Mundane transphobia in Celebrity Big Brother UK

Abstract

Trans people have long experienced visibility within the media. Historically, such visibility has been largely negative, reliant upon pathologising understandings of trans people's lives. More recent representations, however, have been somewhat more positive, with a range of media outlets seeking to understand and include trans people's experiences. Yet despite this shift, media representations of trans people are arguably still sensationalist and often perpetuate mundane, though no less marginalising, forms of transphobia. This paper presents an analysis of interactions that occurred in the 2013 season of Celebrity Big Brother UK between a trans housemate - Lauren Harries - and three cisgender housemates. The analysis highlights four forms of mundane transphobia: 1) jocular mockery, 2) discounting discrimination, 3) focusing on anatomy, and 4) liberal inclusivity. The paper concludes by exploring implications both for media representations of trans people and for how cisgender people engage with trans people's experiences more broadly.