Ofcom (and probably the BBC) have been receiving a small number of complaints about the smash Doctor Who spin-off Torchwood.
Why did people complain? Not because it’s got John Barrowman in it, not because it’s being condensed from 13 to 5 episodes, in the same week. They didn’t complain about the fact that the programme depicted someone being drowned/buried alive in concrete.
People are complaining about the gay bits. Apparently most complaints to Ofcom are from parents annoyed that their children are being subjected to homosexual content.
Lets look at the facts, and decide whether the BBC, or the parents, are being immoral.
- Captain Jack is gay. He kissed The Doctor in his earlier Doctor Who appearances.
- Torchwood is being shown on BBC ONE, after the 9pm Watershed.
- The 9pm watershed is effectively a 15 rating.
- Parents are complaining that Children are watching 15 rated content.
- Torchwood first came about as an attempt at a Children’s programme, but is now shown later.
I’ve got nothing against parents, personally. I just wish they would get themselves some common sense, and stop being quite so ‘holier than thou’ when it comes to protecting their precious children.
Parents also need to learn that the Watershed runs from 21:00 to 05:30 each day. This means that if you don’t want to corrupt your children, you need to control what your children watch after 9 o’clock at night.
Is it bad of the BBC to adapt Torchwood to be slightly more adult in its Sci-Fi approach? There aren’t any other Sci-Fi programmes made by the BBC which are targetted towards adults, but maybe it would have been better to dream up a new programme than change a children’s hit to an adult hit.
No matter what is broadcast, on which channel, Parents need to bear in mind that, whilst they may object to phrases such as:
“are you taking it up the bum?”
Your child can find that sentence, and a whole lot more, with graphic images to explain what the words meant, here on the Internet.
Torchwood is like Star Trek. It’s inclusive of all. Okay, Star Trek wasn’t quite inclusive of gay people, but Star Trek was in the 1960′s. Russell T Davies is creating Doctor Who and its offspring into an inclusive programme which doesn’t focus on gender, colour or sexual preference. If you can’t handle that, you’ve got an off switch. Let those of us who can handle real life get on with things. Read the Daily Mail instead.
Why does it need to be past the watershed anyway? Is it for the gay bits?
Showing men and women snogging all day long is ok, but showing what amouts to two kisses necessitates being shown after the watershed?
Well said Sue
Torchwood has been for the adulds & DR Who for the Kids, now if kids watch other progs with adults doing what adults do and I don’t mean kissing, do the parents say its ok as this what man & woman do and is ok for them to watch, but as soon as two men kiss it is wrong, I think there is a bit of Homaphobic going on.
Trust me when I say kids see and hear a lot in the real world and that has no watershed
So come on parents stop complaining its just two men kissing, or you may have to stop says to your boys stop kissing uncle George you never know what mite happen to him.
After all my Nephew kisses me and he sees me kissing my partner and he knows its not wrong or bad and he is 7
Torchwood was always written as a programme for adults. Series 2 had an edited down version for children. In fact in series 1 RTD said they were keen to avoid DW references because they didn’t want to attract children, although clearly that had gone by series 2 – hence the edited version. Series 3 has simply reverted to what it was always meant to be and how it started – an adult show with adult themes. Parents need to stop complaining about the content and censor their children’s viewing. Its after 9pm for a reason and it is likely that the Jack kids love from Dr Who is a much more adult version. (I have 2 children 7 and 11 who love Doctor Who but I wouldn’t let the little one watch Torchwood as its too scary – he can watch men kissing as often as he likes – nothing wrong with children seeing loving relationships of any kind.