'I was scared after watching': new play tackles online porn's impact on children

Drama created after Tackroom Theatre teamed up with Barnardo's to conduct the largest piece of research ever done into the subject

There's no holding back in the rehearsal room, with talk of sex, incest porn and bondage. One musical number has a chorus about masturbating. It is funny, revealing and deeply troubling. The play, Why Is the Sky Blue? (Or How to Make Slime), is based on interviews with 10,000 people aged between six and 22, about the effects of pornography on their lives. Its title comes from the children's search-engine questions, which included "Am I gay?" and "How big is my penis?"

The cast members are drawn from the same age group as the interviewees and the show includes songs, verbatim experiences and improvised conversations. One of the young people says that, after stumbling across pornography online: "I didn't even want to look at my own [genitals]. I was scared after watching." Another comments: "It has affected my mental health and the way I feel about myself, the way I speak to girls."