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Section :: Rants and Raves

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The Only Gay In The Village

...the YouTube challenge to the might of the BBC
Sunday 18 February 2007.
 

Bizarre at it may seem to non-Brits, one of the most popular comedy catch phases in the UK is: “I’m the only gay in the village.”

The wonderful Matt Lucas (right) - no longer the only gay in the village...

Now, I grew up in the ‘70s and ‘80s in small Welsh village not too dissimilar from the fictional village of Llandewibrefi, which features in the comedy sketch show, Little Britain. Back in those days, there was no such thing as a positive gay role model. As far as I am aware there was not a single British celebrity who was out and proud.

These days, gay celebrities are plentiful. From Sir Ian McKellen to John Barrowman (the hunky Captain Jack in the British scifi series, Torchwood), openly gay figures are part of the mainstream. Only the village of Llandewibrefi languishes in the bad old days of loneliness and homophobia.

Or does it…?

I must confess that, in spite of the huge popularity of the series, I have never watched Little Britain. Until today. Browsing, as is my wont, around Youtube, I chanced upon some links to ‘The only gay in the village’ sketches. These feature the wonderfully uninhibited Matt Lucas, wearing (but only just) outfits which seem to have been designed for Cher but on a much grander scale.

I love Youtube. I love it in spite of the fact that sketches like these are quite probability there without the permission of the BBC and may, for all I know, be in contravention of half a dozen domestic and International Laws.

What the heck! I’ve paid my Licence Fee (for non-UK residents I should explain that the citizenry of the UK is obliged to pay a television tax which goes straight into the coffers of the BBC, benefiting none of its commercial competitors en route) and, frankly, I want to watch shows online at times convenient to me. I certainly don’t want to have to take half an hour’s break to go and sit downstairs on the settee and stare at them on that damn’ box in the corner.

The BBC has recently woken up to the fact that I am not the only licence payer who feels this way. They have announced that they will make some shows available ‘on demand’, though it seems they also have plans to restrict the period during which they will be available for viewing. Which, to me, sounds as though they still haven’t really got to grips with the modern realities of online sharing and torrents…

But back to Little Britain. The homophobia in the village of Llandewibrefi seems to be of Daffyd’s own making. If the sketches are to be believed, gay liberation came to the valleys a generation ago and only Daffyd has yet to realise this.

Thanks to Youtube this pleasantly subversive British comedy is now available to viewers far beyond the boundaries of this Sceptered Isle. If you haven’t seen Little Britain before, I recommend that you sample of a few choice cuts. Be warned, though, if you are easily shocked or are within hearing distance of people who are, you may want to stick to old clips of I Love Lucy instead…

The Only Gay In The Village

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Enjoy…!

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  • The Only Gay In The Village
    24 July 2011, by Brian W

    When I saw the sketches, I assumed the village was made up, so was tickled to find, not only is it real, but it is next to LLangybi, where I was evacuated during the war.


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