Queers and Co.

In this episode of Queers & Co., I’m joined by Lady Blue Phoenix, burlesque performer and member of the Rock with the Foxes troupe. When on stage, she's been described as a force of nature!We chat about Columbia - the long-forgotten personification of the USA, our power to make social change, creating safer spaces in burlesque, learning to live with mental ill-health and what happens when we can no longer vault our pain away, embracing our shadow side and her experience of coming out as bisexual.CW: This episode contains a description of a racist incident.If you haven't already, be sure to join our Facebook community to connect with other like-minded queer folks and allies.Find out more about Gem Kennedy and Queers & Co.Podcast Artwork by Gemma D’SouzaImage by V’s Anchor StudioResourcesFollow Lady Blue Phoenix on Facebook and InstagramRock with the Foxes TroupeLady Blue Phoenix will be performing at the following events:29th Feb 2020: Lift Every Voice - Black History Month, Gothenburg, Sweden25th March 2020: The Yes Yes Yes Showcase, Royal Vauxhall Tavern, London, UK11th July 2020: Woodstock Freedom Festival, Hipley, near Portsmouth, UKFull TranscriptionGem: Hi Lady Blue.Lady Blue Phoenix: Hello.Gem: How are you today?Lady Blue Phoenix: I'm good. I'm just relaxing after a busy week at work.Gem: So, we've just been chatting about quite a lot of interesting stuff already actually, so we haven't recorded it. But I've got a few things that I am keen to ask you, but it'd be really cool first if you could introduce yourself so we can learn a bit more about you.Lady Blue Phoenix: Okay. Well firstly, my name is Lady Blue Phoenix. I originate from Seattle, Washington in America. I've lived abroad now since 2008 - five years in Japan and Oh God…  eight years here. I did a lot of dance in the States, so fire belly dance, things like that. I've always loved the dance industry. I'm never actually majored in it, but I just loved that freedom. So when I came to England, after living in Japan for five years, I got into burlesque. Me and my partner went to a show. I saw these amazing people on stage bearing their souls, baring their bodies to the world....

In this episode of Queers & Co., I’m joined by autism and neurodiversity support specialist, speaker, writer and creator of inTune Families, Kristy Forbes.We chat about embracing autism as an identity and culture rather than a disorder, moving away from pathologising behaviour, the importance of being able to self-identify as neurodivergent, the deeply problematic nature of compliance therapies and radical honesty as a form of self-care.CW: This episode contains talk of ABA and compliance therapyIf you haven't already, be sure to join our Facebook community to connect with other like-minded queer folks and allies.Find out more about Gem Kennedy and Queers & Co.Podcast Artwork by Gemma D’SouzaResourcesFollow Kristy on Facebook and InstagramFind out more about Kristy and her work through her website inTune PathwaysFind out more about Amy Sequenzia via her blog and at OllibeanKieran Rose aka The Autistic Advocate’s blogTickets for Kristy’s upcoming PDA Perspectives tour are available hereFull TranscriptionGem: Hi Kristy, how are you? Kristy: I'm great. Thank you so much for having me. Gem: Thank you for being here. I'm really excited. So we've known each other for about 18 months because my family did some work with you. And, and I guess it would be really cool if you could introduce yourself and what kind of work it is that you do?Kristy: Yeah, sure. So I'm Kristy Forbes. I am an autistic person. I support neurodivergent people and their family. I work in private consultation online, with families because some of them are at crisis point and can't leave their homes. I offer education around the lived experience of autism to allied health professionals, educators, parents. And I also write and I speak about autism.Gem: Great and what has your journey been to get to doing all these things? I know you say in your work that you were diagnosed at 33 as being autistic but obviously it's been quite a journey to get to the point of actually being a full-time advocate and doing that as your main focus. Kristy: Yeah. Oh gosh, what a huge question. It's been one hell of a ride really. When I came into this work, I already had a background as working as an educator in early childhood and primary and secondary schools. And having no clue I was autistic, knowing I was different but thinking there was something wrong with me. So I knew something was going on. I worked in the field because I worked with families, with children who had social emotional and behavioural challenges. So when I came into business for myself because I have four autistic...

