But one of the most shocking elements of the first episode of the Channel 4 documentary was the courting rituals between the younger members of the community. In contrast to their scantily-clad outfits, young gypsy women have very strong morals and aren't allowed to go on dates with men until they're married. Grabbing: Teenage wedding guest Cheyenne, 15, tries to escape the attentions of a gypsy boy who is trying to kiss her outside the hotel reception in last night's episode of My Big Fat Gypsy Weddings.
So until they are engaged, teenage traveller girls are subjected to the 'grabbing' courtship ritual, which sees boys angling for a kiss. Strict rules stipulate girls aren't allowed to approach boys, so it's up to the males, aka the 'grabbers', to tempt the girl away from her group of friends and try to get a kiss off her, even sometimes going as far as twisting her arm. Explaining the ritual, year-old traveller Cheyenne explains: 'It means they like a girl and want to get their number.
At the climax of one young traveller couple Josie and Swanley's wedding a few weeks later, Cheyenne is seen trying to escape the attentions of one grabber, who has pinned her up against the wall outside the reception. Talking to camera after managing to escape, the year-old said: 'He got hold of me and pushed me up the road. When asked if it was violent, she said: 'It wasn't violent, I've had much worst than that It's not nice at all, but you just got to live with it. After the first episode was broadcast, outraged viewers took to internet message boards to express their disdain for the controversial courtship method.
Another user 'bob up and down' wrote: 'Where's the chaperone in the car park? Hurting people until they agree for you to kiss them is disgusting. Love at first sight: Josie, 17, and Swanley on their wedding day in July.
They found each other on the internet and only met for the first time in February last year. Princess moment: Josie, who left school at 11, has been planning her wedding day since she was a little girl. Grabbing aside, the main focus of the first episode was the wedding of Josie, 17, and Swanley, 19, who she married in July, just five months after they first met.
Despite stereotypes, Josie is one of many gypsy families who live in a house rather than a caravan, but moves into a mobile home following her nuptials. In the run up to the wedding, the couple aren't allowed to be together without a chaperone, with Josie explaining gypsy girls can never be alone with a gypsy boy because it would ruin their reputation. She said: 'You got to be clean and decent in everyone's eyes.
Here come the girls: Josie, her friends and relatives go all out for her sober hen night in Lanzarote. Juxtaposition: Despite the gypsy girls' revealing outfits, they remain chaste until their weddings and aren't allowed to socialise with the opposite sex alone. Dressmaker Thelma Madine admits the juxtaposition of the gypsy girls' revealing clothing and their morals takes some getting used to.
But when you get to know them, their morals are so high, you would say they are definitely stuck in a time warp. Josie , who speaks with a heavy Irish accent, despite having only visited Ireland once, dropped out of school aged 11, claiming that high school is 'not the place for a gypsy girl'. Like most gypsy women, she expects her husband to work and provide for them, while she fulfills the traditional role of housewife.
Teenage bride: Josie struggles to walk in her huge wedding dress, which weighs five stone. As a wife, they are expected to cook, clean and raise children, and leave the careers up to the men. And although she dresses in another skimpy outfit in Lanzarote for her hen night, as a young unmarried woman, Josie isn't allowed to drink, but manages to have a fun night out while sober. When asked why he thinks Josie will make a good wife, Swanley replies: 'She's a good cook, she cleans up And it appears Josie and her friends are content to live in what they repeatedly describe as 'a man's world', adding, 'We wouldn't have it any other way'.
I better carry you down the aisle: After seeing his bride struggling up to the altar, Swanley wisely decides to carry her after they tie the knot. When the couple finally do make it up the aisle, Josie wears a huge five stone dress, with a thigh-length split at the front, giving the congregation a view of her tanned legs and garter.
Describing her dress ahead of her big day, Josie enthused: 'Every girl wants their dress to be the best because you're only going to wear it that one day. Has anyone seen this show??? I don't have cable, so I didn't watch it, but I think it would be interesting to say the least.
I ditto all comments above I googled the gypsies as I was watching the show It's way too involved for me to relay.. They seem to be very proud and odd One of the girls was getting married and the groom refused to show us his trailer, due it's lack of cleanliness It was really a strange show Brittish obsession or not I not a fan!
But, curiosity made me tune in at least once!!!! Don't believe it just because it's on TV. They distort anything and everything they need to in order to get the audience interested. They do it with any group "exotic" enough that the masses don't really know the facts about them. There may be some base in reality, but that is usually minimal and either exagerrated to a great degree or just certain members of the group do it not the whole of the group.
Hence the title No offense to Gypsies. I surely know tv shows embelish and distort all sorts of things Check out the post about Stereotypes New Jersey.. No Way! No one on the council is interviewed, nor did the show bother to find a historian who might have been able to offer some genuine insight into the tensions over land between Travellers and non-Travellers. The slaves of empires past, the Roma were persecuted by the Nazis and, today, tend to live in dire poverty, often in shantytowns outside major cities in Central and Eastern Europe.
None of this seems to matter to Channel 4 or TLC. By way of such details, the show often claims to be giving the audience exclusive access to arcane rituals that will illuminate Traveller and Roma life. Madine, who designs and constructs elaborate gowns for Traveller and Roma weddings and communions, admits to having been skeptical of the communities and their fashion choices when she first encountered them—implying, of course, that it is acceptable for the audience to feel the same way.
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