This article reflects on Steve McQueen's Small Axe series, exploring its importance in placing black narratives at the centre of history and on prime time television. It locates it within the context of a longer history of struggles over black representation and misrepresentation in mainstream British media. Naidoo draws on her own experiences to discuss the very slow progress towards diversity in the cultural life of Britain. She pays tribute to pioneers who campaigned for a more representative media in Britain. What made these films especially important was the space given to pleasure, presence and collective joy.