Gay Aliens and Queer Folk, by Emily Garside - Nicola
As someone who doesn’t read a lot of non-fiction books (unless I really, really have to) I have to say I enjoyed being immersed into the fantastic world of Russell T Davies, looking under the skin of his most famous works and viewing them in the stark reality of the social climate at the time. It is fascinating to see the acceptance of LGBTQ+ representation on television grow over a relatively short time frame and how (embarrassingly) a lot of the realities of the queer world were hidden from people.
The book follows the decades of his career, starting by reminiscing all of those wonderful childhood programmes like Playschool, Children’s Ward and, of course, Dr Who; then moving through the decades to Queer as Folk, Cucumber and, more recently, It’s a Sin. Works that really opened the door to LGBTQ+ representation on mainstream television. This book provides a holistic and honest view of how the programmes were received, and more importantly, what the impact of these shows were. I am honestly unsure of where we would been in terms of queer representation on TV, if Davies had not been so instrumental in breaking down barriers in the 90s.
You learn that even though there is a lot of joy in Davies’s work, there is also the darker side: someone always dies. This, I have learned, is an attribute that Davies brings to all of his work, bringing audiences from the most fantastical fictional worlds, into a stark reality that gives them an essential lesson, or at least an opportunity to reflect on their own life. The Dr [Who] can’t save everyone.
Russell T Davies is a pioneer, and before reading this book, I hadn’t quite realised how much of his work had infiltrated its way into my life. Emily Garside has done a wonderful job in capturing the true beauty of his work, while also, in some respects, making me realise how desperately far we have to go in terms of having a full spectrum of queer representation on our television screens. This book is a celebration of a wonderful human and his impact on so many lives.
You can treat this book almost like a series of essays, picking up the chapters in any order. Whilst there is a sense of narrative and chronology throughout the book, each chapter has its own focus and message. So if you think, ‘I like Russell T Davies, but do I want to read a whole book about him?’ pick out the chapters that spark your interest first. For me it was Know Your history: It’s A Sin and Queering History at the BBC: A very English scandal. I know that you will be hooked and inspired to read the rest.
If you are a fan of LGBTQ+ television then I highly recommend this book. It’s fun and informative, with enough passion to make you want to go and march in a pride parade, thanking the world for Russell T Davies flying the rainbow flag for a long as he has.
Nicola
