Imagining a world where black people are in a position of power and influence, free from racism and the structural barriers that limit us is something many of us think about.

To be in a world where our needs and wants, hopes and desires are met first, and the very essence of who we are works to our benefit – what would that world look like?

Well Noughts + Crosses allows us to look through the keyhole of author Malorie Blackman’s imagination, into a world where the tables have turned and it’s a story which has continued to enamour readers since it was published almost two decades ago. 

The dystopian series follows the stories of Sephy (played by Masali Baduzai in the BBC adaptation), a Cross and member of the black ruling class, and Callum (played by Jack Rowan), a Nought and a white member of the underclass, and how their former childhood friendship grows into love but faces intense complications as they are divided by power and prejudice in a world that looks down on the intermingling of two different races and ultimately two different worlds.