Kerry, on the surface, appears to be a normal, happy 10-year-old girl. But it’s shown that her home life is massively dysfunctional with her parents having an extremely volatile relationship. Even more shocking than that is that they are abusing her.

On studying the films on Taste of Cinema’s Shocking Films list, I was waiting for a film so grimy that I felt like scrubbing myself down with bleach after watching it. And today’s the day. No Child of Mine was made for UK TV in 1997 and, whilst it caused waves regarding how graphic it was and whether it was realistic (director Peter Kosminsky said it’s based on a real person’s case) it also garnered praise from social workers and won Baftas.

The programme doesn’t shy away from anything and even investigates topics regarding abuse that are still taboo today (female abusers, the role of care homes).

There’s no dilly-dallying regarding how dark this all is. In fact, it reminded me of Christiane F and the later Mysterious Skin.

Things escalate quickly, and nothing is spared. Is it heavy-handed? Yes. Was that the point to show the full horror of sexual abuse? Yes. And it succeeds brilliantly.

Kudos to Brooke Kinsella and Colin Salmon for their fantastic performances.

In true 2026 style, this is on YouTube. Prepare yourself before watching.

4.5 out of 5 stars