New BBC show aims to depict family life after a relationship breakdown through the eyes of a child

Modern family life is at the heart of a new Children’s BBC programme called Millie Inbetween. CBBC specifically caters for children aged under 13 years old.

The programme features a young girl, Millie, who takes an unsentimental view of her parents’ relationship breakdown, separation and subsequent re-coupling with new partners and step brothers and sisters, often reaching wiser conclusions than any of the adults involved.

Each of the 13 episodes will explore the emotional impact of the split and new relationships in the ‘blended’ families that result.

Cheryl Taylor, the controller of CBBC, has said:

We hope it will resonate with our young viewers, because so many of them unfortunately experience the trials and tribulations of a parental split, with 42% of marriages ending in divorce and 18% of families having a lone parent. Millie Inbetween attempts to show, with a light touch and comic sensibility, that family can come in all shapes and sizes.

For the most part, TV families, in spite of their petty disputes and arguments, are depicted as a single, united group so it is encouraging to see a programme that shows the modern reality of families that live apart and more accurately depicts the reality of family life for many children in the UK today.