---
title: "Sex Education"
year: 2019
kind: "series"
canonical: "https://film.one/tv/sex-education"
fi1m_score: 78
critics_score: 83
critics_reviews: 12
published: "2026-09-17T04:11:40.034310+00:00"
updated: "2026-09-17T04:11:56.818574+00:00"
region: "US"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Sex Education (2019)

Created by Laurie Nunn · MPA TV-MA · Comedy, Drama

**Fi1m score: 78** · Critics 83 from 12 reviews

*In a sentence:* Every teenager in England is having sex badly, and the only person who can help them is a virgin who cannot help himself

> Laurie Nunn’s school comedy is filthier, kinder and better made than its title suggests, and for two seasons it is close to ideal Friday-night viewing. It sprawls after that, and the boy at the centre is the least interesting person in it.

## Synopsis

Otis Milburn (Asa Butterfield) is a shy sixth-former who has never managed to touch himself without panicking, which is awkward, because his mother Jean (Gillian Anderson) is a sex therapist who discusses foreskins over breakfast and fills the house with ceramic phalluses. His best friend Eric Effiong (Ncuti Gatwa) is louder, braver and out. When Otis talks a panicking classmate through his troubles in a disused toilet block, Maeve Wiley (Emma Mackey), clever and broke, sees a business: she will find the clients, he will do the therapy, and they will split the cash. Meanwhile Adam Groff (Connor Swindells), the school bully, and Jackson Marchetti (Kedar Williams-Stirling), the swimming star, take an interest in Maeve for quite different reasons.

## Review

Laurie Nunn’s series has a premise that sounds like a sketch. Otis Milburn (Asa Butterfield) is a boy who cannot do the thing every other boy does alone, and he is the son of a sex therapist, Jean (Gillian Anderson), so he has the vocabulary without the experience. Maeve Wiley (Emma Mackey) notices that he can talk to people about sex without dying of it, and the two of them set up a paid clinic in a toilet block nobody uses. From that, over four seasons, Nunn and her writers build something good and kind about its subject, as British school television rarely is. We recommend it, with two caveats: it is at its best in the first two seasons, and Otis is the weakest person in it.

The first thing you notice is that nobody went to this school. Samantha Harley and Paul Spriggs have built a comprehensive out of American parts: rows of lockers, varsity jackets, a wood that looks borrowed from a fifties picture. Jean’s house is a large timbered place hung with erotic prints. Jamie Cairney and Oli Russell shoot all of it in warm, saturated colour, and it seems never to rain. The place is only England when someone speaks, and that is deliberate: it lets the show be frank without being grim.

Anderson is the reason many will start, and she is worth it. She plays Jean as a woman who is professionally frank and privately hopeless, interrogating her son’s friends over toast and failing to notice her own life. Ncuti Gatwa’s Eric Effiong is the reason people will keep going. Gatwa dresses like a firework and plays Eric as a boy who has decided to be joyful because the alternative is unthinkable, and whenever an episode flags, Ben Taylor or Kate Herron cuts to him and it lifts. Mackey gives Maeve a stillness the rest of the cast does not have; she is tired in a way teenagers are rarely allowed to be on screen.

The clinic gives each episode a shape. Somebody cannot climax, or can only climax alone, or a photograph has gone where it should not, and Otis, badly, tries to help. The writing staff is wide (Freddy Syborn, Temi Wilkey, Laura Neal, Richard Gadd, Mawaan Rizwan) and the tone is steady across them: rude, precise and never cruel to the person with the problem. Steve Ackroyd and the other editors open episodes cold on a couple mid-act, and the joke is nearly always that the act is going wrong. Oli Julian’s music is bright and bouncy and promises it will be all right, and it usually is.

The moment that got past us belongs to Aimee Lou Wood. Her Aimee Gibbs starts as the popular girl who has never had a serious thought. Something happens to her in the second season that we will not describe, and the series handles it with no speeches at all, and one scene of six girls doing something ordinary together that undid us. It did so because nobody on screen explains what is happening; they just turn up. Connor Swindells does something similar with Adam Groff, the bully, whom he plays as a large sad boy rather than a threat.

