Abhiroop Das
Created by Sharon Horgan, HBO’s ‘Youth‘ is a romantic comedy series that follows Alex, who is newly 50 and trying to figure out her next chapter in what she calls her “sandwich years.” As she navigates this midlife crisis, however, professional and family responsibilities also creep up, making things all the more challenging. A lead literary agent at The Laville Agency, Alex often finds herself staring at, analyzing, and commenting on the stories written by others, for other people. Somewhere in the process, Alex’s own life gets lost in the details, but this time, she is ready to retake control. As we embark on this renewed hero’s journey alongside her, The Laville Agency remains in the background, providing shape to her life in all its shades, good or bad.
The Laville Agency is a Fictional Take on the Literary World From a Woman’s Perspective
The Laville Agency is a fictional literary agency created by Sarah Simmonds and Sharon Horgan for the world of ‘Youth.’ Not only is it not based on any specific real-life agency or publishing house, but Horgan has also revealed that it was not even a part of the original conceptualization of the story. In a conversation with Radio Times, she revealed that the character of Alex had been in development for several years, and that she “hadn’t figured out the literary agency of it.” Horgan eventually decided that Alex needed a workplace, and the literary agency “came along much later.” That said, it doesn’t mean that the agency is removed from realism either, as it ultimately draws from its creators’ real-world sensibilities.
When Horgan began co-writing the show and coming up with The Laville Agency, she was relatively new to the literary and publishing world. This meant not only conducting extensive research in the field but also drawing on her own experience working with talent agents for roughly two decades. While speaking with the Los Angeles Times, Horgan explained that she wanted to place her character in “one of those jobs that women especially give everything to,” while also managing family responsibilities. It is these creative interests that inform The Laville Agency’s design as a women-centric publishing house.
A Historic Building in London is Transformed Into the Agency For the Show
Another thing Sharon Horgan noticed during her research was that the literary world was a relatively underused setting for TV, and she wanted to change that. While there are a handful of shows that pull the curtains back on the industry, such as ‘Younger,’ the actor and her team wanted to shine a light on its more mundane and challenging aspects. To make The Laville Agency feel as authentic as possible, Horgan attended a women’s literary award show and began exploring contemporary trends in the writing scene, such as the hybrid genre “romantasy,” which combines romance and fantasy narratives and is integrated into ‘Youth.’
While The Laville Agency is not based on any real-life literary agency, it is filmed in a real, historically significant location. The Old Sessions House, located on 22 Clerkenwell Green in London, serves as Alex’s in-universe workplace, adding to the show’s overall style and aesthetic. The iconic building, also known as the Middlesex Sessions House, was constructed in the late 18th century and has its own literary connection, serving as a major setting in ‘Oliver Twist’ by Charles Dickens. As of writing, the building remains a favorite for filming and TV productions, and can also be spotted in ‘I Believe in You’ and ‘Love, Honor and Obey.’ In ‘Youth,’ it gets reimagined as an integral part of the story, but ultimately, The Laville Agency remains an invented construct.
Read More: Where is HBO’s Youth Filmed? All Shooting Locations
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