Queer as Folk (UK TV series)
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Queer as Folk is a 1999 British television series that chronicles the lives of three gay men let loose in Manchester's gay village around Canal Street. Both Queer as Folk and Queer as Folk 2 were written by Russell T. Davies, who was also responsible for a later gay-related drama, Bob and Rose.
Queer as Folk was produced by the independent Red Production Company for Channel 4, which had previously shown its openness for gay-themed material with made-for-TV movies such as Beautiful Thing, which was later also given a cinema release. The title of the programme comes from a dialect expression from some parts of Northern England, "there's nought [colloquially pronounced 'nowt'] so queer as folk", meaning "there's nothing as strange as people". Davies had originally titled the series this, although at the suggestion of Channel 4 executives for a period during its development and pre-production it was known as Queer as Fuck, before it reverted to the former name.Davies, Russell T. Audio commentary on the 2003 "Definitive Collector's Edition" DVD boxed set of Queer as Folk. (VCD0308).
Characters and plot
The producers say that Queer as Folk, although superficially a realistic depiction of gay urban life in the 1990s, is meant as a fantasy, and that Stuart, Vince, and Nathan are not so much characters as gay male archetypes.
The main characters are Stuart Alan Jones (Aidan Gillen), who is apparently trying to have sex with every male in Greater Manchester (and appears to be succeeding), his long-time friend Vince Tyler (Craig Kelly), who has a bit of a crush on Stuart and less luck regarding men, and finally 15-year-old Nathan Maloney (Charlie Hunnam), who is new to the gay scene but not exactly lacking in self-confidence.
Stuart, an advertising executive, is depicted as possessing intrinsic power, able to bend anything to his will (via non-supernatural means), even able to prematurely ejaculate to dissuade Nathan from thinking he is worthy of worship. Stuart's principal characteristic is that he does whatever he wants. He detonates a car belonging to his friend's mother (after the mother does something particularly evil to her son); he invites Vince's female work colleague (who fancies closeted Vince) to Vince's party and then introduces Vince's boyfriend (in order to make Vince hate him so that Vince can fall in love with his boyfriend); and he test-drives a car through a showroom window (when the car dealer makes a homophobic remark).
Some of the minor supporting characters, such as Hazel, and Alexander, are given depth as well, with Hazel getting all the best lines. Part of the success of the series was due to the way in which the writer deliberately left some things unsaid, allowing the story to continue around them.
In the second series, the tone became somewhat more serious, with each of the main characters having to make hard choices concerning their future. But in the end, things turn out fine for everyone: Nathan is left behind as the future "king" of Canal Street, while Vince gets to ride off with his beloved Stuart into the sunset, inexplicably ending up in America. The ending was unpopular with those who wanted a more concrete and conventional resolution to the central love story.
Cast
- Aidan Gillen as Stuart Alan Jones
- Craig Kelly as Vince Tyler
- Charlie Hunnam as Nathan Maloney
- Denise Black as Hazel Tyler
- Carla Henry as Donna Clark
- Antony Cotton as Alexander Perry
- Andy Devine as Bernard Thomas
- Peter O'Brien as Cameron Roberts
- Esther Hall as Romey Sullivan
- Saira Todd as Lisa Levene
- Jason Merrells as Phil Delaney
- Caroline O'Neill as Janice Maloney
- Jonathon Natynczyk as Dazz Collinson
- Ben Maguire as Christian Hobbs
- Caroline Pegg as Rosalie Cotter
Responses
The first series caused controversy in the UK because many conservatives were shocked at the depiction of a 15-year-old engaging in homosexual acts. The explicit nature of the sex scenes also caused controversy; in particular the first episode featured an extensive sex scene involving masturbation, rimming, and semen. However, the first series became a triumphant ratings success, despite its late-night timeslot and the withdrawal of its main sponsor Beck's.The huge success of the first series led Channel 4 to commission a second. Although Davies initially intended to write a second full series, he decided that there was not much story left to tell, and instead finished the story with a two-part TV special, Queer as Folk 2, screened in 2000 to slightly-lower viewing figures despite an earlier timeslot. This time the explicit sex scenes were mostly absent, a decision applauded by people who had previously criticized the series.
Style
The screenplay is notable for its well-written monologues, including some that are commonly regarded as among the best scenes in television. For example, when at his parents' house, and threatened by his nephew (Thomas) with being outed, Stuart says, in response to his father's request for help with DIY (to pass some nails)- Stuart: We don't do hammers, or nails, or saws. We do joints and screws, but that's different.
- Stuart's mother: Who does?
- Stuart: Queers. Because I'm queer. I'm gay. I'm homosexual. I'm a poof, I'm a poofter, I'm a ponce. I'm a bumboy, battyboy, backside artist, bugger, I'm bent. I am that arsebandit. I lift those shirts. I'm a faggot-ass, fudge-packing, shit-stabbing uphill gardener. I dine at the downstairs restaurant, I dance at the other end of the ballroom. I'm Moses and the parting of the red cheeks. I fuck and am fucked. I suck and am sucked. I rim them and wank them, and every single man's had the fucking time of his life. And I am not a pervert. If there's one twisted bastard in this family, it's this little blackmailer here. So congratulations, Thomas. I've just officially outed you.
- What, come back to this? The ghetto: alleyways stinking of piss, beggars in every doorway, straights and students coming to look at the freak show, and all the idiots saving all week, saving their stupid money from their stupid idiot jobs so they can come and shoot their load with some stranger. And just you look after it, this stupid little street. It's the middle of the world. Cos on a street like this, every single night, anyone can meet anyone. And every single night, someone meets someone.
- Stuart: Give him (Cameron) six months and he'll be able to name all the Doctor Whos, in order......William Hartnell, Patrick Troughton, Jon Pertwee, Tom Baker, Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy.
- Vince: What about Paul McGann?
- Both Together: Paul McGann doesn't count!
Spin-offs and remakes
A follow-up, spin-off series, Misfits, was initially commissioned by Channel 4. The series would have followed the characters of Hazel, Alexander, Donna (who was absent from the 2nd series due to scheduling commitments) and Bernard from the original series, while introducing new characters. Although Davies developed draft scripts for four episodes and storylines for a further twenty-two, the series was cancelled before it went into pre-production, along with The Second Coming, which was later commissioned and broadcast by ITV1.
As a result of Channel 4's decision, Davies pulled out of a deal that would have seen a series of Queer as Folk short stories published on the broadcaster's website, and vowed never to work with Channel 4 again.
Driven by the success of the British version, American cable channel Showtime made a version set in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, still under the title Queer as Folk, although deviating extensively from the original's plot.
The US version was criticized by some fans of the British series who saw the cast as excessively glamorous and who thought the original's quirky comedy had been lost. It was also criticized for toning down the darker elements of the original; for example, Phil (named Ted in the US version), who died in one of the original's early episodes, does not die in the US version, and Stuart (named Brian in the US version) changes from a personification of power, into a personification only of sex. In addition, the US version emphasises more the sexual aspects of the plot (including numerous sex scenes), in an apparent appeal to ratings.
See also
External links
References
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