The BBC hidden gem fans can't stop binge-watching dubbed 'scarier than Black Mirror' that will leave you terrified of your smartphone
Horror fans have been left hooked by a BBC hidden gem that will leave you terrified of your smartphone.
Red Rose follows a group of Bolton teenagers as they fall under the control of a mobile phone app with sinister powers.
The series starts with a spine-tingling scene in which a terrified teenager falls to her death after being hounded by a high-tech home security and entertainment system acting on its own accord. At one point a ghostly figure appears.
After the young woman is found dead, a shot of her phone screen shows she was using an app called Red Rose.
The rest of the drama takes place six months later and centres around six friends who are looking forward to a summer of fun after finishing their GCSEs - but things are derailed when Roch (Isis Hainsworth) downloads the same app the original teen was haunted by.
More relevant than ever given the rise of AI and new social media, Red Rose has recently found a renewed audience with many taking to Rotten Tomatoes to praise the show and brand it 'scarier than Black Mirror'.
Horror fans have been left hooked by a BBC hidden gem that will leave you terrified of your smartphone
Red Rose follows a group of Bolton teenagers as they fall under the control of a mobile phone app with sinister powers
A post-GCSE summer is derailed when Roch (Isis Hainsworth) downloads the Red Rose app and is haunted by visions of her absent mother walking through the woods
One stunned viewer said: 'I enjoyed it for the premise, a good young cast, the ubiquitous small town UK scenery and community. It did get slow at times, and even felt like it was all over at one point with half the episodes to go.
'But on the whole, it was entertaining. Quite a lot of unrealistic moments, but I think what made it most frightening was how manipulative and harmful social media can be to teenage mental health. I'm never getting my kids a smartphone.'
Another added: 'This show has Black Mirror vibes. Chilling, and creepy, and sadly realistic.'
A third posted: 'If you love black mirror this is the series for you… i am a horror buff and this series left me thinking and on edge
Another said: 'Exceptionally clever, well-directed and acted. Works both as a plot-driven suspense film and as an atmospheric commentary on technological voyeurism. Requires a little poetic license and gets a little 'Scooby-Dooish' at parts but the writers anticipate and meet this criticism head on.
One gobsmacked fan posted: 'I loved it... loved the music, the plot, the acting! 100% recomendable!
A sixth added: 'LOVE this. Its intriguing, intelligent premise comes across as fresh even though it's not unique. The intrigue enhances the thrill and suspense throughout, and the provenance of locations and local talent were great choices.
'Its raw and roughly-hewn editing help keep this rooted to the Boltonian landscape - literally, and in the sense of community and shared experiences of the families. YA Horror with a toe dipping into a pool of Fantasy.'
Red Rose has recently found a renewed audience with many taking to Rotten Tomatoes to praise the show and brand it 'scarier than Black Mirror'
And another posted: 'The story ended up being somewhat plausible which was good, it runs at a nice pace (no padding), and all the characters were watchable. There were also some nicely spooky moments in at as well. A good watch.'
In the show, teenager Roch, who has to help her hard-working father care for her younger twin sisters, begins to receive messages from the Red Rose app, asking her to reveal more about her life and setting her small tasks.
She performs a spell in her bedroom and the lights in the house, which had switched off because there was no money in the metre, suddenly turn on. A dress she couldn't afford mysteriously appears outside her front door.
But there are also hints of something more sinister. The phone ignores a call from Wren, her best friend, and later rewrites a well-intentioned text into one full of malice.
Later, it shows her visions of her absent mother walking through the woods that chills her to her core.
When she refuses to carry out one of the tasks set by the app - kissing her friend Noah at a party - a video of her collecting food at a food bank is mysteriously beamed onto the TV in the middle of the room.
Slowly, her life begins to fall apart as she loses herself to the app. Friends fall out, secrets are exposed and Roch is forced into the app's twisted game. Soon her friends also fall into its web and it wreaks havoc on their lives.
In the show, Roch, who has to help her hard-working father care for her younger twin sisters, begins to receive messages from the Red Rose app, asking her to reveal more about her life
The series starts with a spine-tingling scene where a teenager falls to her death after being hounded by a high-tech home security and entertainment system acting on its own accord
Later Roch performs a spell in her bedroom and the lights in the house, which had switched off because there was no money in the metre, suddenly turn on
The teen's life begins to fall apart as she falls into the control of Red Rose, which seemingly knows every detail about her life
The show is also a warning about the damage social media can cause.
'For young people, your phone is always there, it’s like an extension of your arm,' Isis said in an interview. 'Everything is on your phone, and that includes social media which can have a really horrible side to it.
'Red Rose is a warning about the bad things that can go on there, and are going on.
'With phones, if there’s bullying it can follow you everywhere. You’re not safe if you go home. Even in your bedroom it can get you.'
Red Rose is available to watch on BBC iPlayer
