49 Fun Facts About Queer as Folk

The original 1999 Queer as Folk was set and filmed in which English city?

Manchester: the writer put his own experience of the city's gay scene at the heart of the script, and the series was shot on location around Canal Street.

Who wrote the original British Queer as Folk?

Russell T Davies wrote every episode himself, after a producer urged him to put his own experience of growing up gay at the heart of a script.

In the British Queer as Folk, what is the name of Stuart's baby son, born in the first episode?

Alfred is born to Stuart's lesbian friend Romey, and the news breaks into his first night with schoolboy Nathan, so Stuart heads for the hospital.

Which British broadcaster first aired the original Queer as Folk in 1999?

Channel 4 broadcast it from February 1999 but later rejected the writer's planned spin-off; he vowed not to work with the channel again and stayed away until 2015.

Who played the advertising executive Stuart Alan Jones in the British Queer as Folk?

Aidan Gillen put the script down after a first read, startled by how bold it was, then came back to it and flew over to audition.

Which actor, the writer's first choice to play Stuart in Queer as Folk, declined over his age and suggested a friend?

Christopher Eccleston felt too old for Stuart and put forward the friend who got the part; he later took the lead in the same writer's drama The Second Coming.

Who played Vince Tyler, Stuart's long-suffering best friend, in the British Queer as Folk?

Craig Kelly's Vince hides being gay at the supermarket he manages, until Stuart invites a smitten colleague to his 30th birthday party and introduces Vince's boyfriend.

Who played 15-year-old schoolboy Nathan Maloney in the British Queer as Folk?

Charlie Hunnam was 18 when he played the 15-year-old, whose night with Stuart in the opening episode set off the press row that greeted the series.

The writer of Queer as Folk says its title came from a line in which British film?

The Full Monty: on learning that two friends are gay, Mark Addy's character quotes the old Northern saying that there's nowt so queer as folk, and the line replaced the script's ruder working title.

Which firm, founded by the writer's friend Nicola Shindler, made the British Queer as Folk?

Red Production Company was newly founded when Nicola Shindler asked the writer what he wanted to write; the series, its first production, was commissioned off his opening scripts.

In Queer as Folk, what does Stuart do with a Jeep after its salesman's homophobic remarks?

Drives it through the showroom window: Stuart smashes the Jeep straight through the dealership's glass. His own Jeep, meanwhile, gets rammed by Nathan's furious father.

Which lager brand pulled its sponsorship of the British Queer as Folk partway through the first series?

Beck's pulled out halfway through the run, faced a boycott call from gay-rights campaigners, and four months later signed up to sponsor the same broadcaster's dramas again.

Which composer wrote the theme for the British Queer as Folk and won an RTS craft award for its score?

Murray Gold beat himself to that award, since his Vanity Fair score was nominated too, and the writer kept him on for his later dramas.

In the British Queer as Folk, how does Stuart and Vince's friend Phil Delaney die?

A drug overdose: Phil collapses after taking drugs with a stranger, who steals his wallet and leaves him to die; at the funeral his mother says he might be alive had he not been gay.

Antony Cotton, who played Alexander Perry in Queer as Folk, went on to play a gay character in which soap?

Coronation Street has had Cotton as barman Sean Tully since 2003. Alexander was written for Phil Collinson, but Cotton won the part; Collinson later became Coronation Street's producer.

The 2000 sequel Queer as Folk 2 was driven by which family event?

Vince's half-sister's wedding sets the two-part sequel going, and in the same episode a blackmailing nephew forces Stuart to come out to his parents at last.

Which newspaper's columnist wrote that the British Queer as Folk 'proves that we need censorship'?

Daily Mail: columnist Lynda Lee-Potter added that a nation allowing such television was 'lacking in both wisdom and self-respect', yet the show's writer said the outcry only helped.

Which pop star performs at the benefit that is bombed in the final season of the American Queer as Folk?

Cyndi Lauper headlines the fundraiser in Brian's club; the explosion that follows kills several people and makes Brian finally tell Justin he loves him.

The American Queer as Folk was set in Pittsburgh but mostly filmed in which city?

Toronto: filming there was cheaper, and the city's own gay village around Church and Wellesley streets stood in for Pittsburgh's.

Which US cable network aired the American Queer as Folk from 2000 to 2005?

Showtime expected a niche gay audience, but more than half the viewers turned out to be women, which the show's creators called the main reason it lasted five years.

Which writing duo developed and ran the American Queer as Folk?

Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman had written the 1985 TV film An Early Frost together; the network told them to use the British scripts as a launch pad, then go off and make their own show.

In the series finale of the American Queer as Folk, Justin leaves Pittsburgh for which city?

New York: Brian has only just proposed, yet he tells Justin to go and chase his art career there, and the two part after one last night together.

Who played the advertising executive Brian Kinney in the American Queer as Folk?

Gale Harold's Brian acts selfish but keeps sacrificing for others: he gets himself fired and runs up his credit cards to bring down a homophobic candidate for mayor.

In the American Queer as Folk, what nickname does Debbie give Brian's young lover Justin Taylor?

Sunshine, for his bright smile and cheery nature; the first season ends with a classmate attacking Justin with a baseball bat at his prom, leaving him in a coma for two weeks.

In Queer as Folk, Michael Novotny idolises which fictional comic-book hero?

Captain Astro: Brian hires a man in the hero's costume as a birthday present for Michael, and when the comic kills its hero off in season two, Michael goes into mourning.

