Fans supported my attack on puberty blockers, says Roisin Murphy
Roisin Murphy has insisted the majority of her fans supported her after she voiced concerns about “vulnerable” and “mixed-up kids” being prescribed puberty blockers.
The Irish singer was heavily criticised on social media and had two London gigs cancelled in August 2023 when she wrote on her personal Facebook page “Puberty blockers are f---ed absolutely desolate, big pharma laughing all the way to the bank”.
Puberty blockers pause the physical changes of puberty such as breast development or facial hair and are used by those wishing to change their gender.
The NHS announced in March that children will be banned from receiving puberty blockers on prescription and can only take the controversial drugs as part of a clinical trial set to start at the end of this year.
The BBC had faced accusations it had “cancelled” Murphy after a day of programming centred on her back catalogue was wiped from the Radio 6 schedule in the wake of her comments.
Archive interviews and highlights from the singer’s live shows had been due to air on Sept 26 2023 following the release of her new album, Hit Parade, but these were replaced by a selection of appearances by rapper Little Simz.
The BBC denied the accusations and said the decision had been taken to align with poetry, rap and spoken word programming airing in the same week.
‘I didn’t get any death threats’
Last week, in an interview with France 24 English, a TV news network based in Paris, she said her fans’ reaction to her controversial comments “wasn’t that bad”.
She said: “The internet was not that bad. I didn’t get these death threats or anything like that. I got lots of support. I had three or four people ask for tickets back. So it really wasn’t terribly bad.
“I don’t think what I said was seen as massively, massively difficult, you know, for people to understand where I was coming from, at the very least.
“So it wasn’t so bad, and I’m still here, doing the best tour of my life, I think.”
In her original post, Murphy wrote: “Puberty blockers are f---ed, absolutely desolate, big pharma laughing all the way to the bank. Little mixed-up kids are vulnerable and need to be protected, that’s just true.”
The 50-year-old, who was one half of the pop duo Moloko in the 1990s, later apologised for her comments in a lengthy Twitter post saying: “To witness the ramifications of my actions and the divisions it has caused is heartbreaking.
“I am so sorry my comments have been directly hurtful to many of you … I understand fixed views are not helpful but I really hope people can understand my concern was out of love for all of us.”
