Killing Eve writers Henrietta and Jessica Ashworth: ‘Life is full of drama but still funny’
By Camilla Foster, PA
Getting the whole family to agree on what TV to watch can seem like an impossible task, and is a universal experience screenwriters and twin sisters Henrietta and Jessica Ashworth know all too well.
“Hen and I have had arguments about what to watch on TV, and you get so upset, and it’s just so ridiculous, so you often start laughing at some point,” said Jessica, who wrote on the second series of Bafta-winning Killing Eve as well as Channel 4’s Fresh Meat.
Growing up, the twins’ younger sibling would hog the remote and put Star Wars on for what felt like the 100th time.
“I’ve seen the beginning of Return of the Jedi, like first half hour of it, hundreds of times,” said the 36-year-old. “In families there is often a tension between younger and older siblings.”
The creative duo perfectly depict this particular familiar family feud in a new short film called The Search, through a partnership with EE TV – featuring parents desperately looking for the TV remote in their teenage daughter’s bedroom.
They wanted this story to reflect the drama and laughter that family life often attains by making sure the script encompassed their well known tongue and cheek style and tone.
“Life is full of dramas but is still funny. If you look at The Search, that’s kind of what we are trying to say, that these intense family arguments about trivial things like the TV, can seem so important and stressful at the time.
“I don’t think we’ve ever written anything that didn’t puncture the drama with humour. It’s always the way we like to write and is what family life is really like.”
New research done as part of the campaign found that the average UK household has 18 dramas over the remote per week so the sisters have created a short drama to illustrate this common source of contention.
“I think it is hard to get to a point where you find something that everybody wants to watch – especially when people bring partners into the mix as well,” said Henrietta. “It can also feel really exposing to put yourself out there and suggest something.”
Working in the film industry has given the Ashworth twins a newfound respect for the painstaking creative process behind a movie, so they both now prefer to watch films in silence in order to fully absorb every scene.
“I used to always have people around to watch movies on Halloween, and I love my friends, but I have stopped having them round because they always want to chat, eat sweets and gossip and I want to watch the film,” reflected Jessica. “We know the blood, sweat and tears that goes in to these films so want to watch it on a big screen with the lights down with nobody talking in the background.
“If you are watching a drama or horror, you have to watch and listen, because otherwise you’re not gonna get the joke or experience the jump when it breaks.”
The Ashworths said the biggest source of tension around the TV during their childhood was their dad falling asleep on the sofa – and for Henrietta, people not paying attention or going on their phones is another TV pet peeve of hers.
Despite these irritating habits, the sisters reflected on how great TV shows can bring families together.
“It’s such a bonding thing, to find something that you all love and have in common and can joke about it and quote it later on together,” said Henrietta. “To have a sort of moment vulnerability where you’re just instinctively laughing or jumping at something – its a lovely thing to share.”
Jessica recommends sticking to beloved cult classics – such as Gavin and Stacey and Call The Midwife – if your family are struggling to pick what to watch, or to try the recommendation algorithm feature which is available on most streaming platforms.