In the days leading up to the premiere of My Mum Tracy Beaker, a huge wedding was teased. We were led to believe Tracy (Dani Harmer) would be walking down the aisle to marry her childhood friend Sean (Jordan Duvigneau).
But viewers were delighted and very emotional when it was revealed that the couple who tied the knot at the end of the series was actually Tracy's adoptive mother Cam (Lisa Coleman) and Jess's (Emma Maggie Davies) teacher Mary (Danielle Henry).
My Mum Tracy Beaker tells the story of Tracy Beaker and her daughter Jess as Tracy is reunited with her childhood and football star friend Sean Godfrey. They embark on a whirlwind romance that unfortunately does not last.
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One day - when Tracy is training at Sean's gym - Cam and Mary meet and they are introduced to each other by Jess. Sparks fly between them as they discuss one of Cam's books.
During the finale - after Tracy and Sean have called off their engagement - we at a wedding where Tracy gives a speech.
"I used to nag Cam all the time about her books - 'why are they so miserable? Where were the happy endings?' And she'd always say that she didn't believe in fairy tales," says Tracy.
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"Well I'm so glad that she's finally changed her mind and I couldn't be prouder to be her best woman. To the best mum in the whole world and her amazing wife, Mary," she says before raising a toast.
Fans flocked to Twitter to celebrate Cam and Mary's nuptials. One person wrote: "it's crazy how happy it's made me that they actually showed Cam being in love and marrying a woman on CBBC."
Another woman said: "Why did I cry at seeing Cam and Mary kiss on My Mum Tracy Beaker on the CBBC," with a crying emoji.
Lots of fans were happy to see Cam 'come out' and for LGBTQ+ representation on children's television. A third viewer shared: "Nine year old me would be so happy and validated to hear that 10 years later they'd make Cam from Tracy Beaker a lesbian and air her wedding on CBBC."
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"All I ever wanted was for CBBC to admit Cam was a lesbian and I've never been happier," said another fan.
Dani Harmer also took to Twitter to celebrate Cam's wedding. "At last Cam finally got her happy ending!!! We were fuming when she got married off to a man in the original series! It was ridiculous! But so glad Cam got what she deserved! She is a Queen and deserved a Queen in return."
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Dani referenced Cam's wedding to Gary (George McAllister) in the fifth series of the original show.
After Jacqueline Wilson came out last year following the publication of her first book to delve into an LGBTQ love story, Love Frankie, she opened up about Cam's sexuality.
In an interview to discuss the book in November 2020, Wilson said that although Frankie is her first LGBTQ protagonist, she always considered Cam to be part of the community too.
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"Anybody reading between the lines in the early Tracy Beaker books [would see that] her foster mum Cam, is to my mind, clearly gay," Wilson told the Independent.
The Story of Tracy Beaker, was published in 1991- just three years after Section 28 was introduced in 1988. The law was passed by the Conservative government and it stopped councils and schools from "promoting the teaching of the acceptability of homosexuality as a pretended family relationship."
According to the BBC, the law was partly inspired by a 1983 story book called Jenny Lives with Eric and Martin, which aimed to give children information about different types of family relationships.
It is therefore unlikely that Jacqueline would have been able to make Cam openly gay in the original Tracy Beaker book.
The law was stopped in Scotland in 2000 and in the rest of the United Kingdom in 2003.
Interestingly, the Civil Partnership Act came into force in the UK in December 2005, the same month and year the episode involving Cam and Gary's wedding aired on CBBC.
We are so happy to see Cam and Mary together!
Featured Image Credit: BBCTopics: TV and Film, BBC, TV News