Drag queen's tale being developed for TV

The man behind Irish drag queen Panti Bliss has sold the rights to his story to a TV production company.

The firm, Playground, is now developing a comedy-drama based on the memoirs of  Rory O’Neill.

His book, Panti: Woman In The Making, tells of how he created his alter-ego when he was an art student in the late 1980s, then went on to run some of Dublin's hottest club nights in the 1990s and then became a  champion of gay rights – especially with a passionate speech advocating for marriage equality which went viral ahead of the 2015 vote in favour of the move.

O’Neill has since toured Panti’s one-woman stage show, High Heels In Low Places, across the world.

 Playground chief executive Colin Callender said: ‘When I heard about Rory O’Neill’s role in the recent legalisation of same-sex marriage in Ireland I had to find out more about him…

‘Rory is a genuinely unique voice and we’re excited to be working with his alter ego Panti Bliss on a series that will bring her provocative perspective on contemporary culture and the unspoken challenges that face the gay community to a mainstream television audience.’

Published: 10 Apr 2017