Madfabulous (2026) and Tip Toe (2026)

“Good taste”, as defined by the stuffy, is beige and dull. The word “tasteful” suggests a muted co-ordinated palette. It is genteel and quiet. It does not clamour to be heard. It is about elegant lines and simple silhouettes.

I don’t want to live in a world that strives for that kind of tasteful. I like a bit, just a little bit, a soupçon, a dash of the garish.

The night before I went to see Madfabulous, I had watched with tense shoulders and a fierce clutch of my stomach, the finale of Tip Top. A five part TV drama series written by Russell T Davies, it is about the rise of intolerance towards the flamboyant and the different. It tackles the pervading “common sense”, that we’ve let it all go too far. From the first few minutes of the first part, we know that flamboyance is expected to die. It is a tough (but brilliantly performed) watch.

It follows the misfortunes of neighbours Clive (David Morrisey), an electrician and Leo (Alan Cummings), an outgoing, successful bar-owner in the Manchester Gay Village.

After the final episode I didn’t sleep. I kept seeing David Morrisey’s face, a handsome face, twisted by miscomprehension, jealousy and anger. A bruised ego looking for someone to blame. I kept feeling the panic portrayed by Alan Cummings. That panic would rise and fall as I kept replaying the arguments.

Out of the darkness into the light, was it all just a trap?

Tip Toe was about the right to exist in all our glory, even when it is technicolour, garish and clashes. A right that has been fought for over my lifetime and I'm grateful for the rainbow flags, sparkle and glitter.

And then I went to see Madfabulous (2026), a vibrant period drama based loosely (some would say very loosely) on the life of Henry Cyril Paget – the 5th Marquess of Anglesey. It stars Callum Scott Howells, an actor who made his name in another Russell T Davies drama, It’s a Sin, where he played the mild-mannered, closeted gay Colin.

However, in Madfabulous he gets to be out, proud, loud and exuberant. He is a joy to watch.

Like Tip Toe the death of the protagonist is foreshadowed in the opening scenes. A consumptive cough stains red a white silk handkerchief. However, unlike Tip Toe, flamboyance is given its rightful place, as escape from the mundane, as joy, as frivolity.

Henry Cyril Paget is foisted, bereaved of his mother and then from his estranged father, into great wealth, with the only parental advice being “Be yourself!”

And the “yourself” he gets to be is glorious, ostentatious, and really not at all worldly-wise. He could be judged harshly. He was inept with money, and that affected the lives of those around him. This hits home in this current time, as we watch billionaires burn through the environment, exploiting others' labour. Problems with excess cannot be ignored. But Henry is also loved and accepted. He is enjoyed and celebrated. His hedonism is experienced as relief. Those who couldn’t enjoy his exuberance are cast as the baddies. They are more than serious; their dullness becomes blocks and obstacles.

Henry’s eccentricity was visible, alongside his naivety and this makes him vulnerable in a way that even vast wealth cannot protect. But boy, before he died, he lived.

In therapeutic speech, we reach over and gently touch the knee and say, “I see you.”

We know that it is human nature to want to have our experiences, whether trauma or love, be seen.

People fight to be seen. Then get told they’re too much.

So, if you have ever felt like you’ve been too much, I recommend Madfabulous. Revel in the loudness.

And if you ever feel that we should subdue those who are too much, I recommend Tip Toe… It will change your mind.

But that’s just my taste.

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