Just finished "it's a sin"

[ThatFraggle]

Sobbing. I don't have anyone to tell in real life but I just wanted to say how much it moved me.

@Simonjt I've never heard anyone who's worked with or known RTD say anything but lovely things about him. I've had a very small amount of contact with him professionally and he was very helpful, kind and very humble. The man's a genius.

As for your criticism of QAF- Nathan's age was the whole point and a comment on the homosexual age of consent at the time, Section 28 and lots of other things that were and are entirely legitimate. QAF was a game changer and undoubtedly changed how we as a nation think about homosexuality in the mainstream media. I'd go as far as to say that without QAF gay rights and gay marriage wouldn't be where they are in the UK today.

Are people really comparing a gay man’s experience in the 80s to to covid? 🤨 ok then…

<sighs>

I didn't say it was a like for like situation. I said how people reacted to an unknown virus was similar. The panic, the overreaction, the hysteria. Often media driven.

No idea how it is 'insensitive' to compare the reactions in the 80s to those 2020.

Oh sorry, I was talking about Olly, not RTD.

Oh thank goodness @Simonjt - I was having a fit of the vapours.... love RTD and couldn't believe anyone doesn't!

I’m confused, have you tagged the wrong person, I haven’t said anything negative about anyone. Or am I just being a bit dim.

No.

People are comparing the fear factor that was at work. The isolation of patents. The media stirring up hysteria.

AIDS and covid are two very different diseases. But I do there there are some comparisons in the fear-mongering. I think you can compare the media coverage, and how people were left to die alone in hospitals. It's looking at the human emotions - rather than the diseases.

I also wasn’t impressed with RTD’s drunken monologue at an awards ceremony last year (think it was last year?) heavily criticising LGB Alliance for having a trans free organisation. Would he be sexually interested in a trans man? I think not.

Just picking up on this comment. Is this true?

So disappointing, if so.

I love Olly Alexander!

Russell’s speech was delivered on 14 October 2021 when he received his award for Its a Sin at the Attitude Awards.
Hope this link works.

Think another poster is confusing @Simonjt with me. I wasn’t impressed with Russell writing a series which implies that a 15 year old schoolboy having regular sex with older guys is a good thing. If it had been a 15 year old girl, it would have been slaughtered in the media.

Thanks for sharing that @AmadeustheAlpaca.

So according to RTD, gender is The Thing, then? Not sex?

He’s not ‘same sex’ attracted then? He’d have a relationship with a fully intact transman?

Yeah, right.

I couldn’t disagree more - she was an actress, she was a fierce friend and she made a choice to be part of the grassroots activism
she had an equal arc to the other characters imo

Aren’t you agreeing with that poster @Littlepinkstarsbyradish?

I dont know - something didn’t sit right with me about the way Jill was portrayed.

I am going to give the benefit of the doubt and assume it was because you can only do so much with the characters without detracting too much from the actual story….

But while Jill had her own career, and clearly dearly loved her friends, and played a critical early activist role…

She also didn’t have a single relationship of her own. Not even a kiss! Here are these other young people having the (sexual) time of their lives, and she gets nothing.

And on top of that, she cooks and delivers food for Gloria, cooks and washes up in the PP, administers Richie‘s medication. Not to mention being the one to do the research, ‘man’ the help line, comfort the sick and the dying. None of the lads did any of these menial-but-necessary tasks.

She’s a proxy mother. A proxy wife. That’s all women are good for - in the eyes of the lads, and of course RTD himself - was the uncomfortable take-away for me.

Clearly the actual Jill was absolutely fine with the portrayal - and I know the hashtag #bemorejill trended for a while in the wake of the show. But that message (essentially #bekind) was (is) very much directed towards the support people: women and girls.

Just my opinion, and I respect that others see it differently.

I felt the same about Jill. She was the personification of women 'being kind' and doing all the emotional and caring labour. She could easily have been written as a more rounded character with other friendships, a relationship, concerns about her career. The 'boys' could have picked up some of the emotional and caring labour scenes.
RTD is a talented writer and overall I enjoyed IaS but the female characters were underwritten.
tbh I was also surprised Doctor Who invited him back after all the alleged revelations about the toxic culture that flourished when he was previously a showrunner eg John Barrowman, Noel Clarke, the issues mentioned by Christopher Eccleston.

