Happy WorldPride and Mardi Gras as the ABC kicks off tonight with the WorldPride Opening Concert, featuring Kylie Minogue, and tomorrow the 45th Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade, hosted by Nate Byrne and then the marvellous Queerstralia.
Next Tuesday it’s Queerstralia, a fabulous new three-part series uncovering hidden LGBTQIA+ history. Hosted by Zoe Coombs Marr, it is revealing and fascinating with guests like Hannah Gadsby and Magda Szubanski. There is also a cameo from Rhys Nicholson because that’s probably all he had time for.
Rhys Nicholson has also just been on The Hundred With Andy Lee (Nine), The Weekly with Charlie Pickering (Ten), Pride Gala with Rhys Nicholson (10) and Rhys Nicholson’s Big Queer Comedy Concert (Amazon Prime). Busy boy.
Queerstralia could probably do another series just about conservatives getting busy about the ABC’s queer content. They’ve been complaining about it for years, like in 1994 when two-thirds of the Parliament demanded the Mardi Gras not be televised. It went on to become one of the highest-rated events in ABC history. Oops.
Last week it was “sexually explicit” material being shown on ABC Kids. Which actually turned out to be Everything’s Going To Be OK on ABC Plus at 11pm. The show is actually more about two sisters growing up with autism, but their brother (Josh Thomas) is gay so, oops, cue that outrage.
The haters must also be frothing about how many drag shows keep appearing on TV. Trixie Motel (TLC on Foxtel) is about Trixie Mattel renovating a broken-down Palm Springs motel with guests Lisa Vanderpump and Iggy Azalea. And Generation Drag (TLC), is a reality series set amongst a drag pageant for teenagers.
For The Love of DILFs (OUTtv through Amazon Prime) is a dating show for “himbos” and “daddies”. Hosted by bisexual porn star Stormy Daniels, she comes across as a lot of fun, and you just know she has more wicked things to say about Donald Trump’s penis.
Closer to home, the other big live event this weekend is Australian Idol (Sunday on Seven). There are three out and proud contestants in the Top 12 so good luck Casey Fox, Harry Hayden and Royston Sagigi-Baira.
Don’t forget Veneno (still on iview), Smiley (another delightful Spanish series on Netflix), and Monday Conference (iview). In this classic from the archives, which was the forerunner to Q&A, a Mount Isa mother asks if pink dye in her washing machine will turn her son gay.
Australian TV once pumped out more queer content than the rest of the world combined. I tell that story in Outrageous: The Queer History of Australian TV which just premiered at the Mardi Gras Film Festival. The book of Outrageous will come out later this year through Pantera Press. For more info, listen to the podcast here.
Read more Mercado on TV columns here.
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