Sugar Rush is a British television comedy drama series developed by Shine TV and broadcast by Channel 4, loosely based on the Julie Burchill novel of the same name. It is centred on the life of 15-year-old lesbian Kim Daniels, who has moved from London to Brighton on the south coast of England. Throughout the series, Kim is forced to cope with her dysfunctional family; her burgeoning sexuality; and her infatuation with Sugar, a heterosexual girl.
Cast
Olivia Hallinan - Kimberly Daniels, fifteen-year-old protagonist and narrator of the series Lenora Crichlow - Maria 'Sugar' Sweet, a teenager who lives life without thinking of the consequences Sarah-Jane Potts - Saint (real name Sarah), lesbian sex-shop owner and part-time club DJ Kurtis O'Brien - Matt Daniels, Kimberly's confused and alienated younger brother Sara Stewart - Stella Daniels, Kimberly and Matt's mother Richard Lumsden - Nathan Daniels, Kimberly and Matt's father Andrew Garfield - Tom, Kimberly's next-door neighbour Jalaal Hartley - Mark Evans, Saint's ex-boyfriend Laura Donnelly - Beth, Kim's friend and love interest Neil Jackson - Dale, a handyman who has an affair with Stella Anna Wilson-Jones - Anna, a womaniser who seduces Kimberly
Plot
The first series of Sugar Rush opens with fifteen-year-old Kim (Hallinan) moving to Brighton with her family, and developing a crush on her best friend - heterosexual girl Sugar (Crichlow). Maria 'Sugar' Sweet loves reckless drinking, copious sex with men, and doesn't care for school. The series follows Kim as she tries to gain Sugar's affections, leading to Sugar taking advantage of her kindness.
Side plots of series one include Kim's mother Stella (Stewart) having an affair, Kim's brother Matt (O'Brien) thinking he's an alien, and Kim's neighbour Tom (Garfield) desperately trying to date her.
In series two, eighteen months have passed and Kim learns to leave Sugar behind and go on dates with other women, particularly Saint (Potts), who becomes her serious girlfriend. However, Sugar remaining in Kim's life, albeit not romantically, causes friction in Kim's relationship with Saint.
Side plots in series two include Stella and Nathan (Lumsden) attending sex therapy and becoming more adventurous in their sex life, Sugar's problematic relationships, and Matt exploring his feminine side. Andrew Garfield does not reprise his role as Tom.
Background/production
There were 2 series of the programme; the first airing in 2005 and the second in 2006. Each series consists of ten episodes, each 30 minutes long, including adverts. Episodes do not have individual titles.
In March 2007, Channel 4 stated that Sugar Rush would not be returning for a third series. A spokeswoman claimed that third and fourth series were never planned, but series producer Johnny Capps stated he was "surprised and disappointed at Channel 4's decision not to recommission Sugar Rush". He claimed that he "certainly had lots of ideas of where to take the next series" and was "sad not to be able to finish Kim and Sugar's story properly". Capp stated despite Channel 4 claiming no further seasons were ever planned, he was told privately that the reason for the cancellation was that there was no scheduling spot for the show anymore.
Hallinan and Crichlow subsequently spoke out about the cancellation, saying, "the show was an asset to Channel 4. I don't think Channel 4 recognises Sugar Rush was a brave move and did really well for the channel," and adding that the cancellation, "was a last minute thing, especially the way we leave series two, it sets things up for series three."
Broadcast
The first series was broadcast in 2005 on Channel 4, at 10:50 p.m, but would sometimes air later due to Big Brother 6 UK over-running, with the next episode on E4 afterwards, sometimes overlapping the Channel 4 broadcast. The programme was shown significantly after the watershed.
The first episode of the second series was broadcast on Channel 4 on 15 June 2006, and the last episode was aired on 17 August 2006 on Channel 4, and on 10 August 2006 on digital channel E4.
Series one currently airs on OUTtv in Canada. The whole show is available in the UK on the Channel 4 streaming service.
Reception
On 20 November 2006 Sugar Rush (A Shine Production for Channel 4, United Kingdom) was awarded the 34th International Emmy Award classified under "Children & Young People". It ran against "Boys Will Be Boys" (Monster Film for NRK, Norway), "Elias - The Little Rescue Boat" (Filmkameratene AS, Norway) and "Johnny and the Bomb" (Childsplay Television, United Kingdom).