Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit (TV serial)

Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit
Charlotte Coleman and Geraldine McEwan in Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit
Format	Drama
Created by	Jeanette Winterson
Starring	Charlotte Coleman Geraldine McEwan Kenneth Cranham Cathryn Bradshaw
Opening theme	Rachel Portman
Country of origin	UK
No. of episodes	3
Production
Running time	165 minutes
Broadcast
Original channel	BBC Two
Original run	10 January 1990 – 24 January 1990

Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit was a critically acclaimed 1990 BBC television drama, directed by Beeban Kidron. Jeanette Winterson wrote the screenplay, adapting her semi-autobiographical first novel of the same name (published 1985). The BBC produced and screened three episodes, running to a total of 2 hours and 45 minutes. The series was released on DVD in 2005.^[1]

Storyline

Charlotte Coleman starred as Jess, a girl growing up in a Pentecostal evangelical household in Lancashire, England in the 1970s, who comes to understand that she is a lesbian. The allegorical fairytales that are woven into the novel do not appear on the screen. Miss Jewsbury's love-making with the underage Jess, which appears in the novel, was also excluded. Even with these cuts the series caused controversy when shown due to the remaining lesbian sex scenes and its portrayal of the Elim Pentecostal faith.

Awards

The series won the BAFTA award for Best Drama.

Further reading

• Hallam, J. & Marshment, M. "Framing Experience: Case Studies in the Reception of Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit" Screen No. 36, 1995: pp. 1-15
• Hinds, H. ([1992] 1996) "Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit: reaching audiences other lesbian texts cannot reach" In: J. Corner & S. Harvey (eds) Television Times: A Reader London: Arnold, pp. 98-110; ISBN 0-340-65233-0

References

1. ^ New York Times

External links

• Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit at the British Film Institute
• Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit at the BFI's Screenonline
• Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit (TV serial) at the Internet Movie Database

Preceded by Mother Love

British Academy Television Awards Best Drama Series or Serial 1991

Succeeded by Inspector Morse