I'm Gay
by Little Britain
Writers - Lucas/Walliams/Arnold
First released - 2006
Original album - (none)
Subsequent albums - (none)
Other releases - (none)
The Pet Shop Boys have done a remix (which, as far as I know, still has not yet been officially released) of this song by the comedy team of David Walliams and Matt Lucas, better known collectively by the name of their hit U.K. TV show Little Britain (and who may be best known by many PSB fans for their starring role in the "I'm with Stupid" video). The original recorded version of "I'm Gay" was released on iTunes in early December 2006. A novelty number sung by Lucas in the role of his popular character Daffyd, "the only gay in the village," it has been regularly performed as the finale of Little Britain's wildly successful touring stage show. Though it's assured either to delight or offend depending on the particular sensitivities of the listener, the fact that Lucas himself is gay in "real life" helps mitigate the offensiveness factor—at least for some.
The lyrics consist of little more than a recitative of different ways of Daffyd saying that he's gay, including "poofter," "bum boy," "sausage jockey," "faggot," references to his "packing fudge," and avowals of his fondness for certain portions of the male anatomy. It's basically a one-joke affair, the only twist coming near the end when, as has often been suggested on the TV show, Daffyd reveals that he's never actually yet "been" with a man, though he certainly hopes to eventually.
As for the music, it starts out with a dramatic piano bit strongly reminiscent of "I Will Survive." But, like that classic disco track, it soon launches into full-fledged uptempo dance mode. It quickly takes on techno flourishes, followed by a full-throated male chorus providing backing vocals. At this point the song becomes a stylistic parody of the Pet Shop Boys' rendition of "Go West," continuing in that vein for the remainder of the track. This is hardly a surprising development considering not only the associations of PSB in general and that song in particular with "gayness" but also Walliams's and Lucas's well-documented PSB fandom—especially in the former's case.
Although Internet rumor has maintained that Neil and Chris were the producers and/or co-writers of this song, that's not the case since both the Boys and Little Britain have referred to them solely as remixers. The official PSB website notes that the songwriters are, not surprisingly, Lucas and Walliams themselves along with film composer David Arnold. It also says that the PSB remix is "more 'pop'" than the original.
List cross-references
- Artists with whom PSB have collaborated
- "Performance parodies" of the Pet Shop Boys (and some borderline cases)
All text on this website aside from direct quotations (such as of lyrics and of other nonoriginal content) is copyright © 2001-2017 by Wayne Studer. All Rights Reserved. All lyrics and images are copyright © their respective dates by their respective owners. Brief quotations and small, low-resolution images are used for identification and critical commentary, thereby constituting Fair Use under U.S. copyright law. Billboard chart data are copyright © their respective dates by Nielsen Business Media, Inc.