Banana (TV series)

Banana
Company type	Television series
Industry	Television
Founded	2015
Founder	Russell T Davies
Headquarters	Manchester, United Kingdom
Products	Television drama series
Website	www.channel4.com/programmes/banana

Banana is a British TV series from 2015, developed by Russell T Davies and broadcast on E4. Serving as a companion piece to Channel 4's Cucumber and the online documentary Tofu available on 4oD, Banana centers on the experiences of LGBT youth in Manchester, broadening the storyline introduced in Cucumber. While Cucumber is a contained narrative focusing on a single gay man, Banana takes the form of an anthology series that delves into a wider array of LGBT identities. The show received a nomination for the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding TV Movie or Limited Series.

The series expands upon characters from Cucumber and introduces new figures, primarily functioning as an independent narrative with occasional intersections. The titles correspond to a scale measuring erection hardness, where Banana signifies an intermediate phase between the flaccid Tofu and the fully erect Cucumber.

Development

Commissioned alongside Cucumber and the web documentary Tofu in 2013, Banana takes its name from a urological firmness scale: progressing through tofu, peeled banana, banana, and finally, cucumber. Whereas Cucumber focuses on middle-aged gay men, this series highlights younger LGBT individuals who exist around the edges of the main storyline. Both shows are connected through Dean Monroe (played by Fisayo Akinade), a key figure appearing in each, illustrating a contrast between the "open and confident" attitudes of younger LGBT people and the more reserved expression of sexuality among older activists portrayed in Cucumber.

In contrast to Davies’ earlier work, such as the 1999–2000 series Queer as Folk, which depicted gay men immersed in Manchester's Canal Street nightlife, Banana adopts an anthology format emphasizing diverse young LGBT characters. Importantly, it features comedian Bethany Black as Helen—the first transgender actor cast in a transgender role on UK television. Davies was adamant about authentic casting, revising scripts until Black was secured for the part. Black commended this approach, noting its difference from cisgender portrayals like Jared Leto’s role in Dallas Buyers Club. Helen’s episode includes an encounter with Cleo Wilkinson (Julie Hesmondhalgh) from Cucumber, symbolizing a "passing of the baton" between Hesmondhalgh—who famously played transgender character Hayley Cropper in Coronation Street—and Black’s representation of transgender identity.

Production

Filming took place between June and September 2014.

Episodes

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International broadcast

The show made its US debut on Logo TV on 13 April 2015 but attracted only 24,000 viewers—less than half the audience that tuned into Cucumber. It is also broadcast on SBS Two in Australia, accessible via TVNZ OnDemand in New Zealand, and available through Hulu for viewers in the United States.

External links