Playback speed
×
Share post
Share post at current time
0:00
/
0:00

Paid episode

The full episode is only available to paid subscribers of The Same Drugs

EARLY ACCESS AND UNCUT: Graham Linehan went from beloved TV writer to hated TERF in a moment, and it ruined his life

I spoke with comedy writer Graham Linehan about how he lost his career, marriage, and mental health to speak out against gender identity ideology

Graham Linehan was a well-known, well-liked, successful TV writer, living his dream in a career he loved and worked hard at. Speaking up in defense of women's rights and spaces changed all that, almost in an instant.

In 2018, gender identity ideology took over, seemingly out of nowhere. Graham felt his response to this extreme shift in law and culture was not just reasonable, but obvious: women's spaces matter, kids should not be put on hormones or have their bodies mutilated, men are not women... He saw trans activism as dangerous and explained why. But nothing he said mattered. The moment Graham was labelled a TERF, he became persona non grata. He lost his career, his friends, his Twitter account, his mental health, and his marriage.

Still, he didn't back down or give up the fight.

In 2023, Graham published his memoir. Tough Crowd tells the story of how he started out in music writing, moving into comedy and television, then how it all was taken from him.

I spoke with him about what happened, how it impacted him, and whether or not Taylor Swift really deserves the fandom she has acquired.

The video version of this interview has been made available in full and for early access to paid subscribers only. An edited version of the audio interview will be made available to the public at a later date.

Give a gift subscription

Listen to this episode with a 7-day free trial

Subscribe to The Same Drugs to listen to this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.

The Same Drugs
The Same Drugs
Meghan Murphy and guests embrace authenticity, and have real, honest discussions about culture, politics, relationships, internet wars, the media social justice, cancel culture, and more. Conversations outside the algorithm.