EE: Syed - the new Masood (Marc Elliot)

[Skylace]

Oh boy! He's a cutie! Those eyes had me all weak in the knees. Glad he is staying on the Square but hooking up with Janine? Who will get burned worst in the end?

[pirtybirdy]

The more I see him, the more I drool........He's sizzlin' hot! Thank you so very much EE!!! He is a very nice piece of eye candy! Actually, Todd isn't too bad either, but he's a boy. A few more years and I'll be drooling over Todd too! lol!! EE has answered some of my prayers(figuratively of course..) lol!

[SpursFan1902]

He is a cutie, but I like his Dad better. I love the grin and the twinkle in his eye when he is winding Z up or how sweetly he tries to get back in her good graces. They are finally getting some male eye candy on this show!!

[Skylace]

I'm with you on Todd as well pirty. Those dark of his are yummy.

And Spurs, you're so right about Masood. I love him as well. He's got the best smile!

[Twirley]

Ooooh...I've got some catching up to do!!

[eefanincan]

Me too, Twirls! Me too!

[faceless]

EastEnders: Muslim character to have gay love affair
Muslim property developer to share on-screen kiss with gay caterer in 'traditional love affair with a modern multicultural twist'
Leigh Holmwood and Gareth McLean
guardian.co.uk,
28 May 2009

EastEnders is to tackle one of the last taboos left in soap, with a storyline featuring a Muslim character embarking on a gay love affair. MediaGuardian.co.uk can reveal that the plot, which will hit screens in mid-June, will see Syed Masood, a Muslim property developer with a girlfriend who arrived in Albert Square six weeks ago, fall for openly gay Christian Clarke. The pair will share an on-screen kiss.

The BBC has billed the storyline as a "traditional love affair, albeit with a modern multicultural twist". The BBC1 soap's production team researched the plot, which is bound to prove controversial with some viewers, contacting academics, gay Muslim support groups and members of the Muslim Council of Great Britain. In the storyline, the 24-year-old Masood, played by Marc Elliott, finds his "religion and sexual feelings in conflict". The character is currently dating Amira Shah as well as trying to work his way back into his family's good books following his flight after losing money from the family business.

Diederick Santer, the EastEnders executive producer, said: "We've always tried to make EastEnders reflect modern life in multicultural Britain and we've always told social issue stories relevant to our diverse audience. "This isn't a moral tale of right or wrong; it's very much a human interest story where a young man struggles with the conflict between his faith and his feelings. In this regard, it's not dissimilar to the story we told when Dot Cotton's deeply held Christian beliefs came into conflict with her desire to alleviate Ethel's suffering [in a euthanasia plotline]."

"To all intents and purposes, Syed's a 'good' Muslim man: he doesn't drink, smoke or engage in sex before marriage. But he struggles with his sexuality when he finds himself drawn to Christian and he believes this goes against his faith. This is not a story about Syed and Christian's physical relationship – we don't see anything beyond one kiss. It's more about the inner turmoil and conflict Syed endures trying to remain true to his faith while questioning his sexuality. Syed has already been ostracised from his family and community once and if he's true to his heart he risks losing his family again."

The Masood family was introduced in 2007 following criticism that a previous Asian family, the Ferreiras, were not authentic. The intention was to develop the Masoods as "rounded human beings tackling the issues of day-to-day life in Albert Square", Santer said. "The dynamics of Muslim relationships and families are not radically different from any others but the importance that Muslim culture places on family and married life can make the same issues more charged."

Although the storyline will focus on Masood's struggle with his sexuality, Santer said there would be a "balance of opinions" including that of his more conservative mother Zainab as well as Clarke and his family and friends. The BBC consulted Dr Andrew Kam-Tuck Yip, associate professor and reader in the school of sociology and social policy at the University of Nottingham, who has led research into the area, and Adnan Ali, head of Al-Fatiha, an international organisation for gay Muslims.

A Gallup survey earlier this month found that British Muslims hold more conservative opinions towards homosexuality than European counterparts, with none of the 500 people questioned believing that homosexual acts were morally acceptable. The plot is the latest in a number of controversial storylines, with the soap last year tackling paedophilia.

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so many hopes scuppered!

[SpursFan1902]

Consider me scuppered! That is NO FAIR!!! The two best looking blokes on the square and they are going to fancy each other??? What does that leave us with? Phew, Nick Cotton and Billy Mitchell?? I wish your sexuality was a choice, I would choose to be a lesbian!! At least there is Tanya...

[Twirley]

Hey, that just leaves the new doctor...!!!

[Skylace]

Ah well, I can still look.

[pirtybirdy]

Eastenders script writers are mean! :-( I guess that explains why he didn't find not one of those girls interesting enough to give a longer chat to. Then again, he did have a former girlfriend. I guess they are going to try to say he "turned gay"? I'm not buying that.

[SpursFan1902]

[Skylace]

[faceless]

If he didn't fancy that one girl the other day then he's not even close to being bi-sexual.

When she walked past there was steamwhistles blaring on my momitor. AROOOOGA!

[Kezza]

I was just catching up on my reading here & enjoying the ladies' opinions of the EE eye candy -- when along comes faceless posting the article "Muslim character to have gay love affair"!! Face, you had to be laughing your arse off, now, weren't ya?

From this viewpoint, however, I gotta admit: My hat's off to you - this thread is hilarious!!