PHASE 03: TIME
LGBT+ History Month has one week left. So, before we round it out, let's take a look back at what history is all about: Time. LGBT+ people have existed forever, but stories showcasing LGBT+ stories are scarce. Here, framed as before by two BBC Queers monologues, are some of the greatest hits.
Not all of these stories take place in the past, but all have a connection to the theme of Time.
QUEERS - The Perfect Gentleman
It’s the late 1920s. Bobby is out on the town, looking for a woman, preferably a wife, to comfort. Bobby loves his life and his reputation but is hiding a secret that could ruin his lifestyle forever. Bobby is a woman, and a lesbian.
BBC iPlayer:
Requiem
The witch trials of the early 1600s saw communities pull themselves apart from paranoia and prejudice. For young Evelyn, trying to hide her fledgling lesbian relationship from her father, the stakes couldn’t be higher.
Where to Watch:
The Danish Girl
For every piece of progress, there is a First. Departing British shores and heading for Copenhagen in the 1920s, The Danish Girl is the story of Lili Elbe, the first transgender person in the world to undergo surgery to change her gender.
Where to Watch:
Gentleman Jack
It’s a man’s world in 1830s Yorkshire. When Anne Lister inherits her uncles estate, she decides she’s going to run it, and when Anne Lister decides she’s going to do or have something, there’s no undoing it. Upon returning to Halifax to run the estate, she meets young Ann Walker, and Miss Lister wants her.
Where to Watch:
All of Us Strangers
Adam lives alone. He writes alone. He eats alone. All he’s known is being alone. But when he starts writing about his long-dead parents, his research takes him back to his family home. Arriving, he finds his parents still live there, preserved as they were in life. As Adam reconnects with his past, he learns he can love, and has his sights set on his one neighbour, Harry.
Where to Watch:
Man inan Orange Shirt
A tale of two times, and one truth. As a young woman, Flora is courted by Michael Berryman, a captain during the second world war. Years later, she helps her grandson, Adam, get settled into Michael’s old cottage. She knew about Michaels love affair with his childhood friend and fellow Captain, Thomas March. Feelings long repressed, they resurface when she discovers Adam, her only grandchild, is hiding the same secret.
Where to Watch:
Olly Alexander: Growing Up Gay
Times have changed. Attitudes have changed, but the struggle for LGBT+ people to simply exist hasn’t gone away. Pop star Olly Alexander looks back on his own life to see how far we’ve come, and how far we still have to go.
Where to Watch:
Des
A peak back to Phase 02, and the murders of Dennis Nilsen. Set in the 1980s, this series offers an insight into how, despite changing times, the attitudes of institutions are harder to correct.
Where to Watch:
Philomena
Years ago, Philomena was forced to give up her child, born out of wedlock, by the church. Now, she wants to find him again. With the help of a journalist, she sets out to find her long lost son.
Where to Watch:
Four Lives
After the events of Des almost 30 years prior, the sudden appearance of multiple boys bodies in close proximity to each other should pull on all the resources of progress within British policing. When it doesn’t, it falls to the families of the victims to pull the police out of their historic prejudice and find the killer before he strikes again.
Where to Watch:
Supernova
Time begins, and time comes to an end. Diagnosed with early onset dementia, time for Tusker is running out. Desperate to make every last moment last, Tusker and his partner, Sam, head to the Lake District for one last family reunion.
Where to Watch:
50 Years Legal
Progress is a fight. It’s dangerous, it’s bold, and for some, fraught with risk. This documentary charts the 50 years since decriminalisation and tells the stories of those that stood on the front lines to ensure the course of progress never went backwards.
Where to Watch:
QUEERS - Something Borrowed
History is sweeping, and change is abstract. For Steve, preparing for the wedding day he never imagined he would have, change couldn’t be more personal. BBC iPlayer:
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