‘Naomi and Emily showed me that fancying girls was okay’: Queer women pay tribute to Skins Heartstopper moment
Following the release of Netflix’s beloved teen romance series Heartstopper, many of us have been thinking back to the television characters who came before Charlie Spring (Joe Locke) and Nick Nelson (Kit Connor) and sparked an awakening on our LGBTQ+ journey.One such show that explored a woman-loving-woman relationship and all the trials and tribulations that come with them was Channel 4’s Skins with Naomi (Lily Loveless) and Emily’s (Kathryn Prescott) romance.Naomi and Emily came crashing into our lives in 2009 when the second generation of sixth form students started Roundview College, kissing goodbye to Tony Stonem (Nicholas Hoult) and his crew.After catching each other’s gazes during their introduction assembly on their first day of term, Naomi and Emily’s rollercoaster romance would soon begin, with a whole globe of LGBTQ+ women fawning over them.
For me, Emily and Naomi’s storyline introduced her to the idea of women loving women relationships – and ultimately helped me with my own coming out.I was 14 when Naomi and Emily were introduced as the new cast of Skins in series three.
I would sneakily watch the gritty teen drama on my tiny box TV on the lowest volume so my parents wouldn’t hear.Naomi and Emily’s blossoming romance was the first time I remember seeing a lesbian relationship on television.
The idea that women could be with women never occurred to me as a possibility before this point, it wasn’t something I ever considered.