In Queer as Folk, what do Michael and Justin call their comic book about a superhero based on Brian?

Rage: Justin draws it and Michael writes it, with themselves as the hero's lover and sidekick; a Hollywood studio later green-lights a film version, then pulls the plug.

In the American Queer as Folk, Emmett Honeycutt originally hails from which state?

Mississippi: Emmett often tells stories of his small-town childhood in Hazlehurst. In season two he is offered a million dollars to keep quiet about his affair with a wealthy older man who has died.

In the American Queer as Folk, what is Ted Schmidt's profession when the series begins?

Accountant: Ted is fired for surfing porn at work, so he starts his own porn website, which ends with him out on bail; he later keeps the books at Brian's agency.

In the American Queer as Folk, where does Debbie Novotny, Michael's mother, work?

Liberty Diner: Debbie works there in slogan T-shirts and a button-covered vest; in the final season she retires, gets bored and goes back.

In Queer as Folk, what is the job of Ben Bruckner, Michael's partner from season two onward?

College professor: Ben teaches gay studies and walks in as the first customer at Michael's comic shop; Debbie at first opposes the match because Ben is HIV-positive.

In Queer as Folk, what is the nickname of the teenage hustler Michael and Ben take in?

Hunter, born James Montgomery, is found working the street outside the couple's building; they win custody of him from his mother and adopt him in the finale.

What does Brian Kinney name the advertising agency he founds in season four of Queer as Folk?

Kinnetik: Brian sets it up in a disused bathhouse after losing his job, and its profits later let him buy the club where the gang spends its nights.

What is the name of the gay dance club at the centre of the American Queer as Folk?

Babylon: Brian ends up buying the club himself, and the series closes with a last dance on its floor after a bombing.

In the American Queer as Folk, what is the name of Brian's son, born in the first episode?

Gus is born to Lindsay on the night Brian meets Justin; within the first season Brian signs his parental rights over to Melanie so that the two women will reunite.

In Queer as Folk, the dull, politically correct show-within-a-show that Brian despises is called what?

Gay as Blazes: in season two Emmett goes to work for a couple who seem just like its squeaky-clean characters, until he ends up sleeping with both men and quits.

The final season of the American Queer as Folk is dominated by the fight against which anti-gay ballot measure?

Proposition 14 is the anti-gay ballot measure the characters fight throughout season five; a fundraiser against it at Brian's club is bombed, which finally pushes Brian to propose to Justin.

In the final scene of the American Queer as Folk, Brian dances to which song?

Proud, Heather Small's 2000 single, first played over a key scene between Brian and Michael in the very first episode, and it returns as the two friends dance in the ruined club at the end.

Which talk-show host plays Loretta Pye, who falls for Debbie in the final season of the American Queer as Folk?

Rosie O'Donnell plays Loretta, hired as Debbie's replacement after her marriage broke up over a kiss with a woman friend; she falls in love with Debbie, who gently turns her down.

Which actress plays Melanie Marcus, Lindsay's partner, in the American Queer as Folk?

Michelle Clunie plays Melanie, who carries the couple's second child; after the bombing in the final season she and Lindsay move to Canada to raise their children away from the hatred.

In Queer as Folk, which closeted star quarterback comes out by kissing Emmett live on the news?

Drew Boyd meets Emmett when he caters the quarterback's engagement party; their secret affair goes public with an on-air kiss in the final season that costs Emmett his job at the station.

Which cast member of the American Queer as Folk came out as gay in The Advocate in 2002?

Robert Gant came out in The Advocate in July 2002, three months after Larry King had introduced him on CNN as one of the cast's straight actors.

The 2022 reboot of Queer as Folk relocated the story to which city?

New Orleans: unlike the first American version, shot far from the city where it was set, the reboot was filmed where its story unfolds, among friends recovering from a nightclub shooting.

Which streaming service released the 2022 reboot of Queer as Folk and cancelled it after one season?

Peacock took over a reboot first developed for its sister cable network Bravo, released it in June 2022 and cancelled it that September; the first American version had run for five seasons.

Which Sex and the City star played Brenda Beaumont, mother of Brodie and Julian, in the 2022 Queer as Folk reboot?

Kim Cattrall joined the reboot as the eccentric Brenda in late 2021, just as the Sex and the City revival And Just Like That began without her character, Samantha.

At the start of the American Queer as Folk, Michael Novotny is a manager at what kind of business?

A discount superstore: Michael starts out at the Big Q, hiding his sexuality from a co-worker with a crush on him; in season two he quits to buy a comic-book shop.

What is Lindsay Peterson's profession at the start of the American Queer as Folk?

Art teacher: after a year at home with her baby, Lindsay goes to work at a gallery, where an affair with a male artist splits her from Melanie for a time.

In season four of the American Queer as Folk, which diagnosis does Brian try to hide from his friends?

Testicular cancer: Brian pretends to be off to Ibiza while he is treated and throws Justin out without saying why, but Justin works out the truth.

In the American Queer as Folk, Ted Schmidt develops an addiction to which drug?

Crystal meth takes hold of Ted in season three, after his porn business collapses; in rehab his counsellor turns out to be Blake, the ex he once checked into that clinic for the same drug.

Who created the 2022 reboot of Queer as Folk?

Stephen Dunn went back to the 1999 British original as his jumping-off point and said he set the first American version aside; the original's writer joined him as an executive producer.