I just finished watching Queerstralia , which is a three-part documentary about the hidden history of LGBTQIA+ people in Australia. It’s hosted by a comedian named Zoe Coombs Marr. To be honest, I didn't know who she was before this, so it took me a little while to get used to her specific style of joking around. The show covers a huge amount of time, starting from when Australia was a prison colony for the British all the way to famous movies like Priscilla, Queen of the Desert . It looks at how being gay was treated as a crime, the stories of trans pioneers, and even "bushrangers" (outlaws) who dressed in clothes of the opposite sex. It also goes into the history of the Mardi Gras festival, drag culture, and how gay marriage finally became legal there. The host starts the show by jokingly saying, "I’m a comedian, I’m not qualified," which tells you right away it's not going to be a stiff or boring history lesson. Over three episodes that are an hour long...
The host starts the show by jokingly saying, "I’m a comedian, I’m not qualified," which tells you right away it's not going to be a stiff or boring history lesson. Over three episodes that are an hour long each, Zoe talks about things like lesbian convict gangs and a gay outlaw named Captain Moonlight. She also covers the "78ers," who were the original activists at the first Mardi Gras, the violence they faced, and the AIDS crisis. A writer named Nayuka Gorrie joins in to talk about the experiences of First Nations people. Together, they interview people like activist Peter de Waal, Aunty Dawn Daylight, and a trans teacher named Dr. Yves Rees.
The first episode focuses on the law and how the original prison colony was nicknamed the "Sodom of the South Pacific." Because of that reputation, the government tried to send more women there to change things. It’s wild that sex between men was illegal in some parts of Australia until the mid-seventies, and the state of Tasmania didn't change its laws until 1997. Because it was illegal, most of this history only shows up in old police records or court cases. The second episode looks at how gender and identity shaped the local gay community. The third episode is about how the community is made up of many different cultures. They talk about reclaiming Australian slang words like "poofter" and explain Indigenous terms like "Sistergirl" and "Brotherboy." This last episode also shows how different groups worked together during the AIDS crisis to fight for their rights.
I think Queerstralia is a good, funny look at a history that is way too big to tell in just three hours. It’s not a dry or formal TV show, and it’s definitely not "cute" or "polite." It’s meant to be funny and a bit sarcastic. It moves around a lot, but that helps it get to the interesting parts quickly. It's usually a fun watch, except for the parts that are really sad, and I thought that balance worked well. My main issue is that a show like this feels very "local." I think the topics will mean a lot more to people living in Australia than to anyone else. Because I wasn't familiar with the humor or the locations, my attention kept wandering. That doesn't mean the show was bad, I just think it will mostly appeal to people who live there. For me, only some parts really worked, so I'd say it was just an average documentary.
It's a bold and funny look at a past that most people haven't heard about, told with a lot of personality. While it's a great deep dive for Australians, the specific jokes and locations might make it hard for outsiders to stay focused. (5/10)
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