BBC shuts down complaints about transgender Doctor Who character
BBCFollowing a flurry of complaints about a transgender character recently appearing in Doctor Who, the BBC has responded, stating that the show will “always continue to proudly celebrate diversity.”
Heartstopper star Yasmine Finney recently played a transgender character called Rose Noble in a special 60th anniversary episode of Doctor Who titled ‘The Star Beast.’
Said episode was watched by more than 7.5 million viewers in the UK, and a small percentage complained about the inclusion of the character, with 144 people sending messages to the British broadcaster.
Today, the Beeb responded to those complaints, immediately shutting them down.
BBC shuts down complaints about transgender Doctor Who character
In a message on the BBC website, the corporation states: “We have received complaints from viewers who object to the inclusion of a transgender character in the programme and from others who feel there are too few transgender people represented.”
The broadcaster’s response is then written underneath via the following statement: “As regular viewers of Doctor Who will be aware, the show has and will always continue to proudly celebrate diversity and reflect the world we live in. We are always mindful of the content within our episodes.”
This chimes with what showrunner Russel T. Davies said in a press conference in November, (as reported by Deadline): “[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.”
Rose Noble’s Doctor Who future explained
The daughter of Catherine Tate’s Donna Noble, Rose made her debut in ‘The Star Beast.’ Then appeared again in another of the anniversary specials, ‘The Giggle.’ And that won’t be the last we see of the character.
Rose can briefly be seen in the trailer for the next season of Doctor Who, meaning she’ll appear opposite Ncuti Gatwa’s 15th Doctor.
As for why he’s bringing the character back, Russell T. Davies told Entertainment Weekly: “I was writing a trans character who’s a teenager, part of a London family, of mixed race, and that’s an unusual set of conditions for a character to meet. The list of people who would audition for that is not very long.
“Along came Yasmin, and we just closed the door after that, because there she was! She’s absolutely terrific, and she has more appearances to come, simply because I adore working with her.”
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