I thought it was truly powerful and binge watched it.I remember well how scared everyone was of the AIDS virus heterosexuals, bisexual and partners/spouses of those having multiple affairs. Because it lay dormant for so long it was not obvious in those who were sexually active that they even had it. Sufferers of AIDS were judged by the older generation and some parents who said it was some 'religious judgement' for their lifestyles. There were also those who knew they were positive but still didn't use condoms and passed it on regardless. It saddens me to think of all the lives lost to this awful disease that is now quite manageable it's heartbreaking. Please let's remember that many AIDS victims also lost their lives through receiving contaminated blood transfusions including a young man who I knew growing up who had haemophilia.

To be fair to Jill, she finds out some AIDS info when she speaks to her doctor about starring the contraceptive pill so she must have been planning some heterosexual relationships. However we do t see any evidence of theses relationships.

But even then, she makes some self-deprecating comment along the lines of ‘I can live in hope!’ as if actual sex is not on the cards.

Why not?!

Sex is very easy to come by when you’re an attractive 18YO, partying every other night, and who is obviously up for it (why else would she be on the pill?). The boys are all falling into bed, and she’s clearing up the empties… 😒

I dunno, just got the over-riding feeling that amazing as he is at portraying gay men and telling that story, RTD doesn’t really know how to write women….

And if I’m being really cynical, it could be argued that they just used her asking for the pill to demonstrate how supercilious and judgmental the medical establishment was towards people with AIDS / people simply looking for information, with that GP instantly shutting her down.

And I’m still massively disappointed to discover his plain hypocrisy re the TQ+ thing…

@tigger1001 Your post sums it up perfectly. I vividly remember what it was like, the adverts on tv, the fear of going to a club or pub, meeting someone and catching it through kissing even- there was so much fear and misinformation.

DH and I watched it first time around. We thought then and still do that it was a staggering piece of television. One of the best things we’ve ever seen.

But that is generally what happens isn't it? Women are in the caring roles the majority of the time. whether it is caring for children, caring for elderly parents, the disabled, paid carers it always tends to be women! Not debating the rights or wrongs of it just that that tends to e the reality ime

But even women in caring roles still have friends, family, jobs, etc. They have conversations that aren't all centred around the men in their life.

Plus even in the 80s men looked after their friends and were capable of dropping off some food or checking in on them, etc. Yy the burden of care tends to fall disproportionately on women but that doesn't mean women should be reduced to only being viewed as support humans for men.

"RTD is a talented writer and overall I enjoyed IaS but the female characters were underwritten.
tbh I was also surprised Doctor Who invited him back after all the alleged revelations about the toxic culture that flourished when he was previously a showrunner eg John Barrowman, Noel Clarke, the issues mentioned by Christopher Eccleston."

That would be the RTD who pretty much single handedly revived Doctor Who, which had been off screen since the 80s and had become a bit of a joke?Turned it into one of the most popular shows on TV and a global phenomenon?
After the disaster of Chris Chibnall's stint as show runner I should imagine that the producer would have begged him on bended knee to come back. Even Moffet's reign got a bit rubbish towards the end.

@CatticusFinch

I too love Olly Alexander.

I'm not denying what he achieved but I don't think that means you ignore the revelations from staff concerning the issues and attitudes on set.
Either RTD was a showrunner who didn't know what was happening with his talent, his supporting staff, and working practices on set. Or he did know but felt the glory of the show was more important than a safe working environment for staff.
Just because a workplace is creative and generates income, doesn't mean it can ignore staff wellbeing.

@tigger1001

I agree about the character of Ritchie, it was so easy to feel sad for poor sweet Colin but I think at the end you also felt sad for Ritchie. When his bravado was stripped away and I also thought he was quite brave. I loved the fact that Ash and Ritchie found their way back to each other.

I know from having commented at the time that I found this series really aggravating.

First of all focusing on an ever so cute young male behaving irresponsibly (and yes shown at the time of Covid when people were "obeying" the rules) was bizarre. But typical of a writer (as with many tv shows) who thinks a hero/ine who is just so charming but fucks up everyone else lives is something to admire. ie the sort of person that 10 people would drown trying to save and everyone would go on about how lovely the person saved was and ignore the 10 people who drowned.

As personified by a throw away remark in some cafe(?) about who were all those boring people dressed in black having a serious conversation (such a downer) and when being told they were the people who were actively campaigning and trying to educate about HIV / Aids just got a shrug.

A film about them would have been praiseworthy. But no. So boring to be doing the right thing and helping others.

And the women's roles. Talk about hand maidens. And of course the dreaded mother. All her fault.

I'm not saying the situation wasn't really terrible, but is this the best way to represent it.

But from such a reactionary male writer I'm not surprised.