Katie and Emily
Encyclopedia
"Katie and Emily" is the ninth and penultimate episode of the third series of the English teen drama
Skins
, which first aired on 19 March 2009 on E4 in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. The episode was written by Malcolm Campbell and Bryan Elsley
, and was directed by Charles Martin
. The episode focuses on the characters of twins Katie and Emily Fitch (Megan
and Kathryn Prescott
, respectively) as they prepare for their college's annual ball. Katie refuses to leave home, recovering from being hit in the head with a rock, and faces her weakening control over her sister. Emily, meanwhile, is heartbroken when her girlfriend, Naomi Campbell (Lily Loveless
), turns down Emily's invitation to the ball, and comes out
to her family about her sexuality.
"Katie and Emily" featured numerous cameo appearance
s by the series' crew members and the winners of various Skins-related competitions. While filming one of the episode's fight scenes, according to Kathryn Prescott, the actors "did it a bit too properly", with injuries sustained to both Megan Prescott and Giles Thomas. The episode drew just under one million viewers on its first broadcast and was E4's highest-rated programme of the week. It was received generally well by critics.
, who has disappeared. Katie, in reality, is at home, miserable over the loss of her boyfriend Freddie Mclair (Luke Pasqualino
), who only dated her to spite Effy, his real love interest. She begins to take notice of all the hints in front of her, and realises that she can no longer hide from herself the fact that Emily is homosexual. At college, Naomi uncovers Emily's disguise (which had not fooled JJ or Freddie either) and tells her that she plans to spend the summer alone in Cyprus
. When Emily tells Naomi that she will miss her, they kiss in an empty corridor and later find themselves at Naomi's house where they have sex. Afterward, Emily asks Naomi to the college ball, but Naomi, still crippled by insecurity over her sexuality, refuses, leaving Emily heartbroken. Emily leaves and at the bus stop meets Thomas Tomone (Merveille Lukeba
), who offers her his shoes and jacket and is unconcerned when she tells him that she is gay. He tries to comfort her but admits that he believes it impossible to stop loving somebody, referring to his ex-girlfriend Pandora Moon (Lisa Backwell
). Emily returns home and comes out to her family, telling them that she has been having sex with a girl named Naomi. Her father, Rob (John Bishop
), dismisses it as a joke and her mother, Jenna (Ronni Ancona
), is speechless, while Katie tries to deny it. She and Emily have a heated argument, leaving Katie crying.
The following morning, Naomi visits the Fitches' house, but Jenna answers the door. She confronts Naomi, convincing her that Emily is not gay and warning Naomi to stay away from her. Naomi too denies her own sexual orientation and leaves hastily. After waking up, Katie and Emily reconcile in their own secret language, and Emily reluctantly agrees to go to the ball with Katie. While shopping for ball gowns, they meet Pandora, who is returning a dress since Thomas has not forgiven her for her infidelity with their friend James Cook. The twins run into Freddie and JJ Jones (Ollie Barbieri
) while trying on dresses. JJ reveals to Emily that he told Freddie that he had sex with her, and Freddie inadvertently tells Katie, who was unaware of this. She guilts Freddie into accompanying her to the ball and volunteers Emily to go with JJ. Later, she is furious with Emily for having sex with JJ without her permission, still insisting that Emily is "not gay, [just] stupid". Katie intercepts one of Naomi's phone calls to Emily and tricks Naomi into meeting with her, where she reveals Emily's affair with JJ and warns Naomi not to come to the ball.
As Katie, Emily, Freddie and JJ prepare to enter the ball, Naomi arrives, announcing that she knows about Emily and JJ's fling before she walks in. An upset Emily leaves. Katie starts a fight with Naomi. Unaware of Emily's presence, she admits her deceit and claims that Emily "deserved it." Infuriated, Emily attacks Katie, wreaking havoc through the entire ball. Emily finally overpowers her sister and raises a fist to punch her, but, after a moment's hesitation, reconsiders and instead helps Katie to stand up, declaring that she is "not her." In front of everybody, Emily tells Katie that she is her own person and that she is in love with Naomi. Katie accepts Emily's individuality and sexuality, and Naomi, no longer ashamed of their relationship, extends her hand to Emily. The couple leaves the ball hand-in-hand and Naomi tells Emily that she loves her too. Meanwhile, Pandora apologises again to Thomas and he forgives her, re-introducing himself.
s. Phil Goldie, who won the "Skins Needs You" competition for young directors, appears as a man in the café where Naomi meets Katie. Clara Nicholls and Antonio Khela, the winners of a competition to win a speaking role in Skins, played the shop assistant and security guard respectively at the boutique where Katie and Emily shop for ball gowns, while another finalist from the competition, Allana Taylor, starred as a girl dancing with the students' Head of Form, Doug (Giles Thomas), at the ball. One of the series' runners, Laurence Wigfield, played a bystander at the ball and the crew's "jack of all trades", Tyrone Hyman, appeared on a poster in Katie and Emily's bedroom.
