Gay Muslim Storyline to Debut on Britain's Popular "EastEnders"

A Muslim character will have a gay love affair on EastEnders, the popular British soap opera on BBC1.

Syed Masood, the 24-year-old Muslim property developer played by Marc Elliott, will fall for openly gay man Christian Clarke (John Partridge) and the pair will share an on-screen kiss. Syed has a girlfriend, but it will be revealed Syed has been desperately trying to repress his true sexuality, according to the Sun.

Elliott tells the BBC: "I think that's really important because I think London is a very ethnically diverse multicultural place, and EastEnders has a job to reflect that in the storylines it gives people and the characters they have on board."

Gay Muslim activists applaud the storyline but traditional Muslim groups are critical and demand a "normal" character. "There's a lack of understanding of Muslims already and I think EastEnders really lost an opportunity to present a normal friendly Muslim character to the British public," Asghar Bokhari of the Muslim Public Affairs Committee tells the BBC.

British Muslims are more homophobic and hold more conservative opinions towards homosexuality than European counterparts. A Gallup survey earlier this month found none of the 500 people questioned believing that homosexual acts were morally acceptable.

Gay Muslim Story for EastEnders [BBC]
EastEnders Gay Muslim Plot [Sun]

Thanks JOHN in London!

Comments

[Face and Waist]

Now that's a very handsome man. I wouldn't mind taking a ride on his magic carpet!

[CA]

Wow. How stereotypical can we get, Miss face and Waist?

Moving on...
I've seen this show before, it's a very good show and extremely popular in Britain. I'd like to try to see how this storyline shakes out.

[pip]

when i lived in London, i became a big fan of this show. i always appreciated that they were actually trying to address real issues and present a different p.o.v. it's a shame that Mr. Asghar Bokhari missed the point with his "normal muslim" comment.

[FREELEO]

exciting. i know a couple of sgl muslims from egypt and they often have a difficult time reconciling their sexuality with their faith. i hope this show offers a fair and honest portrayal of what it's like to be an sgl muslim.

[Ryan]

i LOVE Eastenders--this is *THE* nighttime soap!

I used to watch this on PBS every night after 11pm...

I think they will treat this storyline with the maturity, respect, and care it deserves...

Easternders has been QUITE on point with the diversity and frequently has characters of color on the show FOR REAL...and not for show (american tv, take notes)....

[Honut SInti]

I love Eastenders. I have been watching the series for over 15 years on the local PBS station. The show has tackled a number of timely subjects such as heterosexual HIV transmission (the Mark Fowler and Jill characters, bisexuality (Tony and Tiffany's brother), interracial dating and marriage (currently Anthony and Katt, before that the Jackson family and several other characters). This new story line should be interesting. Of course, we in the US are several years behind current story lines shown in Britain due to the airing delays. As you can see, I am definitely a fan!

[Luther]

Wow, I use to LOVE this show when it was on here, and, they usually handle plots with taste, so this should be a good thing to watch, if you can!

[ka-os]

I don't remember, but did Rod 2.0 report on the recent "all black cast" episode...?

[John from London]

No problem, Rod. Keep on keeping on and much love from across the pond.

[Rod Mc]

I didn't expect such a strong response to this post. Thanks all and I will follow up on this.

Ka-os, I'm not familiar with that recent episode. I know you live across the pond, and if you see things that might interest me (or more EastEnders news) please email me. Several other British readers do the same.

Thanks! -RM