Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit


Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit is a novel by Jeanette Winterson published in 1985, which she subsequently adapted into a BBC television drama of the same name. It is a coming-of-age story about a lesbian girl who grows up in an English Pentecostal community. Key themes of the book include transition from youth to adulthood, complex family relationships, same sex relationships, and religion.

In England and Wales, it has been included on both GCSE and A Level curricula, such as the OCR English Literature A Level, Literature Post 1900.[1]


The book is semi-autobiographical and is generally based on Winterson's life in Accrington, Lancashire, where she lived after moving from her birth town Manchester. "I wrote about some of these things in Oranges, and when it was published, my mother sent me a furious note."[2] A parallel non-fictional account of her life at this time is given in her 2011 memoir, Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?[3] Although the protagonist of Oranges bears the author's first name, John Mullan has argued that it is neither an autobiography nor a memoir, but a Künstlerroman.[4]


The main character is a young girl named Jeanette, who is adopted by evangelists from the Elim Pentecostal Church. She believes she is destined to become a missionary. The book depicts religious enthusiasm as an exploration of the power of love. As an adolescent, Jeanette finds herself attracted to another girl, and her mother's group of religious friends subject her and her partner to exorcisms.[5]


The novel won Winterson the Whitbread Award for a First Novel in 1985.

Although it is sometimes referred to as a "lesbian novel",[6] Winterson has objected to this label, arguing, "I've never understood why straight fiction is supposed to be for everyone, but anything with a gay character or that includes gay experience is only for queers."[5]


A television adaptation of the book was made and aired by the BBC in 1990, starring Charlotte Coleman and Geraldine McEwan, which won the Prix Italia in 1991.[7]

The book was released on cassette by BBC Audiobooks in 1990, also read by Coleman.[8]

A two-part dramatisation, adapted by Winterton and starring Lesley Sharp, was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2016.[9]

  1. ^ 68995-unit-f662-literature-post-1900-coursework-guidance
  2. ^ Jeanette Winterson.'Why be Happy When You could be normal.'ISBN 9780099556091
  3. ^ Brightwell, Laura (July 30, 2012). "Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? (review)". Retrieved April 27, 2013. 
  4. ^ 'True stories', John Mullan, The Guardian, 27 October 2007.
  5. ^ a b Winterson, Jeanette. "Interview on Jeanette Winterson's official site". Retrieved August 20, 2010. 
  6. ^ Beirne, Rebecca (2008). Lesbians in television and text after the millennium. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. p. 39. ISBN 0230606741. 
  7. ^ Prix Italia, Winners 1949 - 2010, RAI Archived 2013-10-22 at the Wayback Machine.
  8. ^ ISBN 978-0-563-41070-6
  9. ^ "Radio 4 adaptation". Retrieved 26 December 2016. 
Further reading
  • Bentley, Nick. "Jeanette Winterson, Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit". In Contemporary British Fiction (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2008), 108-117. ISBN 978-0-7486-2420-1.
