Entertainment
Russell T Davies Says ‘You’re Queer in 2026, You’re a Political Act’ — and His New Show ‘Tip Toe’ Is His Most Furious, Personal Work Yet…
The man behind Queer as Folk and It’s a Sin is back on Manchester’s Canal Street — and this time, he’s not just telling a story. He’s sounding an alarm about a world he says is ‘rapidly and urgently’ sliding backwards on queer rights.
There is a moment in the new Channel 4 drama Tip Toe — shown as an exclusive six-minute clip at BFI Flare, London’s LGBTQIA+ film festival this week — that lands like a punch you didn’t see coming.
Alan Cumming‘s character Leo, a gay bar owner on Manchester’s iconic Canal Street, is talking to his friend Melba, an aging drag queen. The conversation begins quietly — life, the bar, the noise online. And then it cuts to the bone.
“The president of America has given these men permission to attack us. Leo, you’re queer in 2026, you’re a political act.”
Six words. A complete summary of where the world now stands. And the person who wrote them is Russell T Davies — the Welsh screenwriter who has spent three decades being exactly right about exactly the wrong things.
‘Literally No One Asked for This. I Had to Write It.’
“Literally no one asked for Tip Toe,” Davies said bluntly. “I was technically busy on Doctor Who, but I was driven to this desk. I had to write it in Manchester. And I would have written it for free. It just had to be written.”
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That urgency comes through in every corner of the show. The five-part miniseries — which Davies describes as “a bit like ‘Years and Years’ meets ‘Queer as Folk'” — is set in Manchester and follows a gay bar owner while also dealing with the rising far-right politics and growing threats to LGBTQ+ rights.
Cumming and David Morrissey are playing Leo and Clive in Tip Toe — two opposites who have lived next door to each other in Manchester for almost 15 years. But just as life should be settling down, the world around them is growing more tense. Words become weapons, opinions become radicalised, and gradually, two neighbours become deadly enemies in a tense, suburban thriller which challenges everything we consider to be safe.
A Legacy Built on Being Ahead of the Curve
To understand why Tip Toe matters so much — to Davies, to queer audiences, and frankly to anyone paying attention to 2026 — you need to understand who Russell T Davies is and what he has consistently done that others haven’t.
In 1999, he created Queer as Folk for Channel 4 — a bracingly explicit, deeply human drama about gay men on Manchester’s Canal Street that shocked some and saved others. Many of the people who watched it as teenagers came out because of it.
He then revived Doctor Who for the BBC in 2005, turning it from a cult relic into a national institution. In 2021, he delivered It’s a Sin — a shattering, five-part account of the HIV/AIDS crisis in 1980s Britain that became Channel 4‘s biggest ever streaming boxset and broke an entire generation’s heart.
“It is the strongest thing I’ve written,” Davies has said of Tip Toe. “I do believe Queer as Folk, Cucumber, It’s a Sin and Tip Toe are the ones that will be on my gravestone.”
That is not a small statement from a man who also brought Doctor Who back to life twice.
‘Things Are Rapidly and Urgently Getting Worse’
Davies has not been quiet about why this show needed to exist. He has been saying — loudly, repeatedly, with the kind of fury that comes from genuinely caring — that the world is sliding backwards in ways that most people are not yet willing to fully acknowledge.
“It’s funny. When Queer as Folk came out in 1999, if you’d said, what will gay rights be like in 2025, we’d have said, ‘Oh, it will all be marvellous. It’ll be sunshine and skipping down the street, hand in hand — gays, queers, lesbians, everyone.’ And look at where we are. Things got better. But now things are rapidly and urgently getting worse.”
“What happens in America always happens here — and as we look down the barrel of a Reform government, we, the gay community, queer community, should be revolting in terror and anger and action.”
The Reform reference points squarely at Nigel Farage and his party’s growing foothold in British politics. The American reference needs no explanation. Davies has publicly called out Donald Trump‘s rhetoric on LGBTQ+ issues on multiple occasions, warning that the normalisation of anti-queer sentiment from the top of political power structures has real, street-level consequences.
