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Leeds Beckett Principal Lecturer involved with Blue Jean film
A Leeds Beckett academic has played a key role in a critically acclaimed new film which shines a light on a controversial law which banned the ‘promotion of homosexuality’ in schools.
Sarah Squires, a Principal Lecturer in Physical Education in the Carnegie School of Sport, has helped to inspire and then bring to life the storyline of the ‘turmoil, pain and anguish’ of a gay PE teacher in Tyneside as ‘Section 28’ was introduced in 1988.
Introduced by Margaret Thatcher’s government in 1988, Section 28 prevented the 'promotion of homosexuality' in any local authority funded setting including schools. It remained in effect until 2000 in Scotland and 2003 in England and Wales.
Sarah advised on scripts, costumes and authenticity as filmmakers drew on her own story, captured in unique research by Professor Andrew Sparkes, now a Professor at Carnegie School of Sport.
Blue Jean stars Rosy McEwen (Jean) and has already received critical acclaim with The Telegraph saying “this brave British debut is surely a slam-dunk masterpiece” in their five-star review.
This is your story, you need to tell it
During the early nineties, Sarah was part of a research project when she was training to be a teacher at Exeter University. As a mature student, Sarah had lived in London, attended Gay Pride and was out since she was 18. When she joined the teacher training course at Exeter, she met Dr Andrew Sparkes, now a Professor at Carnegie School of Sport. As part of a research project, Andrew interviewed Sarah about her experiences of becoming a PE teacher in the era of Section 28.
In the years that followed, Andrew published several papers using Sarah’s life history. As Sarah explains, the research was radical, “There was certainly nothing positive about being gay at that time. There were no role models anywhere in film, TV or any media. There was nothing out there, so the research was ground-breaking.
“Basically, Andrew encouraged me to continue with this type of research saying, ‘this is your story, you need to tell it’. I then found five women of different ages and interviewed them and then published something out of my own MPhil research called The Circles of Silence.”
In the film, lead character Jean plays a PE teacher as the law is about to be passed. The legislation forces Jean to live a double life. When a new student arrives and threatens to expose her, Jean is pushed to extreme lengths to keep her job and her integrity.
Research makes a difference
In 2018, writer-director Georgia Oakley started work on a screenplay about the life of a lesbian PE teacher, set in Newcastle in the eighties. The filmmakers got in touch with Sarah and made several visits to Leeds. Sarah advised on scripts, met with costume designers and provided photographs to help make the film as genuine as possible, Sarah explains, “It’s not autobiographical and was never going to be about my story, but they wanted to make it authentic. They used me and Professor Catherine Lee from Anglia Ruskin University as main advisors. Covid stopped everything, but they got funding from the BFI and the BBC and started shooting the film in February 2022.
“You conduct research and you never really know when you put things in academic papers who is going to read and if it’s going to make a difference. This is evidence that putting things in academic journals can really make a difference.”
It’s been quite a journey
Sarah was invited to the set during the filming of Blue Jean, the film’s producer took her to one side and showed her a scene they’d shot in the staff room. “What they had was one of the politicians of the time in the House of Commons extolling the virtues of Section 28 to protect the lives and minds of the vulnerable youth, that was the rhetoric of the time. The scene was Rosy McEwen’s face to camera and staff milling around her, all agreeing with the politician. She says nothing, but the look on her face portrayed to me such turmoil, pain and anguish that I was brought to tears just watching that very short clip.
“It’s making me emotional just thinking about it now. It had the effect of transporting me back to what it was like. Being that teacher in the eighties who was so stifled, gagged and unable to be who you were. You didn’t really want to talk to people in the staff room in case they asked you what you did at the weekend, as you’d have to lie. You couldn’t properly form relationships with colleagues or kids. PE is a physical subject but going into the changing rooms was a nightmare for me. I’d just go in and out and didn’t want to be there in case anyone thought I was looking at them. That’s what we were living with, but you got on with it, because your passion was teaching kids and sport and PE. It was never going to put me off, but it made me manage myself in a very different way. I think I did it without realising the impact it had on me at the time.
“I met with Rosy McEwen before filming started. She was extraordinary. We had a long Skype meeting at the start of the year, and after watching the staff room scene on set, I had to hug her. She’s an actor and famous, but it didn’t stop me needing to thank her for what she was doing. She was hugging me, and I was hugging her, but it was also like I was hugging my younger, former self. I had the same reaction when seeing the premier of the film in Venice, I was so moved by the film that I had to thank Rosy for such an authentic portrayal of what life was like for us back then. It’s been quite a journey.”
Blue Jean’s world premier was at the Venice Film festival where it won the people’s choice award. The film premiers in the UK on Saturday 8 October 2022 at the 2022 BFI London Film Festival. Full UK release date TBC.