Lydia’s character Jill is the heart of Russell T Davies’ powerful new drama, which follows a group of five friends growing up during the 1980s in London as the HIV/AIDS epidemic takes hold.
Jill’s story represents the numerous women – both within the LGBTQ+ community and our allies – who cared for gay and bi men suffering from the disease, as well as campaigning and fundraising for the cause. “You’re living in London – which is all very exciting – and then all of a sudden, there’s a disease that literally changes everything,” Jill Nadler says of the era she lived through.
Nadler was an actress in the West End during the decade and helped raise money through late night shows. “I was very much involved in fundraising,” she explains to Lydia.