Channel 4 in the UK are running a 4 part documentry following 7 transsexuals who have been given the chance to get together to share their experiences & help each other with the hurdles they face.

The 1st episode had me in tears several times, partly due to relating to the problems these people face & partly because I felt very jealous that these people have a unique opportunity to meet people going through the transition (something many of us never get to experience), it made me realise how alone we are in our individual journeys.
Whilst discussing our problems on this forum is a great help it will never be a substitute for human interaction, nothing beats being able to read a persons expression & body language, it's this missing element that I believe results in some of the arguments & crossed wires that we often see on these pages.

Anyways. . . . . I thought I would put a link to last weeks episode, I don't know if this link will work for those outside the UK (i hope it does work for you all) but here it is anyways.

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/my-transsexual-summer/4od

Thanks for sharing that with us I'll be sure to give it a watch.

This is the link for episode 2, once again I was reduced to tears watching this as Susan took the plunge & told her mother, the thing that really got to me was the support Susan recieved from Drews mum before taking this huge step & how well susans mum took the news.
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/my-transsexual-summer/4od

Within minutes of being given the news Susans mum asked what name she had chosen for herself & it hit home how badly things are between me & my own mother, after almost 10 months of knowing my plans to transition my mother still doesnt know what name i've chosen for myself, anytime the subject is raised i'm immediately met with put downs & condemnation so i've not managed to discuss anything of value, let alone my new name.
Then Drew explained how her life has come to a halt since she started transitioning, both these womens experiences seem very close to my own & their strength is an inspiration to me, once again after watching this show I cried myself to sleep, then within minutes of waking up I was in tears again.
I'm finding this very hard to watch but it's compelling viewing, several of my work mates have watched this & it's increased their understanding of what myself & others go through to transition, i'm extremely gratefull to all the people at work who've been understanding about this & would like to say a big thank you to all those responsible for this show & their attempt to increase public understanding, they've made a hard time a bit easier to handle.

For those outside of the UK, if you don't know how to set up a proxy server (don't ask me i'm clueless about that kind of stuff) i've found CH4's you tube channel, here's the link, I hope it works for you all

http://www.youtube.com/show/mytransexualsummer

http://www.youtube.com/user/therealityspot#p/u/12/cts4nFWHvDs

I'm so glad this is available to watch online!

I have been watching it as it's been aired and really enjoying it. It's done very very well and it's a nice mix of different kinds of people who all happen to be trans.

The last link worked for me.  Watched about half....I'm hooked but have to get back to work for now.

I don't watch television!   It is wonderful just how calm and peaceful you become after a while.   

right on the loneliness. Even with 6 kids, work people, and Friends support, I still feel lonely.

I guess that is why I come here, to remind myself that I am not alone -thanks for remind me.

Jen61

PS It is so refreshing to find a thread that it is no high jacked by the "jail" crowd

Elle, a big thank you goes out to you for finding a link that works for those that can't use the links i've put up 


Jeatyn, I agree that ch4 have found a very good mix of people, they've managed to cover a wide range of trans people with only 7 people, now that word has gotten out at work more & more people have been catching up with this & this has increased understanding amongst the people I deal with on a daily basis, i'm very gratefull to ch4 for their efforts to raise awareness.

JulieC, I know what you mean about being hooked, even though I know that i'll probably get tearfull i'm eagerly awaiting the next episode.

Happy Girl, I know where you are coming from, I gave up watching the news many years ago & it made me a much happier person, nowdays my viewing is normaly limited to sci-fi, I do make an exception for don't tell the bride, come dine with me & Neighbours (my shamefull secret is out now  )

Jen61, if it wasn't for this wonderfull forum then i'd be completely isolated from my fellow transfolk so a huge thank you to all the dedicated people who keep this forum going.

What do you mean by the "jail" crowd? I've not heard that term before

When I clicked to see what I could , it said the channel wasn't available to me . That's a shame as I'm always interested in how people are coping in this difficult period . ellen

wow that is pretty cool serial

Quote from: eshaver on November 18, 2011, 07:46:23 AM
When I clicked to see what I could , it said the channel wasn't available to me . That's a shame as I'm always interested in how people are coping in this difficult period . ellen

It's on UTube but that may be blocked for you as well. 

We all understand the reasons why program and DVD makers think they need to do this. But in reality, it will do little to stop pirating, since anyone so inclined can easily find ways to get round these restrictions.

All that the national coding really achieves is to effectively censor information for the law abiding.

Still, as a working class pleb, it's unliklely the luvies of the media are interested in anything I might say. Not unless I say it on my mobile phone!!

Perhaps Channel4 hope to sell the program to the USA for huge bucks where it will become a TV sensation, on a par with the shooting of JR. Wish them luck with that.

In the mean time, it is very sad that you and others outside the UK can't see it.

Quote from: eshaver on November 18, 2011, 07:46:23 AM
When I clicked to see what I could , it said the channel wasn't available to me . That's a shame as I'm always interested in how people are coping in this difficult period . ellen

If you are in the UK & have either cable or a ps3 then try 4od, it can be found through either of these providers, 4od also have the program on their you tube site.
If you are outside the UK then try the link that elle2011 posted.

If none of those work then let me know what country you are in & i'll see if I can find a link that will work for you

If you do a google search then there are sites for setting up proxy servers to view 4od outside the UK (what the hells a proxy server anyway??) like I said i'm a bit of a yahoo when it comes to computers 

You clearly know a ton more than I do. 

I admit that it is almost impossible to watch the show from italy trough an ipad2!!!!
Hope someone has more clues about it, i tried proxy sites but well... Impossible for an ipad...

Quote from: Sweet Blue Girl on November 18, 2011, 01:28:30 PM
I admit that it is almost impossible to watch the show from italy trough an ipad2!!!!
Hope someone has more clues about it, i tried proxy sites but well... Impossible for an ipad...

Sorry to hear that it's hard to watch through an ipad, I have no idea about them fancy things (I saw one on tv once & there ends my knowledge!!  ) Each episode stays availabe for about 4 weeks so if you can get to a pc in that time frame you may still be able to watch it.

Quote from: spacial on November 18, 2011, 11:38:37 AM
You clearly know a ton more than I do. 

I wouldn't bet on it, when I manage to turn on a pc without it blowing up i'm like  then after 5 minutes i'm like  & then after a further 10 minutes i'm like 

They're pretty easy to download as a torrent .

I've got very mixed feelings about the show itself, having just watched the first two episodes. It's all a bit glib and soap opera, the impression it gave about the current success of phalloplasty was very misleading I thought, and for me of course there's the constant "trans women all want to be girly-girls" that leaves me feeling very excluded and isolated. But I hope to see them all becoming more and more happy, because that's the point.

Donna doesn't strike me as pushing the girly girly

She is actually exactly how I was as a girl very loud and butch and in your face

With the wide range of personalities & orientations I think it's impossible to cover all types of people with only 7 participants.

Padma, I understand where you are coming from saying about it being a bit glib & soap opera but this program is the best i've seen on transexualism so far, there was a program on cable early this year that featured one ftm & one mtf each episode & it seemed that every mtf was the stereotyped man in a wig who couldn't pass infront of a blind person.

Television producer have a long way to go in the education of joe public & this program is a good start in spite of a few niggles