TV: Michaela Coel may destroy you – but there’s sure to be a few laughs, too

Michaela Coel thought she’d landed a dream deal to get her TV series I May Destroy You on screens.

It would have allowed her to be sole writer, director and star.

However the rising star ended up walking away from the agreement with the unnamed streaming service.

“They wanted me to create the show – to write every single word of it, be the sole director and the lead actress,” she said. “This streaming service wanted me to do this whilst withholding 100% of the rights as their property.

“So I thought, let me plea for 2%, and when that was rejected I grew uncomfortable with the prospect of dedicating two-and-a-half years of my life to a show exploring exploitation and loss of power whilst also losing all of my rights.

“I rejected their deal, registered my own production company and hoped one day I would meet another broadcaster or streaming service who would allow me to retain a portion of my rights.

“The BBC and HBO became the happy homes for this project.”

The former Chewing Gum star’s new show is a fearless and provocative series exploring the question of sexual consent in our modern landscape of dating and relationships.

She plays Arabella, a care-free, self-assured Londoner with a group of great friends, a holiday fling-turned aspirational boyfriend in Italy, and a burgeoning writing career.

But when she is spiked with a date-rape drug, she must question and rebuild every element of her life.

As part of writing the show, Michaela spoke to a wide range of people – and found confusion reigned when it came to the thorny issue of sex.

“When I began to ask people questions, both women and men, I realised that I was definitely not alone in wondering why these lines of consent were always blurred, and there were so many different experiences,” she said.

“So I took on the challenge of creating a show where I explore the different forms of where sexual consent can be stolen.”

As well as being frank, I May Destroy You is also funny. However Michaela said adding laughs to the script wasn’t exactly her intention – especially in the grimmer scenes.

“I didn’t add humour, the humour is always there; at every party, funeral and war, although often uninvited, she’s always there, for some reason,” she said.

“I always seem to find myself in a corner with her, even when in a police station giving a witness statement about being raped by a stranger. I’ve come to accept she’ll be in everything I do.”

I May Destroy You, Mon, BBC1, 10.45pm.