This Is England '88 (Season 1)

This Is England '88 (2011) is Shane Meadows' British drama for Channel 4, and you can watch it online on iFILM. It unfolds over the days before Christmas 1988, as the same working-class crew tries to move forward while the wreckage of two and a half years ago refuses to let go.

Lol (Vicky McClure) carries the heaviest load — guilt over what happened is dragging her under. Woody (Joseph Gilgan) has left the gang and is building a settled life with a new girlfriend and a shot at promotion, even though nothing between him and Lol is truly finished. Shaun (Thomas Turgoose) has started drama college and, still seeing Smell, drifts closer to a girl from his Christmas play. The festive lights on the streets only sharpen how alone these people feel.

Meadows shot this follow-up to his 2006 film as a tight three-part miniseries, built on close-ups and long silences rather than big plot turns. It's a story about guilt, forgiveness and trying to climb back out, acted so rawly that the screen disappears. It lands hardest for viewers who already know this crew from This Is England. Stream This Is England '88 (2011) online on iFILM.