Calamity is hot and sweaty and noisy and just a little bit fucked up in all the best ways.
A Calamity party is a secret party held by the upperclassmen in an ever-changing location. They share these locations by flagging them with black ribbons hung from trees or other significant place markers near the party. Attendees much use the ribbons and decode a secret phrase to find the party.
Season 1[]
Episode 1[]
Pip is walking Barney in the woodland when she takes note of the numerous black ribbons hung from the tree branches. In the center of the ribbons is a small shack complete with a ratty mattress and names carved into the walls. She recognizes one of the names as Andie. She spots a blonde jogger and takes after her, ultimately finding more trees with ribbons tied to the branches. Becca Bell greets Barney and, seeing Pip's surprise, assures her that people always get them confused.
Episode 3[]
Pip tells her friends she wants to attend a Calamity party. This surprises Cara as this is out of character for Pip. Connor calls it "a lot" out of character, while Lauren's excited to attend her first Calamity. She's been wanting to go since year nine. She doesn't want to go to film school without going to a proper party - plus, Ant will be there, which Cara teases her about. Lauren turns the tables and says Ruby Foxcroft will also be there. Lauren knows there's a Calamity at the start of every term. Connor knows people like them won't get invited, with Zach adding it's infamously debauched.
Pip, Cara, and Lauren head to the library to do a deep dive on socials for the location of the Calamity party and how to gain access. Lauren gets distracted by videos of Ant. Pip accidentally likes Becca Bell's post about a former Calamity party. They continue their search as Pip reveals that black ribbons are a clue. Lauren finds a picture of a black ribbon with the caption "5 more sleeps", meaning there's a party this Saturday. Naomi texts Cara that the location of the Calamities she attended was shared at midday the Monday before the party. That would be about now.
Pip borrows Dylan's phone under false pretenses to find the code word for the location of the party - black banana bears. Pip and Cara huddle together during English class. She's tried it as a numerical code in case they're coordinates and an anagram if it's an address, but doesn't have any luck. Elliot doesn't think their homework looks like English. Cara lists that it's a code-breaking game and they have to use "black banana bears" to find a location. He solves it as What3Words and Pip calls him a genius. She puts it in her phone and it pings in the center of the woods.
Lauren, Pip, and Cara walk to the party and follow the ribbons to a cave entrance. Pip is looking forward to pina coladas, feeling a bit dejected when she learns there won't be any. They enter the cave and follow the tunnels to the center, where a party is raging inside. Dozens of people are dancing, drinking, smoking, and making out. Lauren brings over drinks for herself and Lauren. They decide to find the boys next.
The girls come across a group, including Connor and Zach, who are playing spin the bottle. Connor leaves with one of the girls he lands on. Ruby spots Cara and invites her to dance. Dylan invites Pip and Lauren to play, and Pip decides to join after seeing him snort some drugs. Dylan's bottle lands on Pip and she follows him into another room. She feigns interest in scoring drugs so he'll introduce her to his deal, Howie Bowers, who is sitting in cave in the back of the tunnels with a group of users. Pip leverages Dylan's outstanding debt to Howie in exchange for information about Andie Bell's involvement in dealing drugs for him. She gets scared off by his remark about potentially killing Andie, despite her knowing this is a farce. Outside the den, Dylan gropes Pip until Jesse Walker intervenes and stops him. She escorts Pip back to the crowd, but the newcomer leaves the party without talking to her friends.
Meanwhile, Lauren and Cara have a good time dancing together and with others. Cara, notably, bonds with her crush Ruby Foxcroft.
Notable Parties[]
March 2019[]
Attendees[]
- Andie Bell
- Sal Singh
- Max Hastings
- Naomi Ward
- Becca Bell (in 2019)
- Pippa Fitz-Amobi (in 2024)
- Cara Ward (in 2024)
- Lauren Gibson (in 2024)
- Ruby Foxcroft (in 2024)
- Dylan (in 2024)
- Howie Bowers (several times)
- Jesse Walker (several times)
Notes and Trivia[]
- In the books, the calamity parties took places in people's houses. In the series, they were shot inside the Redcliffe Caves in Bristol. Holly Jackson was very pleased with this change, as she liked the idea of the parties being somewhere different and cooler then a house. The usage of ribbons to mark the locations were implemented after the caves were written.
- The word "calamity" literally means "an event causing great and often sudden damage or distress; a disaster" which correlates greatly with both Pip and Becca's experiences at the parties, as Pip was sexually harassed was Becca was raped.
Gallery[]
