It took me a long time to find that the word trans was for me. I didn’t really know that trans men existed when I was growing up, and though I’ve always used films and TV as an escape to explore new worlds and meet new characters, for a long time I never came across a character like me. It felt like I was alone. I didn’t know any other trans men in my real life, and was desperate to see someone on screen who was like me.
Finally, over the last few years, I’ve had the joy of seeing more TV shows and films that represent trans characters, showcasing their full lives and personalities. On Trans Day of Visibility, it’s more important than ever that we discuss trans representation, because trans characters have the power to make trans young people like me feel seen.
My family’s favourite soap, Emmerdale, introduced its first trans male character in 2018 called Matty Barton. Before this, I had never seen a character in the media that I saw myself in. I was still in the closet at the time, but it felt like a huge victory to be represented on a show so big.
He was a returning character, so he already had a connection to longtime viewers, and was likely the first time many of them had even seen a trans man. A trans actor, Ash Palmisciano, was even cast in the role! Watching Ash play Matty in Emmerdale was so important to me. It told me that trans men can be actors who can tell their own stories.
His storyline covered coming out, his transition and getting top surgery, falling in love, and being a member of the community. His character allowed me to start the conversation about being trans with people in my life, and helped them to understand my experience.
This made it easier when I came out to my family as a trans man because they had already seen Matty go through some of the changes I wanted. It felt less scary because I had a character I could relate my feelings to, who I could use to explain what I was going through. Even though Matty was just a character, he made me feel less alone.
