Netflix’sJoyfocused on the painstaking work involved in developing IVF and how fundamental Jean Purdy’s contribution was, but little was shared about Purdy’s futureafter Louise Joy Brown’s birth. By adopting Jean’s perspective,Joywas clear in its intent to give back credit to Jean Purdy for the development of IVF together with Patrick Steptoe and Robert Edwards. It did so by simultaneously showing Jean’s entrenched involvement in the project and focusing on her personal life, especially how continuing with her research effectively led her to be ostracized by her community because of her work being viewed as immoral.
Joy’s resolution to let Jean Purdy be remembered for developing IVF just as much as Robert Edwards and Patrick Steptoe matched Edwards’ efforts in life, as he indefatigably campaigned to let her be publicly recognized for the discovery. While Steptoe and Edwards’ contributions were already honored with a blue plaque outside Kershaw’s Hospital, Purdy’s name wasn’t added to the plaque until 2015. While it might have taken longer for the public at large to celebrate Purdy for the role she played,her work spoke for itself, both in her scientific publications and the babies whose conception Purdy’s work made possible.
Joy 2024 Cast & Real-Life Character Comparison Guide
The 2024 movie Joy features a talented cast that helps recreate the story and impact of one of the biggest medical breakthroughs in history.
Jean Purdy Co-Founded Bourn Hall Clinic With Patrick Steptoe & Robert Edwards In 1980
Bourn Hall Was The World’s First IVF Clinic
Joyreveals at the end how two babies were born as a result of Steptoe, Edwards and Purdy’s research, Louise in 1978 and Alastair in 1979. However,Jean Purdy helped over 500 babies be conceived via IVF treatment(via Bourn Hall) after Louise and Alastair’s births. The success of Edwards, Steptoe and Purdy’s research prompted them to continue to work together, but the NHS refused to support the service. This led them to look for a way to create a private clinic around Cambridge.Purdy scouted the Jacobean manor house that eventually became the world’s first IVF clinic, Bourn Hall.
Purdy led Bourn Hall as technical director from 1980, helping it launch its fertility services.
Joy’s true storyshared at the end of the movie focused on the lack of recognition for Purdy’s work, but her focus on IVF didn’t stop after the research. Indeed, Purdy led Bourn Hall as technical director from 1980, helping it launch its fertility services and “turn the science into a robust medical treatment.”Purdy co-authored 26 academic papers on IVF between 1970 and 1985, making her contributions to the field always out in the open, despite her not being actively celebrated.
Jean Purdy Died In 1985 At Age 39
Purdy Continued To Work At Bourn Hall Until Her Death
TheNetflix based on a true story movieJoynonetheless revealedJean Purdy died young, at 39.Diagnosed with a malignant melanoma, Purdy continued to work during her illness at Bourn Hall, where a room was arranged for her so that she could still be part of the team and receive guests, until her death on July 05, 2025. 12 million babies have been estimated to be born thanks to IVF since the research detailed inJoy, making Purdy’s lasting legacy one going well beyond her academic achievements.
Source:Bourn Hall
Joy
Joy (2024) is a film directed by Ben Taylor, focusing on the challenges faced by a nurse, a scientist, and a surgeon as they confront societal and institutional resistance in their pioneering effort to achieve the world’s first test tube baby, Louise Joy Brown.
