IVF is a life-changing treatment for many women. While NHS access is becoming more difficult, the success rate of IVF has tripled over the last two decades.
Joy – the story of the first IVF child, adapted by Netflix – is coming to cinemas soon, starring Bill Nighy, Thomasin Mackenzie and James Norton. It was written by Enola Holmes scribe Jack Thorne and directed by Sex Education's Ben Taylor. And an emotional trailer for it has just dropped.
“When I got pregnant I had £40,000 in savings. By the time my daughter turned two I had almost nothing.”
The film will span from 1968 to 1978 as important medical advancements are made toward the conception and birth of a “test tube baby.” It also follows the lives of the nurse, surgeon and scientist who fought for IVF to be possible, against a lot of scientific backlash.
It's a really crucial part of the fertility journey for so many women, which is why it's truly amazing that a Netflix film is being made to honour it.
Here's everything we know so far.
What is Joy about?
According to a synopsis for the Netflix film, it will follow three “trailblazers” – a young nurse, a visionary scientist and obstetrician, a gynaecologist and a surgeon – that are facing opposition to their work in producing the world's first “test-tube baby” Louise Joy Brown.
GLAMOUR has been lucky enough to see Joy, and can confirm it's not just about the conception of the first IVF baby – it's about the amazing people who fought for the scientific process and all the women who participated in the studies, in the hope it would bring them, and future generations of these with fertility problems, a child.
What is the true story that Joy is based on?
It follows Jean Purdy, Robert Edwards and Patrick Steptoe, the three reproductive medicine pioneers who were involved in the development of the first “test tube baby”, Louise Joy Brown, who was the first human to be born from in vitro fertilisation on 25 July 1978. It has been described as “the most remarkable medical breakthroughs of the 20th century”.
Robert Edwards was even awarded a Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine in 2010.
Joy cast
Thomasin McKenzie (Eileen, Last Night In Soho) will play the nurse and embryologist Jean Purdy, James Norton will play scientist Robert Edwards and Bill Nighy will play the surgeon, Patrick Steptoe.
_L.jpg)
Charlie Murphy (Peaky Blinders, Happy Valley), Do Revenge's Rish Shah, Cecily Cleeve and Eoin Duffy will also star.
What have the team behind Joy said about it?
Script writer Jack Throne and director Ben Taylor have both spoken out about the impact of their personal experiences of the IVF process, and what an honour it has been to bring its creation to the screen.
“I am a lifelong Jack Thorne fan, and it has been such a thrill to work with him and Rachel on my first feature film,” Taylor has said. “As the proud father to two boys only made possible by IVF, this is a story extremely close to my heart. It’s an honour to bring to life the journey of this heroic trio, whose world-changing work was only achieved in the face of unimaginable opposition.
"Thomasin, James and Bill – together with the rest of the cast – are an embarrassment of riches. I’m delighted that Pathe, Wildgaze and Netflix entrusted me with this brilliant story.”
Jack also opened up about him and his partners' IVF journey and Joy's “incredible story”.
“It took Rachel and I seven rounds of IVF to have Elliott, so when the opportunity came to tell the story of the pioneers, I jumped at the chance and suggested Rachel might like to jump too,” he said. “The more we discovered, the more amazed we were, at the audacity of the science and the lack of support from the scientific community. It is an incredible story. Working on this with our incredible cast, wonderful director Ben and the brilliant producers at Wildgaze, Pathe and Netflix has been a joy.”
When is the release date for Joy?
Joy will be released in UK cinemas on 15 November and will drop on Netflix a week later on 22 November.
Is there a Joy trailer?
Netflix has just dropped a gorgeous trailer for a gorgeous story! Watch below:
