end?’”
Henry included the humour and wit he remembered from his community as he did not want it to be a “grim-fest”, adding: “If you want people to engage with it you can’t just [go] about repulsing people, there has to be light and shade, otherwise there’s no learning.”
Henry hopes the show is a testament to his parents’ generation and immigrants today will benefit as it will “generate a conversation … when our elders and betters and our leaders see this”.
He said: “I think it’s good for us to watch these things, it’s good for our kids to watch these things. This history happened to all of us. This stuff should be taught in schools year round because it’s important.”
Henry said he cried during the first day of filming as it was the most inclusive cast and crew he had worked with – including many with Caribbean heritage such as co-executive producer Angela Ferreira and co-director Darcia Martin.
Actor Rochelle Neil, who stars as Leah, said having diverse hair and makeup teams made her feel “at ease. Is this how maybe my white co-stars have felt?”. Co-star Saffron Coomber said it enabled her to focus on her lines without worrying “if someone’s going to burn your hair off”, while Yazmin Belo said she now felt a responsibility to use her voice to ensure more inclusive sets.
Nevertheless, Henry said that was still “a rarity. I think it comes from the top.
“It’s a decision to have a set where it’s all blokes called Pete, Dave and Charlie.”
• This article was amended on 19 October 2023. An earlier version incorrectly said Henry wrote the series with Russell T Davies. In fact Davies is one of the executive producers.
*Three Little Birds will air on ITV1 and ITVX on 22 October
