A Rose by any other Show

"Westerly ... Pelican ... Dreams ..."

Could you imagine my surprise … my euphoria

When there on the screen, a girl like me

The first time ever, I felt … represented

"Tornado ..."

I wish my mum was like the mother of Rose

Understanding and protective, Noble even

When cruel words shouted and written

Descending upon them the last thing in mind

"Clifftops ... Andante ..."

“I would burn down the world for you darling.”

Something my mother was not ready to say

But there on screen of a favourite show

A show watched together with my still adjusting mother

"Grief ..."

Representation

"Fingerprint ..."

Understanding

"Susurration ..."

Motherhood

Perhaps seeing how a mother should treat their daughter

"Sparrow ..."

The daughter they once thought and raised as a boy

Just perhaps that thought, that idea crept in to her mind

And my mother just perhaps saw the blooming rose in me

Began to see her daughter

"Dance ..."

Show-runner's intent to help my mother see me? Probably not

Exodus of ‘fans’ due to inclusion … predictable but worth it

"Mexico ..."

First I saw my hero as a blonde Yorkshire lass, I smiled

"Binary ... Binary ... Binary ..."

Now a companion who is just like me … just like me

"Non-Binary ..."

I cried

The Power of the Doctor

The power of love

The power of …

Representation

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I can almost guarantee that you can make most Whovians emotional or even cry simply by repeating the word 'Binary' ... the end of Series Four of 'New Who' (well before the reset back to 'Season One' ... again)

It's for that reason the first of the Doctor Who 60th anniversary specials, 'The Star Beast' is one of my favourite episodes now ... trying not to give any spoilers ... but my favourite companion returns, and maybe ... just maybe we were going to see something to undo that Series Four heart(s)break.

Do you know what I wasn't expecting when I sat down with my mother to watch the new episode ... after the shock return of a Doctor's face! (Mum's favourite Doctor, so she was keen to watch for sure) I was still missing Jodie - sure the writing and stories weren't the greatest during her run (and we don't talk about Bruno, I mean The Flux) But I loved Jodie as The Doctor! I was finally seeing a girl portray the lead in one of my favourite shows! And her exit ... was incredible and beautiful, 'Tag, your it.' Were the perfect last words for her Doctor ... but then, who's this! WHAAAT! How!? THAT Doctor is back!

I managed to avoid all spoilers and trailers for the 60th anniversary episodes, I heard a rumour that Wilf would make a return, and I cried thinking of the greatest man in the world returning, but remained ignorant of any definitive spoilers ... so when Rose popped up on screen (not 'that' Rose, a new Rose) and I saw a character that represented me ...

I fell apart, sure we can nit-pick about some things in the episode, some people claimed the trans rights aspect was too in your face ... but even as a trans girl watching, I did not know Rose was trans until a scene between her 'Noble' mother and grandmother ... I thought it was played well, a pronoun slip up and correction, but played naturally and well to give the audience this information. Then we got some plot where it was relevant, so in my head acceptable to make a point of it. (Granted the plot device stuff was where there was some weaker trans and gender diverse things that were a bit weaker/almost cringe ... but hey, it's Doctor Who, there was an episode where a guy ended up together with face in a floor tile ...

But the thing is, I loved watching such positive and powerful trans representation ... and I'd be out as trans to my mum for about a year at that point and she was still really struggling and uncomfortable. So I thought it was also good for her to see a depiction and representation of a mother being so supportive and protective of her trans daughter ... and 'Who' knows ... maybe it helped her begin to see me more fully ...

When we see people represented as just another person, we start to see the people in our own worlds that are being represented more.

Because I wasn't the only one who saw me represented that night, and that's why representation is just so so SO important!

"Laugh Hard ... Run Fast ... Be Kind."

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