Otis is the problem. Butterfield does what he is asked, but what he is asked gets worse each season: the character becomes self-righteous, mopey and a poor friend, and the show cannot decide whether it has noticed. The will-they-won’t-they with Maeve is kept going longer than it can bear. The later seasons add Thaddea Graham, Anthony Lexa and Dua Saleh, and each new person is handed a subject to carry, until episodes feel like a well-meaning syllabus. The final eight, in 2023, are the weakest, and by then we were a little tired of being taught.

Set against [*Skins*](https://film.one/tv/skins) and [*The Inbetweeners*](https://film.one/tv/the-inbetweeners), this is the one that likes its teenagers, and it is easily the best made. Most critics rated it higher than we do; they were reviewing the first season, which deserved it. Watch it with the teenager in your house, if you have the nerve. They will already have seen it.

*Fi1m score 78, published 17 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

The reviews are unanimous: twelve notices, all positive. The praise clusters around the writing, which nearly everyone finds funny and unusually kind about teenage embarrassment, and around Gillian Anderson, whose sex therapist mother is singled out repeatedly. Ncuti Gatwa’s Eric is the other performance that keeps coming up, with Variety calling him the standout. Several critics say the show uses sex as a way into friendship, consent and body image rather than as the point, and IndieWire frames it as the opposite of 13 Reasons Why.

Disagreement is hard to find and the spread is narrow. NME thinks the opening episode is awkward and the series takes a while to settle. Digital Spy observes that, for a show built around sex, it is not sexy at all, and means it kindly. The two lowest scores, from Paste and Den of Geek, still praise the cast and the character work; they simply admire it a little less than the British papers do.

### Reviews we read (12)

- **The Telegraph**, Helen Brown (5/5): The series is a near masterpiece and addictive comedy drama that faces teen fears with reassuring honesty, tension-busting wit, empathy and wisdom while exploring complex friendships and relationships. [Read](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/on-demand/2019/01/11/sex-education-netflix-review-addictive-teen-comedy-drama-empathy/)
- **The Guardian**, Lucy Mangan (90/100, inferred): The critic calls it a glorious, heartfelt, eye-wateringly funny creation that foregrounds sex to illuminate everything beyond it with densely written characters and standout performances. It pivots effortlessly from naturalistic laughs to moving moments. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2019/jan/11/sex-education-review-netflix-asa-butterfield-gillian-anderson)
- **IndieWire**, Liz Shannon Miller (85/100, inferred): The critic describes the series as a sweet, sexy and heartfelt dramedy that serves as the anti-13 Reasons Why, with a talented young cast and Gillian Anderson having fun in the role of the sex therapist mother. [Read](https://www.indiewire.com/features/general/sex-education-review-netflix-gillian-anderson-asa-butterfield-1202034559/)
- **Variety**, Caroline Framke (85/100, inferred): The critic praises the show's compassionate and humorous exploration of teen sexuality and relationships beyond mechanics, highlighting Ncuti Gatwa's standout performance as Eric and its refreshing take on high school tropes. [Read](https://variety.com/2019/tv/news/sex-education-netflix-review-gillian-anderson-1203096414/)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Daniel Fienberg (80/100, inferred): The critic describes it as a hilarious and cringe-worthy dramedy blending raucous sex farce with empathy, anchored by strong performances from Asa Butterfield and Gillian Anderson, with sharp writing that deepens characters. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-reviews/sex-education-review-1173233/)
- **The i Paper**, Sarah Carson (★★★★): The critic finds the series a delightful, acerbic comedy about teen sex, praising Gillian Anderson's brilliant, joyful performance as the sex-positive mother and the smart, healthy approach to the subject matter with imaginative details. [Read](https://inews.co.uk/culture/television/sex-education-netflix-episode-1-review-gillian-anderson-asa-butterfield-245340)
- **Digital Spy**, Abby Robinson (90/100, inferred): The critic calls the series hilarious, heartfelt and important, noting that despite its focus on sex it is not sexy at all but instead emphasizes real, awkward conversations and the universal awkwardness of teenage experiences. [Read](https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/a25801213/sex-education-netflix-series/)
- **Collider**, Allison Keene (★★★★): It's charming and handles difficult material with depth. Praises the real and grounded inclusion of sex, emotional investment in characters. [Read](https://collider.com/sex-education-review/)
- **NME**, Olly Richards (4/5): The critic finds the show starts awkwardly but grows into one of Netflix's best originals. They praise its mature handling of topics like consent and body image with humor, and the authentic teenage dialogue and cast. [Read](https://www.nme.com/reviews/sex-education-review-teens-show-will-entertaining-everybody-2432194)
- **The Ringer**, Alison Herman (80/100, inferred): The critic finds "Sex Education" a charming and open-minded teen comedy that explores adolescent sexuality with graphic detail and empathy. She singles out its sociological survey of various sexual issues and commitment to open-mindedness for praise. [Read](https://www.theringer.com/2019/01/16/tv/sex-education-netflix-teen-comedy)
- **Den of Geek**, Nick Harley (4 out of 5): The critic praises the series as a raunchy yet compassionate look at hormone-crazed adolescents that moves beyond clichés into deeper emotional territory, highlighting strong character work especially for supporting roles like Eric and Aimee. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/sex-education-review-spoiler-free/)
- **Paste**, Amy Glynn (8.9): A raunchy and adorable coming-of-age dramedy. Praises character development and the cast, especially Gillian Anderson. [Read](https://www.pastemagazine.com/tv/sex-education/sex-education-netflix-gillian-anderson-asa-butterf)

