Queer Margins

This week's episode is with the co-founder of Queer Britain, the UK’s first national LGBTQ+ museum, Joseph Galliano. Joseph and I spoke over the phone in the first half of 2020. It's the first time I've spoken to him but I've been to a couple of Queer Britain's events over the last few years- and they're always brilliant. I've been so excited about Queer Britain ever since I first heard about it a few years ago- so it was great to talk to Joseph about all their plans for the future. We spoke about the journey Queer Britain's been on so far, what the museum is going to have to offer, when they might be able to offer, marching in London Pride with Sam Smith and lots more. It would be great to know what you think- so please drop me a message on Instagram @QueerMargins with your thoughts. And if you want to find out more about any of the things we spoke about- you'll be able to see that on Instagram too. Thanks!

Lisa Power's achieved so much during her life: she helped set up Stonewall, worked at Switchboard, was the policy director at the Terrence Higgins Trust and is now on the board at Queer Britain and was a consultant on Russell T Davies' new series 'It's a Sin' (more of which in the interview). When I spoke to people for series one Lisa's name popped up so many times in various places and times- so I knew I wanted to talk to her. So towards the start of lockdown in 2020 I called her for an interview. ADMISSION: we recorded this when I still didn't really know what I was doing with remote recording- so the quality in some parts is a bit crap. It does get better though! Here are links to the films that Lisa mentioned during our conversation We were here - the documentary about HIV/AIDS: https://wewereherefilm.com/ 120 beats per minute- the French film about HIV/AIDs https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/apr/08/120-beats-per-minute-observer-review Thanks so much for listening. Happy LGBT+ history month

HAPPY LGBT HISTORY MONTH Making Gay History has been a top listen of mine for years, so when I started doing this series I knew that I wanted to ask Eric Marcus to join me for an episode. I've listened to the Making Gay History podcast and Eric's soothing voice so many times, so when he said he's be on the Queer Margins I was over the moon. We spoke about Making Gay History (obviously), his life in the 80s, living through the AIDs epidemic, his life now, lockdown (again, obviously), interviewing Marsha P Johnson and the similarities between our podcasts... I really love Eric's podcast and Eric was so nice and encouraging, he was really great to chat to. Also- I've been receiving newsletters from Eric's neighbourhood and it's the perfect amount of escapism right now. Here are links to some of the things we spoke about in the episode that you might like to check out: - Making Gay History podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NlHk37Vo7HlGE1CFg8uGx?si=A-AnUPmlQRii6t2L_bVv1w - Making Gay History the book, by Eric Marcus: https://www.harpercollins.com/products/making-gay-history-eric-marcus?variant=32128599785506 - Marsha P Johnson and Randy Wicker: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6M8p9RRy59QsemQNvbnOGR?si=Cc3Mlop0SWavw0zyOz-BiQ - Marsha P Johnson park memorial that Eric mentioned: https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/new-york-dedicates-east-river-state-park-to-lgbtq-activist-marsha-p-johnson-082620 - Sylvia Rivera episode of Making Gay History: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7zqM4hKnqmrHqJGktBu5Vw?si=6OpGv8QpQrWWwpBfma4frA - The Celluloid Closet: Homosexuality in the Movies by Vito Russo: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/374224.The_Celluloid_Closet - Vito Russo's episode of Making Gay History: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7gOIEPhsBmaNRjHlvqQavM?si=-wEvgHDhTSWPUcxWrZTT5w - Jeanne and Morty Manford's episode of Making Gay History (PFFLAG episode): https://open.spotify.com/episode/1JogCNjy4QZ5xikOlOCoAx?si=gS4325PYTHWmKWFJ-HQvfw Thanks again for listening and thanks so much to Eric!

This episode I talk with the owner of Attitude Magazine Darren Styles. Attitude is the biggest gay magazine in the UK and has been around for 26 years. Darren bought Attitude back in 2016 when it was failing. Since then it's gone from strength to strength, with subscription numbers, followers on social media and online monthly user growing all the time- that and with the continued success of the Attitude Awards- the magazine has never looked better. I spoke to Darren about whether Britain really needed a "gay" magazine in 2020, what the future looks like for Attitude and asked him about my favourite Attitude cover (take a look on @QueerMargins on Instagram to see the cover). If there's someone you'd like to hear interviewed in this series or if you have any questions or something to say please drop me a message on Instagram which is @QueerMargins or on email QueerMargins@gmail.com. Thanks for listening.