A Stellar Cast Built for a Show That Has No Time to Waste
Emmy and Tony award-winner Alan Cumming plays Leo — vivid, funny and dynamic, the owner of a bar called Spit & Polish in Manchester’s Gay Village. BAFTA-nominated David Morrissey plays Clive, Leo’s unsmiling and troubled next-door neighbour.
The series also stars Pooky Quesnel (The A Word), Jackson Connor (Masters of the Air), Joseph Evans, Elizabeth Berrington (Last Night in Soho), and Iz Hesketh
Tip Toe is produced by Quay Street Productions, with Davies exec-producing alongside long-term partner Nicola Shindler (Queer as Folk, It’s a Sin, Fool Me Once), Peter Hoar, and Cumming himself. The series is directed by Hoar and produced by Phil Collinson (It’s a Sin, Doctor Who).
Shindler said of the project: “Tip Toe is not just a timely drama, but a captivating story shot through with Russell’s brilliant wit, warmth and devastating poignancy.”
The Show That Will Make Conservatives Look in the Mirror — Whether They Like It or Not
Here is the part of the Tip Toe conversation that doesn’t get talked about enough: Davies is not simply preaching to the queer choir. He has spoken explicitly about wanting the show to reach people who do not usually seek out LGBTQ+ narratives — specifically, conservatives. He wants to show them their own hearts and humanity reflected back through people whose lives they might otherwise dismiss.
Tip Toe is described as an exploration of “the most corrosive forces facing the LGBTQ+ community today, examining the danger as prejudice creeps back into our lives.” Davies has added that he is attempting to push an urgent message: the queer community is more vulnerable than ever as blatant acts of hatred become more frequent and normalised. QUEERGURU
The Clive character — the electrician, the father of two boys, the man with no visible malice but a growing sense of aggrieved rightness — is crucial to that ambition. He is not written as a villain. He is written as a neighbour. That is far more frightening, and far more honest, than a straightforward monster would be.
Davies put it plainly at the time of the show’s commission: “This is a show I had to write because the world is getting stranger, tougher and darker, and frankly, the fight is on.” Televisual
Canal Street, Again. Because It Has To Be.
There is something deeply deliberate about Davies returning to Manchester — to the same streets, the same Gay Village, the same city where Queer as Folk was born in 1999 — to tell this story.
“Cucumber shows a generation that’s lived through HIV, although it’s hardly mentioned. And so does Tip Toe — it is me checking in, saying, ‘Where are we now?'” Big Issue
The answer to that question, in 2026, is uncomfortable. The rights that felt permanent are no longer permanent. The freedoms that felt won are being renegotiated. The streets that felt safe have new graffiti on the walls.
And Russell T Davies — the man who has been taking the temperature of gay Britain for more than 25 years — is back on Canal Street with a camera, a brilliant cast, and something burning in his chest that will not let him stay quiet.
Tip Toe comes to Channel 4 in 2026. Based on everything Davies has said and shown, it will be unmissable — for the queer community that needs it desperately, and for the conservatives he’s writing to whether they know it yet or not.
Entertainment
How ‘Avengers: Endgame’ Returned to Cinemas and Reclaimed Box Office Glory
Renewed ticket sales send Marvel’s 2019 finale past ‘Avatar’ to lead the all-time global chart again.
Seven years after its original release, Avengers: Endgame has unfinished business at the box office.
The Marvel Studios blockbuster has overtaken James Cameron’s Avatar to become the highest-grossing film worldwide once again. According to The Walt Disney Company’s October 4 announcement, Endgame now holds an estimated $2.9255 billion, narrowly ahead of Avatar’s $2.9237 billion. That puts just $1.8 million between two of cinema’s biggest hits.
The lead is small. The comeback, however, is substantial: a film released in 2019 has drawn enough fresh ticket sales to rewrite the all-time chart.
The ‘Encore’ release that tipped the balance
The latest theatrical run, titled Avengers Endgame: Encore, has earned $126 million worldwide, according to TheWrap. That includes $36.2 million in North America and $89.8 million from international markets—the extra business that pushed the film back into first place.
