“My Transsexual Summer”: Watch it if you can.

November 30, 2011 — Terence Weldon

I have been slow to start watching “My Transsexual Summer”, which has been airing on (British) Channel 4 for some weeks. I have just watched the first episode on 4OD catch-up TV. The series follows a mixed group of seven trans women and men through part of their transition journeys. Some are old, some young. Some have only just started transitioning, some are years along the road. Some have experienced outright rejection from their families, some have had direct help and support – and some have not yet come out to their families.

The series opens with the participants as a group coming together for a weekend retreat, getting to know each other and hearing their stories in a comfortable house. Later episodes show the individuals going about their daily lives at home , as well as reuniting in further get-togethers.

The participants of My Transsexual Summer.

I am not going to comment at all on the people, or the presentation by the programme – their experience is so far removed from my own, I feel it would be presumptuous of me to do so. If you want commentary, see the excellent insider view at the Guardian. What I will say, is that I can’t wait to catch up on the rest of the series.

If you are able to view it – do so.

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  • http://profiles.google.com/felidista Jennifer Hynes

    My sister has been watching this as has a friend, but I avoided it like the plague until the last episode, the one with the families present and the photos? I sort of wish I had watched it now. Whilst I think of myself as trans-gendered in a much wider sense, I was still not willing to go through viewing a bunch of sexual stereotypes craving publicity. That’s what I thought initially. I love Channel Four, but LGBT programming on any channel is usually of the shock-titilate variety, and it annoys the hell out of me.

    But this, after seeing almost a full episode, has changed my mind somewhat and I’ll be more open to watching them in the future.

    I do think Karen needs to buy a more suitable wardrobe though.

  • http://queering-the-church.com/blog/ Terence Weldon

    Jennifer, have you thought of watching it on 4oD? The full series is still accessible, so you can watch it all on-line, from the beginning. That’s where I watched it. I clean forgot about it until the series was over, then got it on-line. After watching the first episode, and writing the post, I then gorged the next day on all of the next three (by comparison, I usually watch almost no television).

    The Guardian piece I linked to is worth reading. She begins by saying that the series is saturated with every trans cliche one can think of – but goes on to conclude that in spite of everything, the series works. She believes that anybody starting out on a gender journey can benefit from watching it. I believe that the rest of us can learn something. 

    Personally, I dislike “reality” programming, and was also wary of this being an exercise in salacious voyeurism, but I was riveted. I grew to really care for these people, and hope there’ll be a series two – ideally following up on this group one year on, or repeating the exercise with  a different group.

    I agree that Karen could do with a better wardrobe – but when she joined the house for the first weekend, she had been living as a woman for only an incredibly short time (something like 12 days, I think, but I could be wrong). Just over the course of the few weeks of the summer, you could see her appearance and presentation improving, with growing self-confidence, and make-over help from the other women.

    So – here are the links for all four episodes. (If I had the time, I would happily watch them all again).

    Episode 1: http://www.channel4.com/programmes/my-transsexual-summer/4od#3253567
    Episode 2: http://www.channel4.com/programmes/my-transsexual-summer/4od#3256231
    Episode 3: http://www.channel4.com/programmes/my-transsexual-summer/4od#3257355
    Episode 4: http://www.channel4.com/programmes/my-transsexual-summer/4od#3259293

  • http://profiles.google.com/felidista Jennifer Hynes

    I did have a go on 4OD, yes. But wasn’t taken with the first episode, so stopped watching. What I’d like to see is a programme, or series, that focuses purely on lived lives, not on the fact that the person is transgendered, but gives that a back seat. That would make them look more… “normal”?

    I found, from the last episode that I was especially hopeful for Lewis and Sarah. Lewis’s dad was great! But I still found it full of stereotypes. I recall a Julie Burchill article in the Guardian, in 2001 I think it, was that described trans women as pantomime dames; i.e. men dressed up as stereotypical women, and to be honest, I have seen that far too much. Donna went some way towards denying this trope admittedly, and the inclusion of not one but three trans men was a great idea, but overall, I still see a lot of male expectation of how women are “meant” to be perceived in the programme.

    Will go and read the Guardian article pronto!

  • http://profiles.google.com/felidista Jennifer Hynes

    Someone else that uses the word trope LOL. Did I just type that? “LOL”? Pity me… I’ll watch the series with somewhat of an open mind then. And no Tequila.

  • Pingback: Growth – Things I learned from my transition « Reneta Xian

  • Lorraine Milford

    When I watched episode one, I did fear it would turn out to be just another sensation grabbing exercise, then I watched it a second time and realised that me of all people, was being judgemental; how wrong I was, that pulled me up sharply! I know several Transgendered people who felt the same way and switched channels; I did try to convince them otherwise. The series did grow on me and by the end, when the stars of the programme were addressing the families, I was moved to tears. C4 did well.

    • http://queeringthechurch.com/ Terence Weldon

      Thanks, Lorraine. That was pretty well my reaction, too. By the end, I definitely felt I wanted to see more – and I’m not a great TV watcher (so-called “reality” shows least of all) 

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