Welcome back to a brand new series: Queer Margins in Quarantine. This series I'm focusing on talking to some of the most interesting people working within the LGBTQ+ community. I wanted to talk to these people during lockdown to find out how their work is changing but also to chat about what their lives are like normally. You can read more about that on the instagram page at @QueerMargins. This episode I'm talking to A Man To Pet. They're an amazing, hilarious drag performer who I first saw at the supper club The Pale Blue Door where they host and perform. We caught up about how they got into drag, how lockdown has changed their life and… of course… the highs and low of being a drag performer. I hope you enjoy it. And I hope you'll come back next week to listen to the next installment in the series. If there's someone you'd like me to interview please drop me a message on instagram (@QueerMargins) or email (QueerMargins@gmail.com) and let me know who you'd like to hear from and I'll try and get them on. Thanks.

This is the last episode of the series Old Queens. And in this episode I'm talking to Dr Rupert Whitaker. Colin from episode one introduced me to Rupert when we were at an event for the National HIV story trust. And a week or so later I went round Rupert’s house in South London to chat to him.

Rupert’s a psychiatrist and has been living with HIV since the early 80s and he helped set up- what is now- the UKs leading HIV charity after his partner Terry Higgins died at the age of 37.

On the day that this episode is being released- 10th June Terry Higgins would have been 75. In this episode we spoke about Rupert’s life now, his work, seeing his partner die of an illness no one understood and the difficulties he came across when trying to set up the Terrence Higgins Trust- plus a lot more.
 Thank you so much to everyone who's listened to this series. I've had so much fun making it and meeting all the amazing people I've interviewed. And on that topic- thank you to all the people who've happily shared their stories with me for this series, I feel really honoured that you've felt comfortable talking to me and have been so willing to talk. In the next week or so I'll be releasing the first episode of the second series which I'm currently in the process of recording. If you want to get in touch please drop me an email on QueerMargins@gmail.com or follow the podcast here: Instagram.com/QueerMargins.

This episode is the penultimate one of the first series and I wanted to post it as part of Lesbian Visibility Day. Diana messaged me on Twitter to tell me that I didn’t have enough trans people on the podcast, so I asked if I could talk to her for an episode. Diana told me she knew she was different from the other people in her class from a young age and when she was able to she went through her transition a lot quicker than trans people do today. In the episode we spoke about what it’s like growing up trans, realising your a lesbian shortly after transitioning and how trans people are viewed by some LGB people today. Diana is on Twitter @DianaLouiseJ if you want to hear more from her. Thanks so much for listening and thank you to Diana for getting in touch and agreeing to be interviewed. If you enjoyed please rate and review the podcast and tell a friend about it. And you can follow the podcast on Instagram at @QueerMargins so please get in touch there. It would be great to hear from you. Also, I've started working on series 2 during the lockdown- which will focus on LGBTQ+ people who live or who HAVE lived in countries or communities where being queer is not as accepted as it in the UK. So if you have any experience of that or know anyone who has please get in touch on email queermargins@gmail.com or through Twitter and Instagram which is @QueerMargins. Happy Lesbian Visibility Day.

I met Chris last year at an event at the City of London Guildhall linked with the project AIDS Since the 80s. We started talking at the cloakroom and it transpired that he had a lot of stories so I met up with him a few weeks later in his house in Vauxhall and chatted over his dining table. The film that Chris mentions he worked on which raised a lot of awareness about HIV can be found here: https://bloomsburynetwork.co.uk/event/a-life-beyond-screening/ And an article he mentions is here: https://www.independent.co.uk/aidsfree-appeal-i-was-waiting-to-die-for-11-years-in-a-moment-that-all-disappeared-a8691136.html There are just a few interviews left from the first series that I really enjoyed doing but just haven't had chance to publish yet. So over the next few weeks I’ll be publishing them as special episodes before I move on to putting together the second series. And on the matter of a second series- I’d like to ask anyone from the LGBTQ+ community who’s listened to this episode who lives in a country where it’s difficult to be queer or who’s moved from a place where being LGBTQ+ isn’t as accepted as it in some countries to get in touch with me. Or if you know anyone who has had that experience, I would love to talk to them, even if they don’t want to be recorded for an episode. So please get in touch with me either through email which is QueerMargins@gmail.com or Facebook, Twitter or Instagram which is @QueerMargins. Thank you for listening I hope you enjoy and thank you to Chris for talking to me, I'm sorry it took so long to publish your story.

