The Proclaimers say trans lobby are “truth-phobic” and defend Graham Linehan

The Proclaimers have hit out at trans-rights activists as “truth-phobic” and defended the controversial Father Ted creator Graham Linehan for his comments on the subject.

1. How NBA 2K became the evolved rap version of FIFA’s indie-obsessed soundtrack.
2. Natanya – ‘Attitude Era!’ review: nostalgic, playful, spunky pop for those who love life left-field.
3. Teddie Allen is taking everything in her stride.
4. Spellbinding singer-songwriter Nomi. is finding her own frequency.
5. It’s time to get in Gabriel Jacoby’s corner.

The ‘I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)’ Scottish duo, formed of twin brothers Craig and Charlie Reid, shared the comment in a new interview with The Times, promoting their new album ‘You May Offend’.

The brothers shared their disagreement about the Gender Recognition Reform bill passed in Scotland in 2022 by the Scottish National Party, which made it easier for trans people living there to change their gender legally.

Craig disse que acreditava que a medida causou “done real damage”, e alegou que isso levou a “violent men, including convicted rapists” serem enviados para prisões de mulheres.

He added that he is “not transphobic”, but just against how “people have lost their careers” by saying “a woman is an adult human female”. He also said that anyone who tries to do so is “shouted down by 0.

5 per cent” who “are male and who think that because they put on a dress, and they put on makeup, that that makes them a female”.

Ahead of provocative new album named You May Offend, Craig and Charlie Reid talk about their anger at the SNP, Western warmongering and the imperilment of free speech.

Read the interview with The Proclaimers here ⤵️https://t.co/UFFUUzSIJG pic.twitter.com/dzVmgNXv71.

Craig added: “I’m not transphobic. I’m not against a man identifying as a woman, dressing as a woman. I’m not against any of that. All I’m against is saying that he actually is a woman when he’s not a woman.

They also added that they wrote their new album in response to how “people are getting scared to say what they think because people are being cancelled”, and went on to defend Father Ted creator Graham Linehan – who has made headlines idue to his anti-transgender views, and being a vocal opponent of concepts including gender self-identification.

Back in 2022, Linehan was temporarily banned from Twitter for sharing tweets that many considered to be transphobic – including commenting “Men aren’t women tho” in reply to a post by the Women’s Institute, wishing their trans members a happy Pride Month.

In 2018, he was issued with a verbal harassment warning by police after he was involved in an online row with a transgender activist, and in 2022 his comments also led to a Father Ted musical being axed.

Lambrini Girls replied: “If we’re playing the ‘what about the children’ card, here’s a statistic: Su*c*de is the highest among transgender youth amongst any other youth group- because of hate from people like you and the fact they can’t access vital gender affirming surgery.

Last year, Chris O’Dowd – who played Roy Trenneman in sitcom The IT Crowd, which Linehan created, wrote and directed – also weighed in on the writer’s controversial comments, saying that he wishes the press would discuss Linehan’s views with him more rather than sowing “division”.

For help, advice or more information about trans rights, visit Mermaids – a UK charity that supports transgender, non-binary, and gender-diverse young people and their relatives.

The world's defining voice in music and pop culture: breaking what's new and what's next since 1952.

When you purchase through affiliate links on NME.com, you may contribute to our site through commissions. Learn More.

NME Networks, a part of Caldecott Music Group. All rights reserved.