Abstract
Since the mid-1990s, a discernible increase has occurred in both the number and the range of gay, lesbian and queer representations on British terrestrial television. Taking Britain's historically minority-oriented Channel 4 as its focus, this essay examines a few of these representations as they appear within the channel's high-profile, prime-time and/or "flagship" programming, and specifically within Queer as Folk (1999), Sugar Rush (2005) and Skins (2007). It aims to situate these and the other gay, lesbian and queer themed shows produced by Channel 4 in the last two decades within the cultural, political and industrial contexts out of which they emerged, through engagement with specific broadcasting industry and government policy documents, and through British media coverage. Utilizing textual analysis and close examination of these reports and documents, the essay attempts to draw correlations between the specific modes of gay, lesbian and queer visibility offered by Channel 4's programming and the socio-political climate of the UK in the 1990s and 2000s, and ultimately seeks to determine why it was that Channel 4 (and indeed the British broadcasting industry more generally) have recently deemed certain kinds of queerness commercially viable, and others undesirable.
Recommended Citation
Edwards, Natalie
(2009)
"From Minority to Mainstream: Channel 4's Queer Television,"
The Journal of e-Media Studies: Vol. 2:
Iss.
1, Article 3.
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.1349/PS1.1938-6060.A.325
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.dartmouth.edu/joems/vol2/iss1/3