Audiences also had a reason to return beyond revisiting a familiar blockbuster. TheWrap reports that the reissue features a modified ending and three new scenes during and after the credits, connected to Avengers: Doomsday. The release therefore serves two purposes: bringing an established favourite back to cinemas and giving viewers a bridge to the next Avengers story.
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A rivalry with a history of reversals
This is another change of leadership in a box office contest that has lasted for years.
Endgame first displaced Avatar in 2019. Cameron’s science-fiction epic regained the crown following its Chinese re-release in 2021. Now, another theatrical return has swung the result in Marvel’s favour. Re-releases have become a decisive part of the competition, extending both films’ earning lives well beyond their original runs.
The distinction matters: this is the record for worldwide theatrical revenue without adjustment for inflation, including re-release earnings. It measures money collected rather than the number of tickets sold.
Why ‘Endgame’ matters to ‘Doomsday’
The timing gives Marvel’s comeback an added significance. Avengers: Doomsday is scheduled to reach cinemas on December 18, 2026, and Disney has positioned Endgame as an important foundation for that next chapter.
Explaining the connection, Anthony Russo said: “You really need to pick the story up from where you left it in Endgame.”
That makes this return more than a victory lap. A film remembered for closing a major chapter of Marvel’s story is now helping introduce the next one—and, along the way, has taken back Hollywood’s most closely watched box office title.
Entertainment
Tom Cruise’s ‘Digger’ Faces a Tough Opening: Could ‘Verity’ Take the Lead?
Cruise’s star power meets a fresh box office challenge as the Colleen Hoover adaptation emerges as a formidable rival.
Tom Cruise has spent years persuading audiences to watch him attempt the impossible. With Digger, the challenge is different: convincing moviegoers to embrace an eccentric, darkly comic character who bears little resemblance to his familiar action heroes.
Directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu, the film arrives in US cinemas on October 2, 2026, carrying considerable expectations. Cruise plays Digger Rockwell, an oil tycoon confronting a catastrophe connected to his company’s actions. It is a conspicuous departure for an actor whose recent screen identity has been shaped by spectacular stunts and blockbuster franchises.
Yet the conversation before release has increasingly turned from Cruise’s transformation to a more uncomfortable question: how many people will buy a ticket?
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A costly film facing a modest opening
According to Koimoi’s September 30 report, Digger was tracking for a North American opening below $15 million, against a reported production cost of approximately $125 million. These are reported estimates, rather than confirmed earnings or a final accounting of the film’s costs.
That gap explains the concern surrounding Warner Bros.. An expensive production needs sustained attendance, and a subdued debut would place greater pressure on subsequent weekends and overseas markets.
An opening forecast cannot establish a film’s eventual profit or loss. It can, however, reveal how much work remains for the campaign.
Reviews have complicated the pitch
The critical response has been sharply divided. People reported reactions ranging from admiration for the film’s audacity and Cruise’s commitment to criticism of its scale, coherence and tone.
For potential ticket buyers, that creates an uncertain proposition. Cruise’s presence attracts attention, but attention does not automatically translate into enthusiasm for an unfamiliar kind of film.
The promotional campaign has leaned into that disagreement. The Guardian described advertising that places harsh reactions alongside praise, using the controversy itself to generate interest. Whether that approach encourages curiosity or deepens hesitation remains an open question.
Why ‘Verity’ makes the weekend more intriguing
The Hollywood Reporter expects Digger to open substantially behind Verity, the Amazon MGM Studios adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s novel. hollywoodreporter.com
Starring Anne Hathaway, Dakota Johnson and Josh Hartnett, Verity is also scheduled to open on October 2. Its psychological-thriller premise centres on a writer who discovers a disturbing manuscript while completing another author’s book series.
From a marketing perspective, an established novel and a recognisable thriller setup could offer a more immediate hook. Digger, by comparison, asks audiences to take a greater leap into unfamiliar territory.
The audience verdict is still ahead
Cruise has clearly committed to that leap. At the London premiere, Reuters reported that his transformation involved prosthetics and a padded bodysuit, alongside a demanding performance.
