Riot Women sums up everything wrong with the BBC

[IwantToRetire]

Riot Women, by Sally Wainwright, is not the first drama to challenge traditional gender roles in the name of female empowerment, but it really seems to hate men. The six-part series is ostensibly about how five menopausal women come together to make music and inspire each other to rise above the difficulties they face. But another way of seeing it is that it is six hours of prime-time television in which every male character is portrayed as (at best) hopelessly ineffectual and dishonest or (at worst) a psychopathic murderer and rapist, with not much in between.

what it does tell us is that, five years after being appointed as Director General, Tim Davie’s BBC is still, fundamentally, a place that sees such dramas as suitable for mainstream viewing, and that the ideas it promotes are essentially incontestable and inoffensive. Wainwright’s world view is indistinguishable from the BBC’s because they originate from the same set of values.

https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/riot-women-sums-up-everything-wrong-with-the-bbc/ and at https://archive.is/iEEB9

I wondered whether SW had her arm twisted by the BBC ....

Agree, ticking boxes, same as the inevitable mixed race family. As an old woman myself, disliked the way they were portrayed as demented (Anne Reid) or "quirky" (Sue Johnston). We can be normal and intelligent and still interesting.

It is brilliant!
Humour, pathos, tongue-in-cheek combined with serious social commentary. A genius piece of writing and acting ...

Transwomen in changing rooms, sports etc I agree with you but feeling that it has spoiled your experience because they are playing a woman a majority female cast...

Isn't that cutting off your nose to spite your face?

Suszanne Moore and Hadley Freeman at the Guardian
They got kicked off the Guardian for precisely those views.

Yes, they could have been in the band and shown their wisdom - they just tottered around giving knowing looks.

Normal IS quirky, demented, chilled, funny, bonkers, grumpy, timid, happy, sad and a thousand other personality characteristics. Intelligent can be added to all of those types of women.

I liked the idea of a show for women by women, but this is not that. I don't particularly agree with the Spectator but I didn't like it because it shoehorned in a trans character that distracted from the point. There was a long thread about the trans character on here that went on for over a week, which shows the point that that has taken over for what it is memorable for, with zero explanation as to why he is there or what he adds.

I'd love to know if SW wrote it as BBC portrayed or did they put their own spin on it, especially the casting of trans woman?

Yes, that would have been a much more interesting interview. I didn't understand the character at all or the need for it.

It seemed to be saying that although all of these crazy things happen to women, if you put on a spangly dress you as a man can still become one, but without all of the drama. Highlighted as the only "sane" character. I don't understand why this is the outcome of a programme about women.

It is a fictional drama using a transwoman in a minor role. That it sparked that level of distraction and debate speaks more about irrational hatred than perspective. Just like the person moaning about mixed race families up thread.

Miranda is just there. They are not taking over the band, they are literally a fill in.

@DuesToTheDirt

No comment from me on Riot Women as I haven't seen it. Someone said there's a trans woman in it singing about menopause - is that true, because it puts me right off giving it the time of day.

Erm, ok then - yeah, its all Miranda and their trans battles and how wonderful they are.... oh wait, they are there. and in a minor part, like others have said

Why is that the conclusion we have to come to? Many women didn't understand why a man who wants to be a woman can be in the band and shown as the only level headed character. As was said on the thread you wouldn't have someone who wants to be black made up like a minstrel in a show about African heritage.

Yeah, it tried hard but ultimately missed. If you look to an actual band of kickass menopausal women, Breeders spring to mind, they’re not playing dress up and singing about their lady parts but still producing brilliant, relevant music like they did in the nineties while being unashamedly middle aged women.

Also agree that not all the men were portrayed poorly. The draughtsman was treated badly by both the Mum and her horrible daughter and kept coming back for more.

Still, a well meaning miss is better than nothing and it’s a starting point for more visibility for older women.

The point is there are journalists all over that political spectrum who are sex realist, and increasingly some right wing feminists getting some airtime whose position ISN’T default “freedom for women is being able to look after children as God intended.”

Nuance goes all ways, isn’t it grand?

I think Riot women is fabulous television and it isn't about women lolling about Sofas i couldn't finish reading that article because "the spectator " it is all about " the poor men" anyway back to Riot women and the portrayal of men, they are showing flawed men and men who refuse to tolerate women. It is a great representation of what women encounter without showing men as complete "monsters" well except the police man , I am only on episode 3 and really enjoying it.

It's actually embarrassing that he is moaning that the main characters were all women and that the men were just stereotypes. This is about eighty percent of films produced. Even children's characters are hugely weighted towards bejng boys with some token girls in.

The trans character was a very minor role - just a backing singer in the band. I wasn't entirely sure whether the character was supposed to be trans, or whether it was a trans actor playing a female role, iyswim.

The series was incredibly dark. It was sold as some kind of jolly drama about a bunch of "angry" middle-aged women setting up a rock band, but in fact there were relatively few scenes with the rock band rehearsing or performing. Instead we had storylines about the gang rape of a 12-year old girl, domestic abuse, sexual harassment, the violent assault of a young female police officer and revenge porn. It's the sort of thing Andrea Dworkin might have come up with if she'd strayed into writing tv drama.

That is not the same, as well you know. Black and white minstrels shower were full of racist tropes it was not an homage to Black people.

This is a barely noticeable character, in a strong female led cast in a female written play. They were not up front and in our faces talking about highs and low of the menopause. If someone can't suspend belief on something so minor maybe they should watch fictional dramas. Trans women are entitled to exist, be employed, have families, access to health care etc. I don't have a problem with any transwoman that respects the boundaries of females.

Sex a protected characteristic. It is the same. I think the actual example was having a able bodied person pretending to be disabled in a band created for disabled people, this has the same feeling. It's distracting and will not go down well in history.

Trans actor was behind the bar was the child of the pub owner, unless they go on to be in the band,

Plenty of non disabled actors play disabled people, have you actually watched the programme?

Yes I have. There was no need to shoehorn a man in who wanted to be female.

I have not seen a show in the last 10 years with an able bodied person pretending to be disabled to join in a group activity. Or a person blacked up to be added into a show about race or culture. What decade do you live in?

If this was about a band with disabilities and the cast was in line with riot women it would still be a disabled leading cast with a minority abled bodied person acting as disabled.

If a drama doesn't allow the viewer to suspend belief, it's either not very good or the problem is the viewer...

My Left Foot has held up well, IMO.