Is Sean Tully a gay stereotype?

Well that's the view of John Partridge who plays gay muscle man Christian Clarke in EastEnders. In an interview in gay mag, Attitude, out today, he says of Sean's character, played by 34 year old Antony Cotton: "What I didn't want as a stereotype was what I call a tea-time gay. The Sean Tully type of character is the reason my character is here."

He goes on to say: "I've worked in theatre for 20 years and there are lots of queens in The West End that look and act like that. I'm not going to diss his performance or his style, or say 'Who does he think he is representing?' because he is representing one of those shades of gay."

It may not be your taste, but if that character hadn't happened and been so successful, I don't think the BBC would have gone, 'Right we need a gay character."

Well fair point John but if Sean is a gay stereotype, then surely a 'Muscle Mary' who wears a tight vest all the time in EastEnders is just as much as of a gay stereotype! Tell us what you think