Lisa Backwell described the filming of the ball as her "most favourite, most mental day of filming". At the end of the final take of Pandora's dancing with Doug, the students' head of year, the entire crew danced into shot. Director Charles Martin
was initially dubious of whether Megan and Kathryn Prescott would be able to film Katie and Emily's fight well enough, but Kathryn said that on their first rehearsal they "did it a bit too properly", ripping out parts of Megan's hair extensions. Emily's accidental punching of Doug during the fight was choreographed so that when Kathryn Prescott punched the air in front of Giles Thomas's face, the camera angle would make it appear that she was actually hitting him. While they were filming, however, Prescott genuinely punched Thomas by accident, causing him to stumble back and step on Megan Prescott's bare foot, which she injured.
, E4+1.
Sarah Warn, editor-in chief of lesbian-based website AfterEllen.com, thought that the portrayal of Emily and Naomi's relationship in the episode was "a good example of a well-plotted, well-executed, and well-acted storyline coming to a satisfying conclusion", which she regarded as "a noteworthy event given how few TV shows you can say that about". She felt that Emily's changing relationship with Katie as a significant part of her character development made her "sympathetic and relatable to those who might have otherwise have difficulty relating to a lesbian character". One critic for PopSugar.com
wrote that in this episode the "drama was still in full flow" despite the absence of principal characters Effy and Cook, and was impressed with the episode's "uplifting ending". They believed that Ronni Ancona was "fab" as the twins' mother, and regarded Pandora and Doug's dance at the ball as a "fantastic comic moment". Ellie Newton-Syms of InJournalism Magazine was "thrilled" with the conclusion of Katie and Emily's storyline. The entertainment editor for eurOut.org
, a website for European lesbians, wrote that she "almost [felt] like joining in" when Emily cried after breaking up with Naomi, and thought that the twins' secret language was "very cute and adorable". Dan French, in a review for Digital Spy
, highlighted the episode's "dramas aplenty" and believed Katie and Emily's parents to be "slightly creepy". The Sun
s Keeley Bolger described Katie and Emily's falling out as "spectacular".
Teen drama
A teen drama is a dramatic television series with a major focus on teenage characters. The genre was relatively non-existent for the first 45 years of television; it came into prominence in the early 1990s...
Skins
Skins (TV series)
Skins is a BAFTA award-winning British teen drama that follows a group of teenagers in Bristol, South West England, through the two years of college. The controversial plot line explores issues such as dysfunctional families, mental illness , adolescent sexuality, substance abuse and death...
, which first aired on 19 March 2009 on E4 in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. The episode was written by Malcolm Campbell and Bryan Elsley
Bryan Elsley
Bryan Elsley is a Scottish television writer, known most notably for the co-creation of E4 teen drama Skins with his son, Jamie Brittain...
, and was directed by Charles Martin
Charles Martin (director)
Charles Martin is a British television director.-Director:The original Big Brother Eye Logo *The Giblet Boys *My Life as a Popat**"Juvenile Delinquent" **"Ghost" **"Girlfiend" **"Tit for Tat"...
. The episode focuses on the characters of twins Katie and Emily Fitch (Megan
Megan Prescott
Megan Elizabeth "Meg" Prescott is a British actress who is best known for her role as Katie Fitch in the double BAFTA-winning teen drama Skins.-Background:...
and Kathryn Prescott
Kathryn Prescott
Kathryn "Kat" Prescott is an English actress. Born in Southgate, London, Prescott is best known for her portrayal of teenager Emily Fitch on the teen drama television series Skins.-Career:...
, respectively) as they prepare for their college's annual ball. Katie refuses to leave home, recovering from being hit in the head with a rock, and faces her weakening control over her sister. Emily, meanwhile, is heartbroken when her girlfriend, Naomi Campbell (Lily Loveless
Lily Loveless
Lily May Loveless is an English actress, best known for her role as Naomi Campbell in the BAFTA award winning drama Skins.-Career:...
), turns down Emily's invitation to the ball, and comes out
Coming out
Coming out is a figure of speech for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people's disclosure of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity....
to her family about her sexuality.
"Katie and Emily" featured numerous cameo appearance
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
s by the series' crew members and the winners of various Skins-related competitions. While filming one of the episode's fight scenes, according to Kathryn Prescott, the actors "did it a bit too properly", with injuries sustained to both Megan Prescott and Giles Thomas. The episode drew just under one million viewers on its first broadcast and was E4's highest-rated programme of the week. It was received generally well by critics.
