Nine times BAFTAs host David Tennant has proved he’s the ultimate LGBTQ+ ally
BAFTAs host David Tennant is vociferously outspoken about LGBTQ+ rights (Getty/Instagram)
In thrilling news for David Tennant fans, it’s been confirmed that the Doctor Who, Broadchurch and Good Omens star will be hosting the BAFTAs in 2025, for the second year in a row.
Today (9 December), BAFTA has announced that Tennant will host next year’s EE BAFTA Film Awards which will be held on 16 February 2025 at the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall in London.
His performance as the 2024 host garnered widespread praise, it was also a ratings hit watched by more than 3.8 million viewers at home. It marked a third consecutive year of increased ratings, according to Digital Spy.
The Rivals star is a huge and outspoken LGBTQ+ ally and has made his solidarity abundantly clear in recent years, as well as acting in an acclaimed Doctor Who special which was packed with queer themes.
Tennant featured alongside former co-star Catherine Tate as Donna Noble in an extremely popular trio of Doctor Who 60th anniversary specials in late 2023 from returning showrunner Russell T Davies, who is gay. The cast also included trans Heartstopper actress Yasmin Finney as Donna’s daughter, Rose.
Yasmin Finney’s prominent role in the first of the special episodes, “The Star Beast”, sparked fierce reaction with LGBTQ+ fans praising the inclusion and bigots (as usual) sharing their fury.
David Tennant’s three-episode run – which involved a heartfelt conversation around correct pronouns – kicked off a new era of Doctor Who with LGBTQ+ talent Ncuti Gatwa taking over as the 15th Doctor.
Throughout his star-studded career, Tennant has remained a steadfast ally, so here’s five times the acclaimed actor has showed up for the LGBTQ+ community over the years.
Making waves with a trans Tardis pin
In the lead up to the Doctor Who 60th anniversary, BAFTAs host David Tennant appeared on The One Show and The Last Leg, where the Scottish actor was spotted wearing a trans flag themed TARDIS badge as a small act of solidarity with the trans community.
Naturally, fans praised the actor for his initiative, but the wholesome saga doesn’t end there. The badge creator, Dr Jamie Gallagher, soon announced on Twitter that over £18,000 had been raised in badge sales and all proceeds would be going towards LGBTQ+ homeless charity AKT.
Humbly reacting to the joyous news, Tennant later said while he couldn’t take “any credit”, the badge perfectly “suits what Doctor Who is all about”.
It’s not the first time Tennant has showed his support through the medium of pin badges. Earlier in 2023, eagle-eyed fans spotted him wearing a non-binary Pride badge on shows such Saturday Night Takeaway, The Graham Norton Show and This Morning.
Unapologetically standing up for trans children
In July 2023, BAFTAs host David Tennant took his pro-trans message one step further during the press run for Good Omens season two.
In a viral image, fans caught a glimpse of him sporting a black t-shirt with a crystal clear pink hued slogan emblazoned on top. “Leave trans kids alone, you absolute freaks”. We love to see it.
The top, which comes from online store Crooked, caused a stir online with many fans flocking to social media to share their joy. Around a similar time the TV star was spotted wearing (yet another) badge with the pride colours and the words: “You are safe with me.”
The pin badge managed to rile up anti-trans activists Posie Parker and Graham Linehan who launched separate attacks on Tennant, insinuating he is a pedophile and “groomer”.
But this hasn’t deterred Tennant, who continues to stand up for trans rights.
Telling anti-trans bigots to “f**k off”
In May 2024, while at the Proud Nerd: Angels, Demons and Doctors convention in Germany, Tennant was asked by a fan about his own relationship to femininity and masculinity.
In response, Tennant launched into a heartfelt speech about how society’s view on gender has changed, and why that’s a good thing.
“When I was a kid, the idea of being non-binary wasn’t something that existed. It wasn’t a concept. I’ve seen that emerge and people are able to express themselves through that. It only ever seems positive as far as I can see,” he said in a video clip shared on TikTok.
“When I was a teenager, I remember gay rights being weaponised politically. That always felt ugly and nasty. We look back on that, 30 years later, and those people are clearly on the wrong side of history,” he said.
“Now, there is a similar weaponisation of these topics being taken by mostly the right wing, or certain sections of society, to create friction and conflict and division where it needn’t be. It’s just about people being themselves. You don’t need to be bothered about it. F**k off and let people be,” the Good Omens star added, to a round of applause.
Telling Kemi Badenoch to “shut up” about trans people
His comments at the Demons and Doctors convention was followed by a powerful speech calling out the then-Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch, a Conservative politician who has gone from being a relatively quiet and obscure junior minister to one of the most prominent anti-trans voices in the UK government. She is now leader of the opposition.
