Channel 4 has a history of making great documentaries but has surprised some critics with new Bonnie Blue documentary
Bonnie Blue at the launch of her Channel 4 documentary(Image: Edward Ed Gleave)
Channel 4 has defended the decision to make a documentary about online porn star Bonnie Blue – insisting it is “proud” of the film and that is wants to “stimulate debate”.
Viewers tuning in to watch 1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story this week will receive an on air warning about the content before the documentary airs at 10pm. It features multiple scenes of graphic sex not normally seen on TV.
Tia Billinger uses the stage name Bonnie Blue and invites men to have sex with her which she films and makes money from online. She is also known for angering and abusing other women online, including by suggesting she likes to sleep with married men.
In January she caused social media outrage by announcing she’d slept with 1,057 men in 12 hours.
Channel 4 insist they are ‘proud’ to show Bonnie Blue documentary(Image: Instagram/bonnie_blue_xo)
The Channel 4 documentary’s crew and director rarely question her about the abuse she gives to other women and her financial claims of earning millions each month also go unquestioned or unproven on screen.
She also uses other younger girls to make one film and they say they are not being paid, despite the fact Tia would make thousands from the film. Aside from Tia expressing some fears about walking in public alone, the tone is largely celebratory.
Asked about their decision to broadcast the documentary, Channel 4 told the Mirror: “Tia Billinger, via her stage name Bonnie Blue, has gained worldwide attention and millions of pounds in the last year. 1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story is an observational documentary in which director Victoria Silver follows Tia over the course of six months. The film questions Tia’s methods and the divisive style of her social media and hears from colleagues and collaborators in order to understand her polarising business model.
“Part of Channel 4’s remit is to reflect modern Britain and stimulate debate amongst viewers, and a film such as this, exploring changing attitudes to sex, success, porn, and feminism in an ever-evolving online world is an important addition to those conversations.
“Channel 4 has a track record of programmes that examine the porn industry from a variety of perspectives. In the last two years we have broadcast programmes such as Sex Actually with Alice Levine that looked at a range of sexual experiences, while OnlyFans Got Me Fired: Untold and Confessions of a Cam Girl showed the personal cost of porn for content creators.”
They also insisted the sections of the documentary showing Bonnie having sex multiple times across the documentary was necessary.
They added: “Careful consideration has been given to the content and the way in which it is included. The explicit content in the documentary is editorially justified and provides essential context; making pornographic content is Bonnie’s job, and this film is about her work and the response to it. Crucially, the content is presented in a non-gratuitous manner and viewers will be alerted of the sexual content in a programme warning at the start to ensure they understand from the outset the nature of the programme.”
Journalists were shown the film at a screening at Channel 4 last week attended by Tia, where even she expressed surprise at how many sex scenes “were in there”.
Introducing the film, Commissioning Editor Tim Hancock said before the screening: “I believe it is Channel 4’s job to tell stories like this, trying to get behind the truth of the headlines. We film real stories in real time. We are very proud to do films like this.”
Asked why there was so much porn in the documentary and if she was braced for complaints, director Victoria Silver said: “I had to explain to her(Tia) if I was making a film about a musician or some kind of other performer their work would be in there. I think it is important to see what she does.”
