ORANGES ARE NOT THE ONLY FRUIT {PART 2 OF 3} (TV)
Summary
Continued from T:31987. The second of three parts in this British comedy/drama about the childhood and coming of age of Jess, the adopted daughter of a devout fundamentalist couple, who finds herself at odds with her congregation when she awakens to her lesbianism as a teenager. In part two, Jess, now 16, meets a girl named Melanie, and they develop a close friendship. Melanie joins Jess's church after attending a conversion service led by the charismatic Jess. Mother, worried that Jess will soon start seeing boys, shares with her daughter the details of an affair she had as a young woman living in Paris, and how it almost led her astray, warning Jess not to let boys touch her or it may be her downfall. Later, Jess and Melanie share their first sexual experience, and the two fall in love. When Jess begins to assert her own will and tells her mother that she does not want to become a missionary as Mother had planned, Mother becomes suspicious, searches Jess's bedroom and learns of her romance with Melanie. Pastor Finch brings the two girls before the congregation and tells them to repent for their sins. Melanie breaks down, but Jess stands firm, announcing that she loves Melanie. The elderly Elsie collapses after standing up and berating the pastor for his cruelty. During the ensuing pandaemonium, the shy, enigmatic Miss Jewsbury spirits Jess out of the church and to her home. She tells Jess that she is a lesbian, and that Elsie has asked her to help and protect her. Returning home, Jess finds her mother, Pastor Finch, and other Society members waiting in the parlor. They proceed to tie her up, gag her, and pray over her for hours in order to "rid her of the devil." Later, an unreconstructed Jess asks Miss Jewsbury why she doesn't fight back or leave this town, where she must hide her sexual identity. Jess meets Melanie one final time, but then Melanie cuts her off and refuses to see her anymore. Jess returns to the congregation, allowing them to believe that she is "cured." Continues with T:31989.
Details
- NETWORK: BBC (United Kingdom)
- DATE: 1989
- RUNNING TIME: 0:55:23
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T:31988
- GENRE: Drama
- SUBJECT HEADING: International Collection - United Kingdom; LGBT Collection - Drama; Drama; Fundamentalist churches
- SERIES RUN: BBC (United Kingdom) - TV, 1990
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Phillippa Giles … Producer
- Beeban Kidron … Director
- Jeanette Winterson … Writer, Adapted from the novel by
- Rachel Portman … Composer
- David Snell … Conductor
- Charlotte Coleman … Cast, Jess
- Margery Withers … Cast, Elsie
- Celia Imrie … Cast, Miss Jewsbury
- Geraldine McEwan … Cast, Mother
- Cathryn Bradshaw … Cast, Melanie
- Roger Walker … Cast, the Fishmonger
- Elizabeth Spriggs … Cast, May
- Freda Dowie … Cast, Mrs. Green
- Barbara Hicks … Cast, Cissy
- Pam Ferris … Cast, Mrs. Arkwright
- Darren Scott … Cast, the Boy Next Door
- Kenneth Cranham … Cast, Pastor Finch
- Peter Gordon … Cast, William
- Richard Henders … Cast, Graham
- Tamar Swade … Cast, the Church Pianist
- Emily Aston … Cast, Small Jess