Maedbh, 23, currently living in Berlin

“Two significant shows that influenced my life for the better are the original The L Word and Lip Service. The L Word circles the lives of a group of LA lesbians while Lip Service is similar but UK-based.

“Sadly, Lip Service only ran for two seasons. Being based in Scotland, I felt closer to these characters and somewhat reassured that perhaps I don’t have to travel to the ends of the earth to find another queer person. The L Word, on the other hand, is still going strong.

“The representation on these shows was pretty binary, leaning towards lesbianism alone rather than inclusive queerness.

“They came recommended to me by a woman I met online when I was still closeted, ridden by seemingly insurmountable internalised homophobia. At a strange time in my life, these shows’ representation of queer women as just simply – well, dramatically – living their lives, loving, and feeling joy, pain, the whole spectrum of emotion, restored my hope that there was a community out there for me.

“The characters in these shows are a big part of why I chose to move to Berlin, a city whose reputation as the queer capital of Europe encouraged me wholly.

“They motivated me to chase the joy I found in them in my own life and, following their lead, I found my way to my community.

“Though it took time, with the guiding hand of these shows, I realised my power and queerness was in me all along, that it was never anyone else’s to bequeath upon me.”

From Pose to Sex Education, we spoke to women about the TV shows that changed their lives for the better