In this episode of Queers & Co., I’m joined by Imogen Fox, a queer Disabled femme who serves up radical body politics, anti-diet talk and non-judgemental compassion. We chat about Imogen’s first foray into disability rights activism as a teen, the trauma of eating rice cakes and cottage cheese and being indoctrinated into diet culture by those closest to us. We also talk about radical Disability politics, the co-opting and white-washing of movements and whether it’s really possible to use your privilege for good. If you haven't already, be sure to join our Facebook community to connect with other like-minded queer folks and allies.Find out more about Gem Kennedy and Queers & Co.Podcast Artwork by Gemma D’SouzaResourcesFollow Imogen on InstagramRead Imogen’s self-proclaimed ‘dusty’ blog hereWatch You on Netflix hereFull TranscriptionGem: Hi Imogen. Imogen: Hello my lovely! Yeah, I’m not too bad, thank you. I was just saying to you I’ve got a really bad tummy ache, so I’m like in a massive jumper with a big hot water bottle… and a kitten actually, just curled up on the sofa, nursing myself.Gem: I’m sorry that you’re not well. But that sounds like a really lovely place to be in to recover.Imogen: It’s not not wellness. The annoying bit about it is that it can be quite a regular occurrence. It’s just that my tummy is part of my impairment. So, things like this are kind of, sort of normal. And my go-to coping strategy is to—especially when it’s cold. Just to huddle up and nest myself a little bit…Gem: Yeah, absolutely. Well, I think I came across your work maybe a couple of years ago. I’ve definitely been following you for quite a while… Imogen: We’ve been in touch for a while. Gem: Yeah! And we met at Body Kind last year. Imogen: Yeah, yeah… Gem: So, I’m really excited to get the chance to ask you all my questions. And I guess what I generally start off with when I’m chatting to people is just asking them to introduce how they identify, and I guess what different intersections play a role in them as a person. Imogen: Yeah, okay. I would say I’m a queer disabled femme. I haven’t really kind of started using the term non-binary, but I don’t really identify as being part of a gender binary particularly. I still use the pronouns she/her although they’re not particularly comfortable. But then I don’t find they/them any more comfortable. So, I tend to use a mixture of both of those things. I live in Bristol in the UK. And I have been a disability rights activist for most of my life actually. But I found an online community through Instagram a few years ago. So, I’ve just been writing and sharing stuff there for a while. Gem: Yeah. And I’m really interested in how that came about. You...

In this episode of Queers & Co., I’m joined by Cameryn Moore, an award-winning playwright/performer with seven solo shows under her belt but perhaps best known as the founder of Smut Slam, a global network of community dirty-storytelling events.We chat about becoming an activist in the mid-80s, the power of learning to dance later in life, sex positivity versus being sex aware, how people who have a problem with sex work really have a problem with capitalism, growing up Mormon and undoing our issues around sex. Plus, the joys of creating personalised smut on the street for passers by!If you haven't already, be sure to join our Facebook community to connect with other like-minded queer folks and allies.To book your ‘by donation’ coaching session, visit here.Find out more about Gem Kennedy and Queers & Co.Podcast Artwork by Gemma D’SouzaResourcesCheck out Cameryn’s website to find out about upcoming performances and events.Follow Cameryn on Facebook, Instagram and TwitterFollow Smut Slam London on Facebook here and Smut Slam International hereWatch Juno Mac’s TED Talk - The Laws that Sex Workers Really Want hereCameryn’s recommendation: Little Women (2019) More info on performer and fat activist Heather McAllister can be found here and hereFull TranscriptionGem: Hi Cameryn, thank you so much for joining me.Cameryn: Oh, it’s good to be here. Thank you!Gem: So, it’ll be really great if you just tell us a bit more about you and how you identify.Cameryn: I am a playwright and a performer and a facilitator of smut. That’s kind of my professional designation I guess. I identify as an activist in a lot of ways around sex and fat and sex work. And phew, I’m just a middle-aged lady that didn’t really get the memo on how to be middle-aged sometimes is how I’m feeling like, yeah.Gem: And so, there’s lots to explore there. I’m just wondering how you first got into activism.Cameryn: I first got into activism when I was 16 actually. This was back in the mid-80s, so 1986. Nuclear war was kind of the constant looming thing. I don’t know how it was for other places, but certainly in the US, there was this constant sort of—it just hung over everything right? I started a peace...

In this episode of Queers & Co., I’m joined by Cynthia Rodriguez, a Mexican-British writer and performer who is constantly experimenting with the possibilities of spoken word. They are international, intersectional and interdisciplinary.We chat about being an Anglophile, the reality of life in the UK compared to the image of Cool Britannia, racism in the queer punk scene and being a person of colour in the UK. We also talk about the importance of speaking the truth, how to look after yourself in times of burnout, queer storytelling and how Cynthia is bringing more of their roots into their work to counter stereotypes of Mexican culture.If you haven't already, be sure to join our Facebook community to connect with other like-minded queer folks and allies.To book your ‘by donation’ coaching session, visit here.To donate to the London Bi Pandas COVID-19 fund, click here.Find out more about Gem Kennedy and Queers & Co.Podcast Artwork by Gemma D’SouzaResourcesCheck out Cynthia’s website to find out about their upcoming performances and events. Their debut poetry collection, Meanwhile, is out on 7th September 2020, via Burning Eye Books.Follow on Facebook, Instagram and TwitterHeather Love, Feeling Backward: Loss and the Politics of Queer HistorySome articles on #dignidadliteraria can be found here: LA Weekly, Tropics of Meta and Hip LatinaCynthia recommends the incredible band, Big JoaniePhoto of Cynthia by David Wilson Clarke of DWC ImageryFull TranscriptionGem: Hi Cynthia! How are you? Cynthia: All right! Just at home, looking at the rain, working with my cats.Gem: Oh nice!Cynthia: Well, the cat is not working, but I am…Gem: You’re working with your cat. It sounds like a nice Friday. Cynthia: Yes, excellent! Gem: It would be really great if you can just tell everyone a bit...

