When it came time to compile our Best of the Year piece two things struck me. The first was that wasn't one BIG show that resonated with people in the same way Normal People and I May Destroy You did in 2020 or It's a Sin and Mare of Easttown last year. The second was...
Coronation Street: is there a gay agenda?
by Chris Billett, guest blogging for thecustardtv There’s been talk again recently about the supposed 'gay agenda' of Coronation Street, from the usual suspects, in the usual places. It’s something that rears its ugly head every now and then when the press run out of...
Rick & Steve: The Happiest Gay Couple in All the World, E4
Did we like it? Loved it. This US import – an animation featuring Lego-like gay characters and lots of near-the-knuckle gags – is hilarious. What was good about it? • Rick and Steve make a lovely couple, despite their little plastic bodies and little round heads....
Consenting Adults, BBC4
Did we like it? A superbly acted, engrossing drama based on the real-life circumstances that led up to the legalisation of homosexuality, yet at times it savoured its own moral piety a little too much and some of the dialogue sounded like mechanical adversarial...
Little Britain Down Under, BBC1
Did we like it? Rather than being a peek behind the scenes at the writhing innards of the Little Britain phenomenon, it appeared that one layer was stripped away to reveal another stratum of performance. What was good about it? • Matt Lucas was clearly the most open...
How Gay Sex Changed The World, Channel 4
Did we like it? Following the controversial and unexpectedly bleak Clapham Junction, Channel 4's Gay Season continued with a more populist approach to the history and legacy of legal homosexuality. It took a bright, breezy and fun approach to challenging prejudices -...
Clapham Junction, Channel 4
Did we like it? Not much, to be honest. It was so full of people behaving towards each other in ways that no real person ever would that the stunning dramatic moments and stunning performances were left in the shadows. What was good about it? • Kevin Elyot, who wrote...
A Very British Sex Scandal, Channel 4
Did we like it? Channel 4 used to screen important programmes like this almost every night – now they come along only occasionally when there's a gap in the Big Brother coverage. So this drama-documentary to mark the 40th anniversary of the decriminalisation of...
Brothers & Sisters, Channel 4
Did we like it? As many of our favourite US imports have faded away or got a bit rubbish, we're so, so happy that there's a new show we can really get our teeth into. What was good about it? • So many great elements are pulled together into a compelling, gimmick-free...
Six Feet Under Series 5, Channel 4
Six Feet Under: A Coat of White Primer • The amusing little who'll-do-it drama in the Dead Body Of The Week segment. Andrea Kuhn was told by her therapist to tell everyone how she feels about them. Mother, sister and friend took it well but her husband wasn't quite as...
Will & Grace, Living TV
Will & Grace Finalé, Living TV, Did we like it? It went out with a sentimental whimper rather than a bang, but the two-part finalé did have its moments and left us feeling a tiny bit sad. What was good about it? • The highlight was Grace's dream sequence featuring...
The Line Of Beauty, BBC2
Did we like it? An exceptionally well-acted drama about… erm, well other than stamping along the well-trodden path of a young man flourishing among the more decadent denizens of London, we couldn’t really work out what it was about. What was good about it? • The...
Sugar Rush Series 1, Channel 4
Debut Tuesday 7 June 2005 A 10-part dramatisation of Julie Burchill's controversial novel, adapted by Katie Baxendale. It centres on 15-year-old Kim (Olivia Hallinan) from Brighton, who comes out as a lesbian and suffers from a crush on a fellow pupil, gorgeous, sassy...
Bad Girls Series Seven, ITV1
Top 11 highlights of episode one 1 – The return of such edifying dialogue as – "Your tea tastes of piss." "Then piss off" and "I'm gonna pissing well crucify you." 2 – The return of Tina 'I'm an arsonist now' O'Kane after starting a fire at Urban Woman, a store they...
Mr Gay UK 2005, LivingTV
What were the 10 worst things? 1 Mr Hull didn't even make the final 10 and he was our favourite. There was some consolation that the winner was our second favourite, stereotype-busting plasterer Mark from Walsall. 2 It was probably the shoddiest show we've seen all...
Shameless Series 1, Channel 4
Writer Paul Abbott is certainly versatile. From gritty northern factory drama Clocking Off he went south for State Of Play, last year’s glossy thriller about power and politics. Now he’s back in Manchester, for a different kind of drama again, a darkly comic piece...
Queer As Folk USA, BBC Choice
While the lesbian S&M action in Tipping The Velvet and gay kiss in The Bill has captured the attention of our illiberal newspapers, the US version of Queer As Folk has been getting away with all sorts, tucked away, as it is, after midnight on BBC Choice. The...