Originally posted on www.gailymail.co.uk
It was announced recently that the BBC had received around 500 complaints in relation to a sex scene between the television show’s main character Captain Jack Harkness (played by openly gay actor John Barrowman) and another man.
A number of the complaints were saying that the scenes were unsuitable for children. Now the last time I checked, the show is broadcast after the 9pm watershed (which was introduced so children wouldn’t be exposed to scenes of a sexual nature), therefore allowing the display of such things as sex on screen. So the real question is why are these children watching the programme? Surely the parents should know what to expect and therefore prevent their children from watching – it’s as simple as that.
What is truly annoying about this whole situation is that during a previous episode of Torchwood there was a sex scene shown between one of the lead characters Rex and a woman – were there any complaints about that? As far as I am aware there were not. So why do people find it acceptable to allow their children access to straight sex on screen but as soon as it’s two men all hell breaks loose and it is deemed as ‘disgusting’ and ‘irrelevant’?
A number of people have deemed these scenes ‘pointless’ and as I mentioned earlier ‘irrelevant to the plot.’ But why is a gay sex scene between the lead character and a male love interest, who later goes on to become a key part in the storyline, irrelevant and a sex scene between a man and woman, which could have been left out in all fairness, be deemed acceptable? It makes absolutely no sense what so ever.
As a big fan of Torchwood I can understand why the sex scene was included in the show – it not only further develops the character of Jack, but also develops the plot line, but people don’t seem to see this as they are too blinded by the fact that two men have just kissed. Believe me it does happen. Which makes me wonder, if Jack were having sex with a woman, would there have been a commotion? Probably not as these fans have already proved they have no issue with two straight people having sex on screen.
The BBC has come forward and defended its actions for showing the scene, explaining to the narrow-minded fans that allow their children to watch TV after 9pm, that the show was on after the watershed, so therefore such scenes should be expected. The BBC has also stated that it aims to depict sexual relationships in an honest, realistic way, which they have done, and good on them for defending their actions. However they did edit down a sex scene earlier on in the series as they deemed it too explicit for UK audiences, which I find absolutely ridiculous considering the scene was aired in full on American television, and we all know their rules on what can and can’t be be seen on TV compared to over here. So if it’s good enough for America, why isn’t it good enough for the UK?
This is only the latest example in an ongoing apparent attack on gays on screen. Recently there was a huge debate in the media about there being too many gay characters in UK soaps, so obviously Eastenders and Coronation Street were in the firing line then. But now it looks as though some UK television viewers are just out to attack everything gay on TV, I mean 12 years ago Queer as Folk aired in the UK and was shocking but I honestly thought audiences had come a long way since then and now accepted gay people, but apparently not.
The perceived acceptance of us gays by some in society is a case of “I don’t care if they are gay, but I just don’t want to see it.” Well this is what I gather from the attack on television anyway. But guess what, gay people do exist and we deserve just as much exposure in the society we live in as straights. I mean if someone complained about a black person on television there would be uproar, but it seems that it’s still ‘open season’ where gay people are concerned.
It looks as though we still have a long way to go before people accept us on television, but I’m giving a big thumbs-up to both Torchwood and the BBC for sticking to their guns and defending something that deserves a place on TV and in society.
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