The commercial outcome remains unresolved. Strong audience recommendations could give Digger momentum beyond its initial forecasts. A weak response would make its financial challenge harder.
For now, the film’s biggest suspense lies beyond the screen: whether curiosity about Cruise’s unusual gamble becomes an opening-weekend ticket purchase.
Entertainment
‘Verity’ Could Outopen ‘Digger’: Why Tom Cruise Faces a Tough Contest
The competing releases raise a compelling question: which film will persuade more audiences to buy a ticket?
Tom Cruise has spent years persuading audiences to watch him attempt the impossible. With Digger, the challenge is different: convincing moviegoers to embrace an eccentric, darkly comic character who bears little resemblance to his familiar action heroes.
Directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu, the film arrives in US cinemas on October 2, 2026, carrying considerable expectations. Cruise plays Digger Rockwell, an oil tycoon confronting a catastrophe connected to his company’s actions. It is a conspicuous departure for an actor whose recent screen identity has been shaped by spectacular stunts and blockbuster franchises.
Yet the conversation before release has increasingly turned from Cruise’s transformation to a more uncomfortable question: how many people will buy a ticket?
ALSO READ : Emmy Nominations Announcement Gets a Star Twist… Liza Colón-Zayas & Jeff Hiller Set to Reveal 2026 TV Nominees
A costly film facing a modest opening
According to Koimoi’s September 30 report, Digger was tracking for a North American opening below $15 million, against a reported production cost of approximately $125 million. These are reported estimates, rather than confirmed earnings or a final accounting of the film’s costs.
That gap explains the concern surrounding Warner Bros.. An expensive production needs sustained attendance, and a subdued debut would place greater pressure on subsequent weekends and overseas markets.
An opening forecast cannot establish a film’s eventual profit or loss. It can, however, reveal how much work remains for the campaign.
Reviews have complicated the pitch
The critical response has been sharply divided. People reported reactions ranging from admiration for the film’s audacity and Cruise’s commitment to criticism of its scale, coherence and tone.
For potential ticket buyers, that creates an uncertain proposition. Cruise’s presence attracts attention, but attention does not automatically translate into enthusiasm for an unfamiliar kind of film.
The promotional campaign has leaned into that disagreement. The Guardian described advertising that places harsh reactions alongside praise, using the controversy itself to generate interest. Whether that approach encourages curiosity or deepens hesitation remains an open question.
Why ‘Verity’ makes the weekend more intriguing
The Hollywood Reporter expects Digger to open substantially behind Verity, the Amazon MGM Studios adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s novel. hollywoodreporter.com
Starring Anne Hathaway, Dakota Johnson and Josh Hartnett, Verity is also scheduled to open on October 2. Its psychological-thriller premise centres on a writer who discovers a disturbing manuscript while completing another author’s book series.
From a marketing perspective, an established novel and a recognisable thriller setup could offer a more immediate hook. Digger, by comparison, asks audiences to take a greater leap into unfamiliar territory.
The audience verdict is still ahead
Cruise has clearly committed to that leap. At the London premiere, Reuters reported that his transformation involved prosthetics and a padded bodysuit, alongside a demanding performance.
The commercial outcome remains unresolved. Strong audience recommendations could give Digger momentum beyond its initial forecasts. A weak response would make its financial challenge harder.
For now, the film’s biggest suspense lies beyond the screen: whether curiosity about Cruise’s unusual gamble becomes an opening-weekend ticket purchase.
How ‘Avengers: Endgame’ Returned to Cinemas and Reclaimed Box Office Glory
Tom Cruise’s ‘Digger’ Faces a Tough Opening: Could ‘Verity’ Take the Lead?
‘Verity’ Could Outopen ‘Digger’: Why Tom Cruise Faces a Tough Contest
‘Endgame’ Returns to No. 1 ‘Avatar’ Loses Its Box Office Throne
Mark Zuckerberg Faces a New Hollywood Reckoning Why Aaron Sorkin’s Film Hits Closer to Home
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