Peter Tatchell is a human rights campaigner whose work has meant the LGBTQ+ community have taken HUGE steps forwards over the decades. You probably know he’s been massively influential in the queer movement and has been involved in so many groundbreaking campaigns. 

I got into contact with Peter Tatchel a couple of months ago. 

I feel like I’ve always been aware of his activism but our conversation really made me realise just what he and others like him have done for us and he continues to do through the Peter Tatchell foundation. I spoke to Peter Tatchell about a week after the news broke about Brunei strict new laws that made anal sex and adultery offenses punishable by stoning to death. 
In the past week Peter wrote a piece for the Guardian openly criticising Pride for selling out its soul to rainbow branded Capitalism, saying that 50 years after Stonewall the LGBTQ+ movement have abonded its dream of sexual democracy. So I can the irony of publishing my conversation with him as Pride special and on the day of London Pride. But I think that Pride can look differently to different people and I think people can disagree wholeheartedly with how many Pride events looks today, however it’s important to remember that even if you do feel like that, or you can’t get to a Pride celebration, or you don’t have other LGBTQ+ people or allies to celebrate your queerness with, then you can still celebrate pride and remember that pride comes in many forms. And if celebrating pride means partying all day or if it means putting your earphones in and listening to a podcast… then happy Pride to you, however you celebrate it.

I met Marc at an event at the Guildhall thrown by the organisation Aids Since the 80s. Jonathan Blake introduced us both and suggested I talk to Marc for this series. A few weeks later I went to Marc’s house in Brixton to chat to him. He lives just across the garden from Jonathan and when I got there I was greeted by a very excited dog and a cup of tea. We spoke about Marc’s upbringing in Brixton, his HIV diagnoses and his work as co-editor of Black Out UK as well as a lot more. It was a pleasure meeting Marc and I'm so glad we got the chance to talk. He's interesting, funny, friendly and he's got a great laugh. If you want to find out more about Marc’s work then head to his Twitter account which is @marct_01 where you’ll find links to everything. If you enjoyed this then please rate, review and subscribe on iTunes or wherever you’re getting this and follow on social media by searching for Queer Margins.

Ruth was suggested to me by Gaby and Liz from episode 9. Liz put me in touch with Ruth and I’m really glad she did. At 81 Ruth was the oldest person to go through gender reassignment surgery in Britain and possibly the world. She’s 85 now and has been living full-time as a woman since her 70s. We met in the lobby of her hotel chatted for a bit before heading up to her room for the interview. She's got so many amazing stories which are funny and touching in equal measure! If you enjoyed please rate and review on iTunes. And follow on social media by searching for ‘Queer Margins’.

This year marks the 45th birthday of Switchboard- the LGBT+ helpline. To mark the anniversary their Co-Chair Natasha Walker spoke to me about the kind of things Switchboard are faced with today. I also spoke to some people from previous and future episodes of Old Queens who have worked at (and have called) Switchboard over the years, including, Janet, Femi, Julian, Tony and Andy.

 Switchboard has been helping all people LGBT+ since it opened in 1974. It runs on a tiny budget and it’s only because of committed volunteers who work tirelessly all year round that this lifeline has managed to stay open 365 days a year for 45 years. The people who work there are available to take your calls 10am - 10pm every day of the week on 0300 330 0630 and through instant messenger. 
You can donate to Switchboard by going to Switchboard.lgbt/Support-Us. And if you want to become a volunteer you can by going to Switchboard.lgbt/Volunteer Remember, there’s no issue too big or too small. You can reach them on 0300 330 0630, through instant messenger (which can be found on their website switchboard.lgbt) or by emailing chris@Switchboard.lgbt. The second part of the Old Queens series will run from next week. 

Please subscribe, review and share the podcast and follow on all social medias by searching for ‘Queer Margins’.

