Tipping the Velvet is a 2002 BBC television drama serial based on the best-selling 1998 debut novel of the same name by Sarah Waters.

The BBC had previously aired an adaptation of Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit in 1990 and some scenes in other dramas, but none had been so explicit in its depiction of lesbian sex.

[1] Waters was quite surprised that the BBC chose to produce and broadcast a television adaptation that faithfully followed the relish and detail of sexual escapades in the book.

"[3] Screenwriter Andrew Davies said he was attracted to the story because it featured a girl transitioning into womanhood and it included his interests in Victorian erotica; he compared it to Pride and Prejudice—for which he wrote the BBC screenplay—"with dirty bits".

"[4] The production team visited Whitstable in Kent, where Nancy Astley (Rachael Stirling) lived with her family, before she leaves for London.