Episodes
| Episode | Title | First Broadcast | Repeated | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Young Lives | 20160822 | 20210621 (BBC7) 20210622 (BBC7) | The stories of young Chinese lives, particularly young people born under the one-child policy of the 1980s, as they seek to negotiate the expectations of those around them - and their own inner desires for self-fulfilment. Dahai is a military child and a rebel, Fred is a daughter of the Party and Xiaoxiao grew up in the far north and longed to travel south. All were infants when the tanks rolled through Beijing in 1989 and none really know much about their country's recent past. But the way China develops in the future is very much something that will affect their lives - and their behaviour and decisions will affect ours. There are approximately 322 million Chinese aged between 16 and 30 - a group larger than the population of the USA and destined to have an unprecedented influence on global affairs in the coming years. The one-child policy has led to a generation of only children. There is intense competition for education and jobs, and a tug-of-war between cultural change and tradition, nationalism and the lures of the West. We know the headlines of their lives, but what of the details? |
| 02 | Education | 20160823 | 20210622 (BBC7) 20210623 (BBC7) | Dahai is a military child and a netizen, Fred is a daughter of the Party, Snail the son of struggling farmers, and Xiaoxiao grew up in the far north and longed to travel south. All were infants when the tanks rolled through Beijing in 1989 and none really know much about their country's recent past. In today's episode they endure the rigours of the Chinese education system and the pressure to get the exam grades which lead to college. There are approximately 322 million Chinese aged between 16 and 30 - a group larger than the population of the USA - and they are destined to have an unprecedented influence on global affairs in the coming years. |
| 03 | Meaning | 20160824 | 20210623 (BBC7) 20210624 (BBC7) | The Chinese youngsters search for more to life than the treadmill of exams and finding a job. They seek meaning in other realms - hipster fads, star signs, online gaming and religion. Dahai is a child of the military who grew up in a compound, Fred is a pampered daughter of the Party, Xiaoxiao grew up in the far north where her parents ran a fruit wholesalers, and Snail comes from a farming family and is the son of a rural migrant worker. All were infants when the tanks rolled through Beijing in 1989 and none really know much about their country's recent past. But the way China develops in the future is very much something that will affect their lives - and their behaviour and decisions will affect ours. China's 'one-child' generation of the 1980s are now turning 30. We follow four of them. |
| 04 | Finding Their Way | 20160825 | 20210624 (BBC7) 20210625 (BBC7) | Dahai, Fred, Snail and Xiaoxiao have graduated. Now they have to find their own way - a place to live, a job and ultimately a life partner. The pressure to marry is considerable - on both young men and women. Continuing the stories of young Chinese lives, particularly those born under the one-child policy of the 1980s, as they seek to negotiate the expectations of those around them and their own inner desires for self-fulfilment. Exploring the lives of a group of young Chinese, the 'one-child' generation of the '80s. |
| 05 LAST | Progress | 20160826 | 20210625 (BBC7) 20210626 (BBC7) | Rejoin the cohort in 2014 as they approach or turn 30 years old. Stable employment continues to preoccupy them, as does the question of when and how to start a family. Concluding the stories of young Chinese lives, particularly those born under the one-child policy of the 1980s, as they seek to negotiate the expectations of those around them and their own inner desires for self-fulfilment. |