ROSE MATAFEO

IF YOU THOUGHT THE PROSPECTS OF SHORTFORM DRAMA SANK WITH QUIBI when the mobile-led streaming platform crashed and burned just eight months after its launch in April 2020, this 18-part series told in 10-minute episodes proved there’s life in the format yet. Tackling themes of morality and monogamy, the BBC comedy-drama follows two strangers who share a drunken night together after their shared flight is cancelled. The next morning, both Fola and Josh admit they are in relationships with other people and that their encounter was a mistake. But when Josh arrives home, he is horrified to find Fola has just moved in across the street.

NEW ZEALAND ACTOR, WRITER AND COMEDIAN MATAFEO SCORED ONE OF THE TELEVISION HITS OF 2021 WITH HER ROMANTIC COMEDY STARSTRUCK, which charmed viewers who were otherwise contending with numerous lockdowns during the Covid-19 pandemic. The second season of the show launched in February, reacquainting viewers with Jessie (played by Matafeo), a millennial living in East London and juggling two dead-end jobs while also navigating the complications of being romantically involved with a famous fi lm star (Nikesh Patel). A third season has been ordered by the BBC and HBO Max, with Matafeo now also set to direct.