This Life; treatment.
16 year old Jacob Griffiths is an aspiring DJ/musician. His dad was laid off at the security company he worked for so Jacob takes it upon himself to make money. After a few failed job interviews after a bad case of nerves, his friend, Leigh Collins, introduces him into the dark world of drugs by the local gang; The Shadows.
Jacob’s girlfriend, Julia Burton, is terrified about getting into trouble; with her father being the chief of police, she has every reason to be. She begs him to stop at the start of the London Riots.
On the second day of the Riots, Jacob approaches Leigh and tells him he doesn’t want to deliver drugs anymore, even though the money was good. Leigh asks him to help him get something from his aunt’s house for his mother. They arrive at the house and Leigh goes around the back, breaks open and window and opens the door for Jacob, telling him that he found a key in a plant pot.
He tells Jacob to make himself at home. He goes to the kitchen and takes out a carton of milk and drinks it. Minutes later, sirens can be heard from outside. Jacob jokingly calls out to Leigh. Leigh rushes down the stairs, pushes a bulky bag in his arms and tells him to run.
They run down the street, trying to avoid the police dogs and Julia’s father. They turn a corner and Leigh threatens Julia if Jacob doesn’t give himself up and only himself. Jacob has no choice but to give himself up to Julia’s father. After being released, he finds that his actions have caused his parents to be evicted from their council flat and they have to move in with their religious grandparents momentarily.
Our soap will have different issues, mainly surrounding family, drugs, gangs, unemployment and urban life in London. The issues we introduce in the first trailer are:
- Crime/drugs/gangs/police.
- Pregnancy/relationships/family/divorce.
- Domestic abuse.
- Death of sister in gang crossfire.
