The Backlash is coming?

Russell T. Davies has a new drama called Tip Toe that is currently showing on Channel 4 in the UK. It charts the rise and consequences of a feud between two next-door neighbours: Leo, the gay owner of a gay bar on Manchester’s Canal Street and Clive, an electrician who has a wife and family.

The feud is powered by what’s happening at large in today’s social media-driven society. Here’s an early scene where Melba spells out to Leo just what is going on.

I can sympathise with Leo when he says, in effect, now that he’s 60, he wants to take it easy – he went on the marches in his younger days – let the bright young things take over. I’m older, but I did the same when I was young. But Melba’s message is that things are going backwards for us LGBTQ folks – perhaps we will need to man (and woman) the barricades once more.

This drama is geofenced by Channel 4 to the UK, so I can’t watch it. I hope that it will be picked up by a Dutch TV channel or, better still, come out on DVD/Bluray. It deserves to be seen.

Addendum: 25 July 2026

Dammit – I see that YouTube has now pulled the video. A pity, because Melba’s speech is very powerful and very true.

One good thing is that the series has been picked up by HBO Max here in the Netherlands, so Martin and I have now been able to watch the five episodes.

We’ve just finished watching the final episode and Jesus, Jesus, Jesus – we’re both still shaking. That was awful, brilliant, riveting, tragic and horribly plausible.

Kudos to all concerned in the making of this – to Russell T. Davies for the script and the actors, production team and director for bringing it to life. Gobsmackingly good – and a warning to be heeded.

And on tonight’s Dutch TV News was a report over research that they did about the experience of LGBTQI youth between 13 and 19 years. Of the 8,000 responses, around half said that their parents did not know (or had not said) that they were gay… We’ve still got a long way to go… Veel jonge lhbti+’ers voelen zich onveilig thuis en op school