Plot
Emily, disguised as Katie, arrives at college to pretend that her twin sister is returning to school with nine stitches to the head after being hit with a rock by their friend Effy StonemEffy Stonem
Elizabeth "Effy" Stonem is a fictional character in the television series Skins, played by Kaya Scodelario. She is the only main character to appear in more than two series. She appears in all of the first four series...
, who has disappeared. Katie, in reality, is at home, miserable over the loss of her boyfriend Freddie Mclair (Luke Pasqualino
Luke Pasqualino
Luke Pasqualino is an English actor, best known for his portrayal of Freddie Mclair in the television series Skins.-Early life:...
), who only dated her to spite Effy, his real love interest. She begins to take notice of all the hints in front of her, and realises that she can no longer hide from herself the fact that Emily is homosexual. At college, Naomi uncovers Emily's disguise (which had not fooled JJ or Freddie either) and tells her that she plans to spend the summer alone in Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
. When Emily tells Naomi that she will miss her, they kiss in an empty corridor and later find themselves at Naomi's house where they have sex. Afterward, Emily asks Naomi to the college ball, but Naomi, still crippled by insecurity over her sexuality, refuses, leaving Emily heartbroken. Emily leaves and at the bus stop meets Thomas Tomone (Merveille Lukeba
Merveille Lukeba
Merveille Lukeba is a Congo born, British actor, best known for his role as Thomas Tomone in double BAFTA-winning E4 teen drama Skins.Born in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, he was raised in Woolwich, southeast London....
), who offers her his shoes and jacket and is unconcerned when she tells him that she is gay. He tries to comfort her but admits that he believes it impossible to stop loving somebody, referring to his ex-girlfriend Pandora Moon (Lisa Backwell
Lisa Backwell
Lisa Backwell is a British actress, best known for her role as Pandora Moon in the hit British TV drama Skins.-Career:...
). Emily returns home and comes out to her family, telling them that she has been having sex with a girl named Naomi. Her father, Rob (John Bishop
John Bishop (comedian)
John Joseph Bishop is an award-winning comedian.His television debut came on The Panel. As an actor, he has appeared in the E4 teen drama Skins as Mr Fitch, father of twins, Katie and Emily and in the Ken Loach film Route Irish...
), dismisses it as a joke and her mother, Jenna (Ronni Ancona
Ronni Ancona
Ronni Ancona is a Scottish actress, impressionist and author. Ancona won the Best TV Comedy Actress award at the 2003 British Comedy Awards for her work in Big Impression.- Career :...
), is speechless, while Katie tries to deny it. She and Emily have a heated argument, leaving Katie crying.
The following morning, Naomi visits the Fitches' house, but Jenna answers the door. She confronts Naomi, convincing her that Emily is not gay and warning Naomi to stay away from her. Naomi too denies her own sexual orientation and leaves hastily. After waking up, Katie and Emily reconcile in their own secret language, and Emily reluctantly agrees to go to the ball with Katie. While shopping for ball gowns, they meet Pandora, who is returning a dress since Thomas has not forgiven her for her infidelity with their friend James Cook. The twins run into Freddie and JJ Jones (Ollie Barbieri
Ollie Barbieri
Ollie Barbieri is a British actor, best known for his role as JJ Jones in the hit British TV drama Skins.- Career :In 2008, he was cast as JJ Jones in Skins.He was later cast as Enrique in Anuvahood....
) while trying on dresses. JJ reveals to Emily that he told Freddie that he had sex with her, and Freddie inadvertently tells Katie, who was unaware of this. She guilts Freddie into accompanying her to the ball and volunteers Emily to go with JJ. Later, she is furious with Emily for having sex with JJ without her permission, still insisting that Emily is "not gay, [just] stupid". Katie intercepts one of Naomi's phone calls to Emily and tricks Naomi into meeting with her, where she reveals Emily's affair with JJ and warns Naomi not to come to the ball.
As Katie, Emily, Freddie and JJ prepare to enter the ball, Naomi arrives, announcing that she knows about Emily and JJ's fling before she walks in. An upset Emily leaves. Katie starts a fight with Naomi. Unaware of Emily's presence, she admits her deceit and claims that Emily "deserved it." Infuriated, Emily attacks Katie, wreaking havoc through the entire ball. Emily finally overpowers her sister and raises a fist to punch her, but, after a moment's hesitation, reconsiders and instead helps Katie to stand up, declaring that she is "not her." In front of everybody, Emily tells Katie that she is her own person and that she is in love with Naomi. Katie accepts Emily's individuality and sexuality, and Naomi, no longer ashamed of their relationship, extends her hand to Emily. The couple leaves the ball hand-in-hand and Naomi tells Emily that she loves her too. Meanwhile, Pandora apologises again to Thomas and he forgives her, re-introducing himself.
