Reviews of Channel 4’s new sitcom, Queenie, are divided. The good reviews have praised the show’s authenticity, while the negative ones have called it “crude” and “bland”. Having watched the show, I wonder if the real problem is that reviewers have expected the show to deliver on every count – and they want a heroine who represents the “strong Black woman”.
The show is adapted from the bestselling 2019 novel of the same name by Candice Carty-Williams. It follows Queenie, a 25-year-old British-Jamaican woman, as she breaks up with her white boyfriend and experiences dating, female friendships, everyday racism, “overfamiliar” aunties – and the impact of all of this on her health.
The novel’s opening chapter conveys all of this around the refitting of her intrauterine contraceptive device (IUD). This scene becomes more intrusive when the medical staff suspect that, despite the IUD, Queenie has had a miscarriage.