## Details

- **Created by:** Laurie Nunn
- **Creator:** Laurie Nunn
- **Director:** Ben Taylor, Runyararo Mapfumo, Kate Herron, Alice Seabright, Dominic Leclerc, Sophie Goodhart
- **Writer:** Laurie Nunn, Sophie Goodhart, Mawaan Rizwan, Selina Lim, Alice Seabright, Freddy Syborn, Temi Wilkey, Laura Neal, Laura Hunter, Richard Gadd, Rosie Jones
- **Cinematography:** Jamie Cairney, Oli Russell
- **Editor:** Steve Ackroyd, David Webb, Phil Hignett, Calum Ross, Izabella Curry
- **Music:** Oli Julian
- **Production design:** Samantha Harley, Paul Spriggs
- **Producer:** Jon Jennings
- **Cast:** Asa Butterfield as Otis Milburn; Gillian Anderson as Jean Milburn; Ncuti Gatwa as Eric Effiong; Emma Mackey as Maeve Wiley; Kedar Williams-Stirling as Jackson Marchetti; Thaddea Graham as Sarah 'O' Owens; Mimi Keene as Ruby Matthews; Anthony Lexa as Abbi Montgomery
- **Certificate (MPA):** TV-MA
- **Release (the US):** 11 January 2019
- **Genres:** Comedy, Drama

## Where to watch in the US

- Netflix: streaming

*Checked 2026-09-17.*

Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, AZ, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, ID, IE, IL, IN, IS, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, SK, TH, TR, UA, US, VN, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## If you liked this

- *Please Like Me* (2013): Australian comedy about a young man coming out; sadder, funnier and shorter
- *PEN15* (2019): Two grown women play their thirteen-year-old selves; the embarrassment is total and earned
- *Derry Girls* (2018): Catholic schoolgirls in nineties Derry; faster jokes and a much wetter climate
- *Booksmart* (2019), Fi1m 81: One night, two swots, no clinic; the film this show would make — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/booksmart.md)
- *My Mad Fat Diary* (2013): Lincolnshire, 1996, a girl out of hospital; frank about bodies and never cruel

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© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/tv/sex-education