It’s a Sin scrapped direct link to Queer as Folk, producer says
Russell T Davies is the creator of both Queer as Folk and It’s A Sin. (Channel 4.
It’s a Sin producer Nicola Shindler has revealed that the hit drama was almost a prequel to Queer as Folk.
Russell T Davies made his name with Queer as Folk in 1999, and two decades later won widespread acclaim with It’s a Sin.
Both series document the lives of a group of gay men in England – and now Shindler has confirmed that at one point, they were going to be directly connected.
During a recent BAFTA Television Session, Shindler revealed (per Radio Times): “We debated whether [It’s a Sin] should really be a prequel to Queer as Folk, whether we should think about calling it that.”
However, she added: “We knew that was wrong as soon as we started talking.”
While the shows are distinct in terms of continuity, Shindler said there is a “through-line” between both series, as well as Davies’ other LGBT+ drama, Cucumber.
It’s A Sin. (Channel 4)
“They’re stories that he wanted to tell about gay men at a certain point in their lives when history is impacting them.
Davies has previously spoken about the differences between his two dramas, saying that the central trio in Queer as Folk – Stewart, Vince and Nathan – had “almost come out the other side” of the AIDS crisis.
“I wouldn’t call it [Queer as Folk] a post-AIDS drama,” he said in 2021, “but they were clever boys who’d learned to have safe sex; they’d learned the lessons that sadly were brand new facts for this generation of gay characters.”
Queer as Folk ran for two seasons, the first episode airing on February 23, 1999. (Channel 4)
Queer as Folk purposefully avoided discussing HIV and AIDS, because at the time, Davies “refused to let our lives be defined by disease”.
Shindler expanded on this at the BAFTA event, saying: “Queer as Folk very purposefully didn’t mention HIV or AIDS, and we didn’t have shots of condoms, and that was absolutely something that Russell was passionate about.
“But almost to make the point, because everything at that point… anytime a gay character had been on screen, it had been about HIV and AIDS, and he just didn’t want that”.
In addition, Shindler mentioned the possibility of a follow-up to It’s a Sin focusing on Jill and Roscoe (played by Lydia West and Omari Douglas, respectively).