Production
"Katie and Emily" featured a number of cameo appearanceCameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
s. Phil Goldie, who won the "Skins Needs You" competition for young directors, appears as a man in the café where Naomi meets Katie. Clara Nicholls and Antonio Khela, the winners of a competition to win a speaking role in Skins, played the shop assistant and security guard respectively at the boutique where Katie and Emily shop for ball gowns, while another finalist from the competition, Allana Taylor, starred as a girl dancing with the students' Head of Form, Doug (Giles Thomas), at the ball. One of the series' runners, Laurence Wigfield, played a bystander at the ball and the crew's "jack of all trades", Tyrone Hyman, appeared on a poster in Katie and Emily's bedroom.
Lisa Backwell described the filming of the ball as her "most favourite, most mental day of filming". At the end of the final take of Pandora's dancing with Doug, the students' head of year, the entire crew danced into shot. Director Charles Martin
Charles Martin
Charles Martin is a poet, critic and translator. He grew up in the Bronx. He graduated from Fordham University and received his Ph.D. from the University at Buffalo, The State University of New York. He now teaches at the City University of New York, Syracuse University, and the . Martin's...
was initially dubious of whether Megan and Kathryn Prescott would be able to film Katie and Emily's fight well enough, but Kathryn said that on their first rehearsal they "did it a bit too properly", ripping out parts of Megan's hair extensions. Emily's accidental punching of Doug during the fight was choreographed so that when Kathryn Prescott punched the air in front of Giles Thomas's face, the camera angle would make it appear that she was actually hitting him. While they were filming, however, Prescott genuinely punched Thomas by accident, causing him to stumble back and step on Megan Prescott's bare foot, which she injured.
Reception
"Katie and Emily" brought in 957,000 viewers and was E4's highest-rated programme of the week with an audience share of 4.4 percent. Another 320,000 viewers watched the episode an hour after its initial broadcast on E4's timeshift channelTimeshift channel
A timeshift channel is a television channel carrying a time-delayed rebroadcast of its "parent" channel's output. This channel runs alongside their parent: the term "timeshift" does not refer to a network broadcasting at a later time to reflect a local timezone unless the parent is also available...
, E4+1.
Sarah Warn, editor-in chief of lesbian-based website AfterEllen.com, thought that the portrayal of Emily and Naomi's relationship in the episode was "a good example of a well-plotted, well-executed, and well-acted storyline coming to a satisfying conclusion", which she regarded as "a noteworthy event given how few TV shows you can say that about". She felt that Emily's changing relationship with Katie as a significant part of her character development made her "sympathetic and relatable to those who might have otherwise have difficulty relating to a lesbian character". One critic for PopSugar.com
Popsugar
PopSugar.com is Sugar Publishing's celebrity news and gossip site. Founded in March 2005, the site is based in San Francisco, California.PopSugar is the flagship site for the Sugar Network, which now includes nine additional sites.-Editors:...
wrote that in this episode the "drama was still in full flow" despite the absence of principal characters Effy and Cook, and was impressed with the episode's "uplifting ending". They believed that Ronni Ancona was "fab" as the twins' mother, and regarded Pandora and Doug's dance at the ball as a "fantastic comic moment". Ellie Newton-Syms of InJournalism Magazine was "thrilled" with the conclusion of Katie and Emily's storyline. The entertainment editor for eurOut.org
EurOut.org
eurOut.org, founded in September 2008, is a European website dedicated to bringing their readers the latest news about lesbian and bisexual women in entertainment and politics in the English language. The website was founded by Sandra Showtime who also functioned as its editor-in-chief until...
, a website for European lesbians, wrote that she "almost [felt] like joining in" when Emily cried after breaking up with Naomi, and thought that the twins' secret language was "very cute and adorable". Dan French, in a review for Digital Spy
Digital Spy
Digital Spy is a British entertainment and media news website. According to Alexa Internet traffic statistics, as of February 2011, Digital Spy is the 93rd most popular website in the United Kingdom, with an overall Alexa ranking of 2,088....
, highlighted the episode's "dramas aplenty" and believed Katie and Emily's parents to be "slightly creepy". The Sun
The Sun (newspaper)
The Sun is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom and owned by News Corporation. Sister editions are published in Glasgow and Dublin...
s Keeley Bolger described Katie and Emily's falling out as "spectacular".