The show is called Top Boy, but it is obviously ruled by brilliant women in front of and behind the camera…

Remember that first iconic shot of the pregnant woman running the weed farm? It’s actually the women around the two main characters who really ground and humanise the world. Deep down, Top Boy is about community, and its women offer us more emotionally driven stories – they are the heart of the show, and they become the pillars around which everything else gets built. They’re really important.

Was there more pressure filming the final season?

Yes, but not just in terms of the scale; while we were shooting the first block, the script for episode four hadn’t been written yet. The final two episodes had not been written, so neither I nor the actors had any idea where their storylines were heading. But in a way, I guess it meant that each scene was shot and performed very individually, like an in-the-moment kind of scene.

And were you caught off-guard by the ending?

I was definitely surprised by the ending. And I guess, looking back, I would have probably made different decisions in certain scenes had I known that this was where things were headed. But we’ve lived with Sully for all these seasons, and he’s been walking around like he knows there’s a bullet with his name on it. And even Dushane, who started off the season in this really nice restaurant, having a nice dinner, ends it by running – literally just running – with drugs out of desperation, and he dies in an alleyway alone.

It feels like a full stop; like there’s no significance to the lives they’ve led, despite all the adrenaline that they’ve constantly experienced. And I think that’s a really scary, strange feeling. It’s like, well, ‘You’re such a big man and drug dealer, then boom. Full stop. Nothing.’

And of course, there’s another character we need to talk about: London. And not Love Actually-London, either, but the actual London we know and love.

I wasn’t born in the UK. I came to the UK at the age of 11. But I had seen Notting Hill and Mr Bean, and I thought, ‘Oh, that’s what London is like, cool’. But I think with Top Boy, it was really important that we never once used the word ‘gritty’, because for characters like Dushane and Sully, Summerhouse is really their kingdom. And there is vibrancy and there is community. And actually, what was incredible with this season is that we shot in summer. And so you see the sunlight, and you see colour, and you still see beauty, but there’s a ruggedness and there’s a realness to that part of London. Because London is madly diverse, and it’s a shame not to capitalise on that.

What have you got lined up next?

I am currently focusing on my debut feature.

And what lessons are you taking away from Top Boy to apply to your work going forward?

You know what, I think Top Boy is incredible. It’s a show made with love, through the collaboration of many people, and I think I learned that sometimes you do need to stand up for what you believe in. To fight some battles. And, this time, some battles were won, and I’m proud of the on-screen result.

What advice do you have for anyone who’s hoping to make it as a director someday?

Find people who want to tell similar stories to you. Collaborate. And keep them close. Because it’s not a job you can do alone. So that would be one of my biggest pieces of advice, as well as to watch lots of films!

NATALIE HUMPHRIES – COSTUME DESIGNER

Top Boy? More like Top Girl! Meet the incredible women behind the Netflix series