Forthcoming BBC NI documentary

This will be on in a few weeks on BBC ONE NI, I believe it's about a straight guy "facing his worst fears" when he investigates the Northern Ireland gay scene.

While I am pleased and encouraged to see a Northern Ireland-based broadcaster taking the brave step to acknowledge the existence of the LGBT community and to provide it with a media outlet in the North, I don't know whether I should be delighted or anxious about what showing this will do for the community back home.

I might not live in NI anymore and I was never a part of the gay social scene when I did live in the Province, but at the same time, if there's going to be a television programme that addresses life for gay people in a part of the world far too preoccupied by categorisation and discrimination, not to mention unnecessary and uncalled-for homophobia, I would hope it offers a fair and unbiased representation of the gay scene in Northern Ireland and that it won't stereotype or ghettoise the LGBT community and reflect on a society that does not have much of a voice in the media and is therefore vulnerable to how it is portrayed by television, the press, radio etc.

I'm not saying that I hope this documentary will be straight-laced and on a crusade to campaign for equal rights and greater tolerance - but as long what is put together as light-hearted, affectionate and perhaps lovingly ironic will give the homophobic bigots another cause to persecute the Sodomites of Ulster. What I would like out of this documentary is that the man who looks into the LGBT community comes out of the experience with a greater understanding and a more open mind about people of a different sexuality, and that his learning process may rub off on people who watch the programme, even if it is just one single person who changes their mind then at least it's something.

Thankfully, when I came out five years ago, I was not in the position to need much help when coming to terms with my sexuality, but I knew they were there for me if I needed them, and so far the members of my family and my friends back home who know about my sexuality have been positive and have not treated me any differently because of it. I would hope that this documentary will allow more people, young or old, who are uncertain of their identity, will give them the confidence to feel more comfortable and certain in their sexuality.

Sorry for the long and probably controversial blurb, but thinking about this programme and its volatile nature is worth commenting on.

From what I've heard through a friend who worked on the show, it's not all it makes out to be.

Bringing cameras into a gay club is never going to work especially for Broadcast, as the crowd don't want to be seen on telly for fear of being outed to everyone they know, not only that, the bar owners don't want to segregate parts of their venue into who can and who can't go where for fear of being seen. All it takes is one camera pan and it causes issues.

I know that they shot a few bits and pieces in Kremlin on a night they were shut whereby not to have that problem.

Meanwhile, another BBC programme commissioned for September challenges 12 teenagers to remain celibate for 5 months!
Oh dear, oh dear.

Easy! Tell 'em to get married - that'll do the trick!

Oh dear, oh dear, indeed! I managed to stay celibate for 5 years as a teenager, and I don't see anyone rushing to do a documentary on me.

That's quite racy for the BBC. I suppose the point of it is that there will not be any sex, so that makes it a little more BBC friendly. By the way, it'll be on BBC2.

So... as Channel 4 turns into Channel 5, BBC is turning into Channel 4 and... <scratches head>

I'm not sure. Seems to me that there's enough bigotry in Norn Irn without foregrounding more by exposing people's private lifestyle choices. So long as it doesn't incite hatred etc... it's an interesting programme idea but I don't like the "confronting worst fears" idea. What's to be so scared of? Something a bit different?