Scottish actor Alan Cumming, 61, has spoken out about the rise in anti-LGBT+ prejudice and discrimination, saying he has ‘felt it quite palpably at times’ as he stars in Russell T Davies’ new Channel 4 drama Tip Toe
Alan Cumming has spoken candidly about the growing hostility he believes the LGBT+ community is facing in modern society.
The Scottish star features in Russell T Davies’s latest Channel 4 drama Tip Toe, which delves into the threats and discrimination confronting LGBT+ individuals in contemporary times.
The 61-year-old actor and TV host, celebrated for his role in Cabaret and fronting the American edition of The Traitors, revealed he has been subjected to considerable abuse on social media platforms.
“I do feel it quite palpably at times,” he told the Press Association. “I live in a very privileged, liberal queer bubble, of course, but sticking your head above the parapet to shout things means that I feel the hatred, or certainly I see it on my phone, towards myself. In my real life, thankfully, I don’t encounter much of it.”
Cumming, who runs a gay bar and nightclub in New York, explained that his employees have also observed a concerning change in atmosphere.
“Even in New York, which is very much a liberal bubble, I’ve noticed things shifting,” he said. “In my club, the young people working there are talking about feeling more anxious about taking the subway and going about their lives.”
In Tip Toe, Cumming portrays Leo, a bar owner in Manchester’s Gay Village who finds himself locked in conflict with his volatile neighbour, portrayed by David Morrissey. The drama examines herd behaviour and the most damaging threats currently facing the LGBT+ community.
“It was interesting to explore all of that in a way that isn’t sensationalist for the sake of it, though it is sensational, and rightly so, but also nuanced,” he said. “What I loved was how flawed the character is, how broken he is underneath it all. He’s very lonely and fragile, even though he presents with bravado.
“I also loved that he is HIV positive, and that it only really comes out through his anger at how people with HIV/Aids are treated. In a way, he becomes an everyman figure for queer rights and the queer movement, spanning a significant part of a person’s life experience,” Cumming continued.
“That made it a really interesting role to play. And it felt like the perfect time in my life to do it, it really was a convergence of many things.”
Davies maintains that the world has become considerably more perilous for minorities compared to 25 years ago, insisting that the digital landscape has been instrumental in fuelling hatred and discord.
“I do think it’s absolutely the fault of this online world, completely,” said the 63-year-old Welsh screenwriter. “I’ve been writing about that for a long time. Around 2015, I wrote something called Screwdriver, which was on the Channel 4 website, about the pornography children were watching.
“Then we listen to surveys saying children’s mental health is declining, and I wonder how that’s happening. Every day we’re being told things are going wrong, every survey, every crime report, every fact seems to suggest we’re in trouble. And yes, I think they’re right.”
Tip Toe is set to make its debut on Channel 4 on Sunday.
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