CBBC airs groundbreaking series ‘First Day’ about a trans girl starting school
The children’s TV broadcaster has been praised for shining a light on the experiences of trans youth.
CBBC took another leap forward in its representation of LGBTQ youth after airing trans children’s drama First Day.
The four-part series tells the story of Hannah Bradford, played by trans actress Evie MacDonald, as she prepares to start high school.
In the opening episode, broadcast on Wednesday, we join Hannah on her last day of primary school, being bullied and repeatedly referred to by her dead name.
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After going dress shopping with her mum, she is excited about making a fresh start with some new friends – only to discover that one of the bullies has also enrolled at the school.
The show, which debuted on Australian network ABC earlier this year, has been praised by trans charities and the parents of trans children.
On Twitter, the FFLAG – an organisation supporting parents and families of LGBTQ kids – wrote: “Hopefully this series will make a positive impact in the lives of #transkids and their families.”
Another user, a teacher, added: “Firstly INCREDIBLE… Secondly, that’s an RSE/PSHE resource found for my Year 6’s!”
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MacDonald, 15, previously made headlines when she challenged Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison about his problematic views on transgender people.
In 2018, Morrison – who voted against same-sex marriage in the country – responded to a news report which claimed that teachers were being trained to identify trans children.
“We do not need ‘gender whisperers’ in our schools. Let kids be kids,” he tweeted.
In a video response, MacDonald replied: “There are thousands of kids in Australia that are gender diverse. We don’t deserve to be disrespected like that through tweets from our prime minister.”
She continued: “I know what it’s like to be on the receiving end of attitudes like this. I went to a Christian school where I had to pretend to be a boy and spent weeks in conversion therapy. We get one childhood and mine was stolen from me by attitudes like this.”
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Last month (July), CBBC series The Next Step aired its first same-sex kiss between female characters Jude and Cleo.
Showing their rainbow stripes, TV bosses admirably hit back after receiving a slew of homophobic complaints.
“An important part of our mission is to make sure that every child feels like they belong, that they are safe, and that they can be who they want to be,” they said in a statement.
Days later, CBBC broadcasted a touching coming out scene in New Zealand drama Mystic – we love to see it.
Watch all episodes of First Day on BBC iPlayer now.