The BBC obtained greater than 100 complaints from Doctor Who viewers who argued that the inclusion of Yasmin Finney‘s transgender character Rose was “inappropriate.”
The company has revealed it had 144 messages from disgruntled viewers in its fortnightly report on viewers complaints. Some stated Heartstopper star Finney’s character was “anti-male,” whereas others stated it was an “inappropriate inclusion of [a] transgender character.”
The Star Beast particular was watched by greater than 7.6M individuals which means the complainants make up a tiny proportion of the viewers. It shouldn’t be uncommon for the BBC to obtain complaints over transgender storylines or reporting, however the company will doubtless stand by the illustration of Rose in Doctor Who.
Finney options because the daughter of Shaun and Donna within the 2023 specials. Her household helps her transition, however is depicted by author Russell T Davies as nonetheless coming to phrases along with her pronouns.
At one level throughout The Star Beast, Catherine Tate’s Donna tells her mom: “You have a kid. You think, good I’ve got it, that’s mine. Then she grows up into this extraordinarily beautiful thing and you think: where the hell did she come from? How lucky am I?”
During a press convention final month, Davies was unequivocal about his ambition to mirror extra of society on display screen. He lamented how transgender illustration will be vilified within the press, arguing: “[There are] newspapers of absolute hate, and venom, and destruction, and violence who would rather see that sort of thing wiped off the screen destroyed. Shame on you, and good luck to you in your lonely lives.”