It’s A Sin praised as ‘beautiful’ and ‘heartbreaking’ by viewers

Viewers have praised Russell T Davies’ new drama It’s A Sin as “beautiful” and “heartbreaking”.

The writer and producer, known for his work on Queer As Folk and Doctor Who, returned to screens with the Channel 4 series exploring the HIV/Aids crisis in 1980s London.

Friday’s series opener saw Years & Years singer Olly Alexander debut as Ritchie Tozer, while Omari Douglas featured as Roscoe Babatunde.

Viewers were quick to praise the programme for its depiction of a group of young friends living amidst the HIV/Aids crisis.

One said: “It’s A Sin is brilliant, beautiful, poignant and heartbreaking.”

Another described the show as “outstanding”, while a third said it had already “cemented itself in TV history”.

The young cast was also praised by viewers, with one tweeting: “Interval tweet – anyone else absolutely loving It’s A Sin? bursting with compassion, heart and humanity. What an inspiring young cast as well. Thank you for a small piece of joy this month.”

US actor Neil Patrick Harris, best known for roles in How I Met Your Mother and A Series Of Unfortunate Events, was trending on Twitter during the programme, as fans praised his performance as an upper-class tailor and mentor to one of the main characters.

A fan wrote: “NEIL PATRICK HARRIS IN A BRITISH 80S BASED DRAMA HAS GOT TO BE THE BEST NEXT THING IN THE HISTORY OF CHANNEL 4. CREDIT TO RUSSELL T DAVIES.”

One of the first scenes saw Roscoe leave his family home, cutting ties with his parents and embracing his homosexuality.

The drag queen Glamrou, real name Amrou Al-Kadhi, wrote on Twitter: “Roscoe being the hero I could never be at that age. Just an extraordinary opening.”

Drag queen and DJ Jodie Harsh also tweeted love heart emojis in response to the show.

Ahead of the episode, Alexander, who is a vocal advocate for LGBT rights, shared his excitement.

He wrote on Twitter: “OMG TWENTY MINUTES”.