John Partridge Reveals BBC’s Secret Rule for Gay Couples on EastEnders
A Behind-the-Scenes Restriction
Former EastEnders star John Partridge has lifted the lid on a surprising rule that once governed same-sex storylines on the BBC soap. Speaking on Good Morning Britain, the actor revealed that during his on-screen romance with Marc Elliott’s Syed Masood, the pair were told that only one of them could remove their shirt in bedroom scenes.
Partridge, who played Christian Clarke from 2008–2012 and again between 2014–2016, described the restriction as an example of lingering inequality in television.
“Only One of Us Was Allowed”
“Funny thing is, when Marc Elliott and I would do any scenes in the bedroom, only one of us was allowed to have our shirt off,” Partridge recalled. “Because we were a gay couple. Any other scenes in soaps or TV dramas, heterosexual couples are allowed to show as much skin as they like, but we were not allowed to do that — and that was recently.”
Asked whether he and Elliott ever joked about who would bare their chest, Partridge laughed: “Needless to say, I was the one who had his top off.”
He added more seriously: “That just goes to show that [homophobia] is alive and well.”
Life Beyond EastEnders
Partridge was appearing on the morning show to promote his new stage production The Code, a dark comedy about Hollywood’s hidden rules and the silenced lives of gay actors in the 1950s.
The actor plays silent film star William “Billy” Haines, who chose love over career when pressured to hide his sexuality. The Code runs at Southwark Playhouse Elephant until 11 October.