George has been been living with HIV and Aids for 40 years, he’s had three different types of cancer and he hasn’t been able to work for decades. We spoke about his diagnosis, his love life and his time as a sex worker while he was a teenager, plus a lot more. He was recommended to me by Jonathan Blake. In fact during mine and Jonathan’s conversation George called about half way through. 

He’s 70 now and lives with two handsome and very small dogs who joined us for the interview, so if you hear any sniffing in the background, it’s them. George’s house is full of his own beautiful art as well as books and photos of his dogs and the love of his life Sam. He’s been through so much but he’s still able to laugh and joke about his life. If you enjoyed please rate and review on iTunes. And you find us on any social media by searching ‘Queer Margins’.

Singer of 'Crying These Cock Sucking Tears' the album 'Lavender Country'. Patrick was suggested to me by the podcast producer Dan Taberski, who made the shows 'Missing Richard Simmons' and Surviving Y2K' (www.headlongpodcast.com). Dan made a film about Patrick called 'These Cock Sucking tears' a few years ago (http://www.thesec-cksuckingtears.com) and told me I should interview 'the best old queen you've ever met'. So I followed his advice. Patrick released the first gay themed country album in 1973 which is called 'Lavender Country'. One thousand copies were made and the bravery it took to make music like that all those years ago meant the album (and Patrick) soon fell into obscurity. Over 40 years later and one song has brought the album and the artist back and that song is 'These Cock Sucking Tears'.

Gaby and Liz have been in a relationship since the 80s but the last few years have been difficult for them both. Gaby told me her cancer is incurable and will kill her eventually, although no one knows when and shortly after her cancer diagnosis Liz found out she had breast cancer. Liz is one of the editors for an online journal called Murmurations and when I was talking to them they were working on a piece together which focused on facing death. You can find the journal by searching 'Murmurations: Journal of Transformative Systemic Practice'. When I met with them they invited me to their house in South East London where I was presented with tea and short bread. We chatted for a little while before getting into the interview. It was good talking to a couple like these two because they bounced off each other so well.

This is the second part of the conversation from episode three with Jonathan Blake. Jonathan's partner Nigel spent more time with us during this part of the interview and contributed when he could. He suffered a stroke a couple of years ago so spoke when he had the energy to do so. Nigel and Jonathan met shortly after Jonathan found out he was HIV positive. More (full length) episodes will continue to be posted weekly from next Tuesday.

Janet suggested I speak to Tony. He's been busy all his life, whether that was with traveling around the world or working on important queer issues. He worked on Switchboard, he was the first chairperson on the Terrence Higgins Trust and he was fired from his first job for taking part in a documentary about gay life in Brighton. This sparked protest across the country. Tony's lived with HIV for many years and has been left almost blind due to complications to do with the virus. Tony's life is fascinating and he's achieved so much, so it was a huge pleasure to talk to him.

George Montague is 95-years-old, he’s the self proclaimed ‘Oldest Gay in the Village’ and he has a book by the same name. If you've been to Brighton Pride you might have seen him because every year he leads the parade in his mobility scooter. George has spent the past few years campaigning to the government to apologise for giving him a criminal conviction for being gay. 
You can find his apology from the Home Office, along with photos of George on the Instagram page @QueerMargins and on Facebook. He’s been married, he’s been convicted for being gay, he’s almost 100, he says he's the 'happiest, old gay guy in the world' and he’s seen it all.

Andy Piccos from episode 4 recommending I meet up with Femi to hear her stories and it was really good advice. I headed over to Femi's offices for our chat. Unfortunately she's a very busy woman... like really busy, so we didn't have a lot of time together. But the time we did have together was definitely worth the trip. Her stories of what it was like to be a young, out, black lesbian who was part of the women's movement, working on Switchboard and partying regularly are so insightful. She was left in London by herself when her mother moved back to Nigeria and she quickly became the centre of attention on the scene.

Maggie has lived in the closet for the majority of her life. When she was in her early 20s she married a man and lived in Swansea in South Wales. She says that everyday was torture for her. She knew she was with the wrong person and living in the wrong place. She gave birth to two children, but says the best day of her life was when her husband walked out on her. That’s when her new life began and she hasn’t looked back since. A few years after that she packed up, sold her house in Wales for a loss and moved to London. She’s in her 60s now and is living as an out gay woman, she’s happy. Thank you to Shadia Edwards-Dashti for help with editing this episode.