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Watch Doctor Who's David Tennant tell anti-trans bigot to “f—k off" in powerful speech
Our fave Time Lord is a trans ally!
A former Doctor Who star just told anti-trans bigots to “f—k off and let people be,” and we couldn’t be happier about it!
At a time when trans and nonbinary people have become the focus of conservatives around the world and famous people like J.K. Rowling spew anti-LGBTQ+ hate every chance they get, it’s refreshing to hear actor (and proud parent of a nonbinary child) David Tennant stick up for this marginalized community.
On May 5, Tennant, who played the 10th Doctor on Doctor Who, appeared at the Proud Nerds: Angels, Demons and Doctors convention in Germany and was asked what about his relationship to gender expression, The Pink News reports.
“When I was a kid, the idea of being non-binary wasn’t something that existed. It wasn’t a concept. I’ve seen that emerge and people are able to express themselves through that. It only ever seems positive as far as I can see,” Tennant said in a video clip shared on TikTok that has already racked up more than 40,000 likes.
@mandlebougie the 'woah!' and 'brilliant' at me naming myself alonzo and having his career as a special interest😭🥹 #davidtennant #proudnerd ♬ original sound - ten
This is far from the first time Tennant has spoken out about trans rights. While promoting his role in Good Omens, he wore a rainbow lapel pin and a t-shirt that read, “Leave trans kids alone, you absolute freaks" to an official press day and shared the photos on his Instagram. He’s also been seen wearing other Pride pins, including a nonbinary flag and a rainbow one in the shape of a Tardis. Last year, on Transgender Day of Remembrance he even appeared on the One Show wearing the pin, the sales of which were used to raise money for the LGBTQ+ youth charity The Albert Kennedy Trust.
David Tennant taking a press day as an opportunity to wear his “stick up for trans kids and dunk on transphobes” shirt is the most attractive thing a man has ever done pic.twitter.com/4NSHH6bS8G
— jake (@earthisalibra) July 10, 2023
“When I was a teenager, I remember gay rights being weaponized politically. That always felt ugly and nasty. We look back on that, 30 years later, and those people are clearly on the wrong side of history,” he explained in the video.
Then, he said that right-wing zealots should just “let people be” and was met with laughter and applause.
“Now, there is a similar weaponization of these topics being taken by mostly the right wing, or certain sections of society, trying to create friction and conflict and division where it needn’t be. It’s just about people being themselves. You don’t need to be bothered about it. F**k off and let people be,” Tennant said.
The 53-year-old star explained that he wants “people to be allowed to exist” and that the “ways of expressing gender identity [and] sexuality are more nuanced than they once were, and that only seems to be positive. If that helps people to know who they are, say who they are, and communicate to the world who they are, it’s just common sense.”
It’s refreshing to watch people with a big audience use that platform to speak out for what they believe in and stand up for trans rights. This is the kind of allyship we love to see!
Ariel Messman-Rucker is an Oakland-born journalist who now calls the Pacific Northwest her home. When she’s not writing about politics and queer pop culture, she can be found reading, hiking, or talking about horror movies with the Zombie Grrlz Horror Podcast Network.
Ariel Messman-Rucker is an Oakland-born journalist who now calls the Pacific Northwest her home. When she’s not writing about politics and queer pop culture, she can be found reading, hiking, or talking about horror movies with the Zombie Grrlz Horror Podcast Network.
