Dude Looks Like A Lady

Fatchecker
The Haven
Published in
4 min readMar 8, 2024
photo of Veronica Fisher, a character from the TV show Shameless, wearing a false moustache and a cloth cap
Photo: Channel 4. “Is this ‘tache slimming?”

Man: When will there be an International Men’s Day?

Me: It’s November 19th you stupid cow.

Now, back to….

Dude Looks Like A Lady

photo of Veronica Fisher, a character from the TV show Shameless, wearing a false moustache and a cloth cap
Photo: Channel 4. “Does this ‘tache bring out my eyes?”

Occasionally women play dress-up as men.

Why?

To get shit done.

Sometimes some women see being a woman as a disadvantage. Or should that be, sometimes some women see being a man as an advantage? I think it’s something to do with Patriarchy, however I am waiting for this to be confirmed, in writing.

There are many tales of women playing dress-up as men, for example legend has it, that famous pirate Anne “Anne of the Indies” Bonny, dressed up as a fella to start her pirating career. However as featured here,

She was all woman.

The history books are littered, conveniently enough, with historical figures, women, who have rocked Gentleman garms as Gents. I don’t read books, but luckily enough for me, there are film examples I can read.

So, grab that popcorn, giant Bournville and bottle of Irn Bru you sneaks in, cos you ain’t paying them prices.

First A Girl

“Elizabeth, a delivery girl, dreams of being a music-hall singer but she is refused at the first casting she takes part in. A bit depressed, she gets to know Victor, a would-be Shakespearean actor and another audition victim. When Victor quite unexpectedly gets a female part in a music-hall number he unfortunately finds himself voiceless. Why wouldn’t Elizabeth replace him in it?” — IMDB

Yes, you have to play it on YouTube.

I imagine at some point Elizabeth may have pondered, “I’m just a girl, standing in front of a boy, wondering why the boy, dressed as a girl, is getting all the work?” She may also have wondered if ‘female impersonators’ are an existential threat to women?

Sylvia Scarlett

“When her father decides to flee to England, young Sylvia Scarlett (Katherine Hepburn) must become Sylvester Scarlett and protect her father every step of the way, with the questionable help of plenty others.” — IMDB

In this scene…. Yes, you have to play it on YouTube….

In this scene worthy of a month’s discussion in Feminist Studies, Sylvester Scarlett (Katherine Hepburn, a woman playing a man) slaps Lily Levitsky (Natalie Paley, a woman playing a woman) because Lily Levitsky has taken a shine to Michael Fane (Brian Aherne, a man playing a man) whom Sylvia Scarlett (Katherine Hepburn, a woman playing a woman) is sweet on.

Elsewhere in the film there is a scene where Maudie (Dennie Moore, a woman playing a woman) takes a fancy to Sylvester Scarlett (Katherine Hepburn, a woman playing a man) and kisses him. On YouTube the scene is tagged as a ‘Lesbian Kissing Scene,’ which suggests how little some people, know about sexuality.

Osama

“After the rise of the Taliban in Afghanistan and the restriction of women in public life, a pre-teen girl is forced to masquerade as a boy in order to find work to support her mother and grandmother.” — IMDB

This is why there were a US led multinational invasion of Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, to bring democracy to the country and to change the lives of women and girls forever.

1st Person: You’ve not heard then?

Me: Heard what now?

Widows

“Four women with nothing in common except a debt left behind by their dead husbands’ criminal activities take fate into their own hands and conspire to forge a future on their own terms.” — IMDB

Directed by Steve McQueen, the alive Black one, not the dead White one, the film is based on the 80s telly series of the same name. A neo-noir heist thriller it features women dressing up as men to commit the heist, probably a robbery.

Dressing up as men is genius if you’re gonna commit a crime, as this made up scene perfectly illustrates:

Copper: Can you describe the robbers please madam?

Woman: Four manly men.

Copper: Could you describe the robbers please sir?

Man: What she said, four blokes.

Boom! The women are off the hook.

1st Person: What about ‘Gentleman Jack’ Anne Lister?

Me: Don’t be ridiculous.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………

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Fatchecker
The Haven

Culturally diverse blue collar ageing b-boy and incessant moaner. Midlander. yUK. Pronoun: Amateur hour.