While accepting a British LGBT award in June 2024. David Tennant said he didn’t wish Badenoch ill, but wanted her to shut up.
“I’m a little depressed that acknowledging everyone has the right to be who they want to be and live their life how they want to live it, as long as they’re not hurting anyone else, should merit any kind of special award or special mention because it’s common sense,” he said.
Wearing a non-binary pin and nail polish to the Mean Girls premiere
David Tennant was praised for wearing a non-binary pin to the opening night of Mean Girls The Musical on July 27, following his public beef with government ministers, including Kemi Badenoch, over trans rights.
The actor wore pink nail varnish to the musical, which is based on the 2004 film. He jokingly referred to one of the movie’s best-loved lines, saying “I aspire to be fetch.”
Wearing a trans rights t-shirt to a school Pride event
Later in June 2024, David Tennant wore a trans-rights t-shirt to one of his children’s school Pride celebrations.
The shirt, which featured the colours of the trans flag, bore the phrase “you will have to go through me”.
Stevie Brocksom, who runs the website and clothing store, Stevie’s Safe Spaces, subsequently revealed that sales of the t-shirt, which help fund a scholarship for trans students in Ontario, Canada, rocketed.
Speaking to Yahoo Canada, Brocksom – who uses they/he pronouns – said they had started sending t-shirts to creators with large followings, to get more exposure. A friend encouraged him to include Good Omens star Tennant.
“I didn’t think it would go anywhere,” Brocksom said. “I thought he’d wear one to a doctor’s appointment with his kids or something.” But, after Tennant’s wife Georgia posted an Instagram photo of the actor wearing the t-shirt, Brocksom was inundated with “hundreds” of new orders.
Slamming the ‘weaponisation’ of LGBTQ+ issues
In October 2024, Tennant appeared on the Happy Place podcast and admitted that is often hesitant to use his voice to speak out on political issues, but added: “In terms of anything I say in support of the LGBTQ+ community, it just feels like common sense.
“I find it ludicrous how some of those conversations have been weaponised.”
Delivering an emotional speech during Pride month
During Pride month 2023, Tennant appeared on the Ed Miliband’s Reasons To Be Cheerful podcast where he praised the importance and joy of Pride month in modern day Britain.
“Do you know what’s making me cheerful at the moment? It’s Pride month,” he told the podcast.
“The fact that Pride Month is existing and is flourishing and is something that’s happening at a time when the world seems to be getting in some corners worryingly intolerant and weirdly backward.”
As usual his words impacted LGBTQ+ fans who shared that his powerful statement moved them to tears.
“We can’t take our foot off the gas,” the actor continued. “We can’t expect that we will always travel in the right direction towards acceptance. We’ve all got to be fighting that fight every day.”
It’s a message echoed by his wife Georgia, who shared her solidarity with the trans community in October after an attack by prime minister Rishi Sunak. “To the trans community, I stand with you now and always. I, like you, am going nowhere,” she said in a post on X.
Spreading the message of inclusivity in his TV series Good Omens
Doctor Who is not the only sci-fi, fantasy world Tennant has inhabited in 2023. After four years, Prime Video finally dropped the second season of Good Omens which sees Tennant playing demon Crowley opposite Michael Sheen’s angel Aziraphale.
In a wild turn of events, after huge fan speculation, Crowley and Azirphale made their romantic tension explicit after sharing a dramatic kiss at the end of the season.
Although fans will have to wait to find out if the loved up couple will finally get their acts together in a final special edition episode which will take the place of a full season three, Tennant has no doubt about the importance of inclusivity in the series, which he spoke about during an interview with the Radio Times podcast.
During the interview, he explained that the show delivers a message for “this fractious moment” in society that earth can be “quite a nice place to live”.
“That’s why this show connected with a certain group of people,” he continued. “There is an inclusivity to the world view of Good Omens, there’s a joy in celebrating whoever you happen to be.”
Once an ally, always an ally
A final, important note: Tennant’s allyship hasn’t just started over the past couple of years.
As far back as 2008, during his stint as the 10th Doctor, he hit back against the idea that dressing flamboyantly and being called “gay” is an insult during an interview with The Telegraph.
A few years later, in 2012, he showed his support for a Diversity Role Models campaign tackling homophobic bullying.
“It is essential that young people have the opportunity to meet role models from the LGBT community to help break down the stereotypes and prejudice that lead to bullying,” he said at the time.
Over a decade later, it’s no surprise David Tennant has consistently proven himself as an LGBTQ+ ally, through and through.
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