Documentary

Outrageous – The Queer History of Australian TV

Fifty years ago, despite homosexuality being illegal, Australians embraced sexual diversity on their TV. Leading characters on the nation’s most popular shows were given gay story lines and their popularity soared. Australian audiences not only embraced gay men, transgender, lesbian and bisexual characters on screen, they loved it!

The book Outrageous: The Queer History of Australian TV will soon be released through Australasian Scholarly Publishing. It has already been made into a documentary that reveals that every queer milestone happened first on Australian TV, long before the rest of the world. This is the untold story of our ability to lead the way by broadcasting groundbreaking TV.

Did you know that in the 1970s, there were more LGBTQ characters on Aussie TV than the rest of the world combined?

And this wasn’t happening on niche or one-off programs, but on TV’s highest rating shows, often screening 5 nights a week.

L-R – Benjamin Law, Andrew Mercado, Sarah Walker and Shane ‘Courtney Act” Jenek who feature in Outrageous

To put it in perspective, whilst America was making safe family fare like The Brady Bunch and The Waltons, Australian TV was smashing taboos through hit TV shows like Number 96, The Box and Prisoner.

Even drag became mainstream in Australia long before the rest of the world discovered RuPaul. Several decades before Priscilla took cinemas by storm, Sydney showgirl Carlotta was already a household name thanks to her appearances on TV. As a transgender actor playing a trans character on Number 96, a world first for TV, it would take a staggering 22 years before this type of authentic casting would be embraced by a US production.

TV historian Andrew Mercado explains: “As a teenager growing up in the 70s, it is impossible to overstate how important this positive representation was. Television showed me that I could be successful and well-liked just like the gay characters on my favourite TV shows. In talking to others who were born later and missed out on seeing diversity on TV as they came of age, it has clarified for me how important it is for TV to impact viewers with diverse stories.”

L- R – Andrew Mercado, actor Joe Hasham (who played TV’s first regular gay man on Number 96) and author Nigel Giles at the World Premiere of Outrageous at Mardi Gras Film Festival 2023

So sit back as we investigate the trailblazers who paved the way for all queer people today. Outrageous includes contributions from former Justice of the High Court of Australia, Michael Kirby, trans legend Carlotta, author Benjamin Law (creator of The Family Law), singer actor dancer Keiynan Lonsdale (Dance Academy, The Flash), scriptwriter Sarah L. Walker (Wentworth), and international superstar Shane “Courtney Act” Jenek.

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