BBC (EastEnders) unveils Gay Muslim love-affair Storyline
May 29, 2009
In a further effort by the British establishment to raise the bar for Muslims to prove their loyalty to Britain, the BBC will use its flagship programme EastEnders to tackle a storyline which will feature a Muslim man embarking upon a gay affair. The Muslim character Syed Masood, played by Marc Elliott, will fall for openly gay man Christian Clarke (John Partridge) and the pair will share an on-screen kiss.
“I think EastEnders would be doing the programme a disservice if they didn’t give a voice to various communities,” Elliot told the BBC Asian Network.
The plot is expected to hit TV screens from next month.
Diederick Santer, Eastenders executive producer, told the Guardian today: “We’ve always tried to make EastEnders reflect modern life in multicultural Britain and we’ve always told social issue stories relevant to our diverse audience. This isn’t a moral tale of right or wrong; it’s very much a human interest story where a young man struggles with the conflict between his faith and his feelings.”
“In this regard, it’s not dissimilar to the story we told when Dot Cotton’s deeply held Christian beliefs came into conflict with her desire to alleviate Ethel’s suffering [in a euthanasia plotline].”
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“To all intents and purposes, Syed’s a ‘good’ Muslim man: he doesn’t drink, smoke or engage in sex before marriage. But he struggles with his sexuality when he finds himself drawn to Christian and he believes this goes against his faith. This is not a story about Syed and Christian’s physical relationship – we don’t see anything beyond one kiss. It’s more about the inner turmoil and conflict Syed endures trying to remain true to his faith while questioning his sexuality.”
It is understood that the BBC consulted with several people and organizations before unveiling the plot line. These are said to have included academics, gay Muslim support groups (Al-Fatiha), members of the Muslim Council of Britain.
British Muslims hold more quite conservative views towards homosexuality. A recent survey found that none of the people questioned believed homosexual acts were religiously acceptable.
BBC’s Santer added that their intention was to develop the Masoods as “rounded human beings tackling the issues of day-to-day life in Albert Square”.
“The dynamics of Muslim relationships and families are not radically different from any others but the importance that Muslim culture places on family and married life can make the same issues more charged.”
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