Five Women Form a Punk Band and Rediscover Their Voice, Friendship, and Freedom
2025
Comedy, Drama
6 episodes
TheNextHint Score
8.8
8.8 / 10
Overview
Riot Women combines friendship, family drama and punk music in a story about five women who decide they have had enough of keeping their frustrations to themselves. Created by Sally Wainwright, the series follows Beth, Kitty, Jess, Holly and Yvonne as an unlikely band takes shape in Hebden Bridge. What begins with the simple goal of entering a talent contest gradually becomes a way for the women to confront personal problems and speak openly about experiences they have spent years carrying. The series balances humor with heavier subjects including menopause, aging, relationships, family pressures, workplace problems and misogyny. Its central friendship gives the story its emotional core, while the original punk songs provide another way for the characters to express themselves.
Quick Verdict
Riot Women is a music drama centered on its characters, distinguished by its blend of punk intensity, older female protagonists, and emotionally tangled family narratives. It is likely to resonate especially with viewers who appreciate ensemble dramas featuring humor, compelling relationships, and original music. The series carves out a unique identity through its uncommon emphasis on women confronting middle age.
Riot Women is a British drama series created and written by Sally Wainwright, with its setting in Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire. Across six episodes, the series centers on five women who come together by chance to start a punk-rock band for a local talent competition. Beth Thornton works as a teacher, Jess Burchill is a police officer, Holly Gaskell is a midwife, Yvonne Vaux runs a pub, and Kitty Eckersley takes on the role of the unpredictable singer who completes the group. What starts out as an improbable musical endeavor soon turns into an outlet for the women to face their frustrations, relationships, family troubles, and the feeling of being overlooked.
Rather than reducing the band to a mere competition stunt, the series blends drama, humor, music, and emotionally charged storylines. As the women compose and perform their own songs, their personal lives have a growing impact on the group. Beth and Kitty especially uncover a painful link between them that shifts the course of their relationship. The production additionally includes original songs by the real-life punk duo ARXX, and the main cast members learned to play their respective instruments for the show.
Riot Women first aired in the UK on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on October 12, 2025, ahead of its release in the US and Canada via BritBox in January 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Riot Women about?
Five middle-aged women (Lorraine Ashbourne, Amelia Bullmore, Rosalie Craig, Tamsin Greig, and Joanna Scanlan) form a punk rock band for a talent contest in the drama series created by Sally Wainwright.
How many episodes are in Riot Women Season 1?
Season 1 has six episodes.
Who created Riot Women?
The series was created and written by Sally Wainwright, who also serves as an executive producer and lead director.
Is Riot Women coming back for Season 2?
Yes. The BBC announced a second series in November 2025.
Story — Spoiler Free
Beth, Jess, Holly, Yvonne and Kitty have little in common at first, but a local talent contest brings them together as an improvised punk band. Their rehearsals soon become an outlet for frustrations they have rarely been able to express elsewhere. While the women grow closer through music, their personal lives become increasingly complicated, especially when a secret from the past connects Kitty and Beth.
8.8
TheNextHint Score
8.8 / 10
Riot Women is a music drama centered on its characters, distinguished by its blend of punk intensity, older female protagonists, and emotionally tangled family narratives. It is likely to resonate especially with viewers who appreciate ensemble dramas featuring humor, compelling relationships, and original music. The series carves out a unique identity through its uncommon emphasis on women confronting middle age.
Rating breakdown
Story
9.0
Acting
9.0
Direction
9.0
Visuals
8.0
Sound
9.0
Entertainment
9.0
External Ratings
Scores from other sources, shown in their own scale. These are not TheNextHint's rating.
Strong ensemble performances, sharp character writing, original punk music and a mix of humor and serious real-life issues give the series considerable personality.
Cons
The large ensemble and several interconnected personal storylines can make the narrative feel busy at times, particularly as the season moves toward its major revelations.
Who Should Watch
Drama Lovers
Music Fans
Women-Centered Drama Fans
British TV Fans
Who Should Skip
Action Fans
Family-Friendly Viewers
Release Date
2025-10-12
Runtime
57–63 minutes per episode
Director
Sally Wainwright, Amanda Brotchie
Producer
Jessica Taylor
Writer
Sally Wainwright
Cast
Joanna Scanlan, Rosalie Craig, Lorraine Ashbourne, Tamsin Greig, Amelia Bullmore, Taj Atwal, Jonny Green, Sue Johnston, Macy Seelochan, Chandeep Uppal, Ben Batt, Ellise Chappell, Natalia Tena, Peter Davison, Claire Skinner, Anne Reid, Nicholas Gleaves, Tony Hirst, Mark Bazeley, Shannon Lavelle, Richard Fleeshman, Jonathan Pryce.
A teacher and one of the central figures in the band.
Rosalie Craig
as
Kitty Eckersley
A chaotic woman whose arrival changes the band's direction and creates a major connection with Beth.
Lorraine Ashbourne
as
Jess Burchill
A police officer who becomes part of the punk group.
Tamsin Greig
as
Holly Gaskell
A midwife dealing with family and personal pressures.
Amelia Bullmore
as
Yvonne Vaux
One of the women who joins the band.
Seasons & Episodes
Season 1
6 episodes October 12, 2025
Five women form a punk-rock band for a local talent contest, but their new friendship soon brings personal secrets, family conflicts and difficult experiences to the surface.
1Episode 1
60 min October 12, 2025
Five women's lives collide when they unexpectedly form a punk band for a talent contest.
2Episode 2
59 min October 12, 2025
Kitty joins the rehearsals, and the women begin to find their rhythm while Kitty discovers a painful connection to Beth.
3Episode 3
59 min October 12, 2025
Kitty struggles after her discovery, leading to increasingly difficult behavior and an explosive family gathering.
4Episode 4
59 min October 12, 2025
Six weeks later, the women face the talent contest while Kitty encounters her abusive ex and the band changes its song.
5Episode 5
59 min October 12, 2025
Kitty spends the night in custody while Beth and Tom deal with difficult personal consequences and the band begins to fracture.
6Episode 6
63 min October 12, 2025
The Riot Women record in a professional studio, but the session brings an unexpected shock for Holly.
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