A Record of A Transition Plus other musings and ramblings

After seeing this shocking piece of transphobia, I sent in a complaint to the BBC. This was their response.

Dear Mr ******

Reference ***

Thank you for your email regarding Russell Howard’s Good News, broadcast March 31 2011 at 22.30 on BBC Three.

It is never our intention to cause offence, so of course it troubles me to hear of cases where we may have done so inadvertently.

This sketch was not about transgender people per se, and while the BBC and the programme makers sincerely regret any offence we have caused to you, we would like to stress that the comments were not targeted at the transgender community. The sketch was about a fictional budget airline and the aim was to poke fun at the age old tradition of men dressing as women for laughs, very much in the vein of Les Dawson and Kenny Everett. We’re sorry if you felt this went too far but we have to credit the audience with the ability to discern that this is what we meant.

We are acutely aware that there are sensitivities around particular subjects and give careful thought to how to deal with such issues in comedy.

I appreciate and understand your strength of feeling on this matter and we will certainly bear it in mind going forward.

It is very helpful for us to hear the opinions of our audience, whether positive or negative, and I’d like to thank you for taking the time to contact us with your thoughts.

Warmest regards

Sean Hancock
Executive Producer

www.bbc.co.uk/complaints

Incredible isn’t it? I had to read it twice I almost couldn’t believe it. I sent off this as a reply. Lets see what happens next.

Dear Mr Hancock

Reference ***

I have to say I am very disapointed by your response. You have said that the sketch in question was not about transgender people and was not targeted at the transgender community, when infact it was. The structure of the programme is to get a news story and then make a joke about it. The news story was about a Thai airline that were hiring transgender staff.  The grotesque manner in which the airline staff in the sketch were portrayed was intended to suggest that they too were transgender and to show them in as disgusting a manner as possible. Please do not attempt to further insult my intellegence by suggesting otherwise.

To liken this kind of humor to that of Les Dawson and Kenny Everett is to liken it to the kind of humour that was prevalent in the working men’s clubs of the 70s. There is a reason that those kind of jokes are no longer considered acceptable. Would you have dared make a joke like that if the group you were mocking were black? I doubt it very much. This is 2011, the jokes that were acceptable 40 years ago are not acceptable now. I suggest you take some time to consider the feedback you are receiving about your show and issue a sincere apology.