In this episode of Queers & Co., I’m joined by Lola Phoenix, a queer, non-binary disabled American living in the UK. Lola writes and produces a weekly advice column and podcast called Non-Monogamy Help as well as writing on social justice topics from gender to disability to poverty.We chat about so much juicy stuff, including how labels and identifiers can help us to feel less alone, whether polyamory is a marginalised identity, the importance of taking the time to educate people without jumping down their throats, non-monogamy and creating a podcast and column on it, learning when to step away from an argument, death positivity and so much more!If you haven't already, be sure to join our Facebook community to connect with other like-minded queer folks and allies.Find out more about Gem Kennedy and Queers & Co.Podcast Artwork by Gemma D’SouzaResourcesFind out more about Lola and their work here: Medium and About.MeNon-Monogamy Help podcast and columnFollow on Lola on TwitterRead Thirteen Mistakes People Make When Trying PolyamorySex Worker Advocacy and Resistance Movement (SWARM)Email nonmonogamyhelp@gmail.com to submit a question to Lola on non-monogamyFull TranscriptionGem: Hi Lola! How are you?Lola: I'm pretty good. How are you?Gem: Yeah, I'm good. Thank you. I'm really excited to have you here. Thanks for doing it.Lola: Yeah, thank you for having me on.Gem: So, it will be really great to start with—I think I always start with this actually. I make it sound like it's a new invention. It'll be great to start with just finding out a bit more about you and your various intersections.Lola: Cool!  So yeah, my name is Lola. I am an American immigrant that relocated to the UK. And I'm going to be here for the foreseeable future (unless things change, and it gets a lot easier to immigrate somewhere else). I identify as queer, autistic, and disabled in lots of other ways. I have a very rare and difficult disorder to deal with. I am also queer. And I grew up in a kind of—I would say it was mostly working class. But there were kind of weird things that made it a little bit middle class. I had middle class grandparents. But my parents were definitely working class/poor. So, there was a lot of mix-up with that. I think that definitely kind of informs my experience. I'm also a bit on the ace spectrum. And that has had a lot of impact in terms of how I look at things. And yeah, I think that kind of covers most of my intersections. I am white, so...

In this episode, I’m joined by Rubyyy Jones (they/them), an artist, performer and space maker who specialises in the body, the bawdyyy and deep feels. As an artist they work in live art, photography and film, creating a spectrum of experiences from silly to sublime. They are an icon in the world's of Drag, Burlesque and Cabaret and a Mxther and mentor to many in the industry.  Two years after our first interview together, we chat about rediscovering moving for joy in lockdown, neurodivergence and accessibility, moving back to their childhood neighbourhood in Canada, re-parenting ourselves and the queer community, Tony Clifton as a gateway to drag king-ing and lots more!If you haven't already, be sure to join our Facebook community to connect with other like-minded queer folks and allies. Find out more about Gem Kennedy and Queers & Co. Podcast Artwork by Gemma D’SouzaResourcesRubyyy and their partner Prinx Lydia created and run The YYY School which includes many different kinds of performance, craft and personal development workshops, both online and in the flesh. Together they share a passion for accessible, atypical and amazing art, The YYY School encompasses all of that. You can find out more about Rubyyy’s work on the following Instagram accounts: @rubyyyjones, @lifedrawingrubyyy, @theyyyschool, @prinxlydiaAnd consider becoming a patron on www.patreon.com/SaveRubyyyJones Full TranscriptionGem: Welcome to Queers & Co. - the podcast on self-empowerment, body liberation and activism for queer folx and allies. I'm your host, Gem Kennedy. My pronouns are they/them and I'm a transformational practitioner and coach living in the UK. Hi everyone! Welcome to Series 2 of Queers & Co. I'm so excited to be back and to be able to share all of my brilliant guests with you. I've got 13 guests for this coming series and I've recorded about half of the episodes so far. And honestly, I can't wait to put them all out. I hope you're going to get lots from them and find them interesting, insightful, and maybe share them with anyone that you think might be interested in hearing what my guests have to say as well. The world is in a pretty different place now from when I recorded the first series in 2020. So I think the last couple of episodes, we'd just gone into lockdown in March 2020 and now here we are in January 2021. The UK has just entered another lockdown. I hope you're all keeping safe and well, no matter where in the world you are.It felt really meaningful to me to have this guest as my first guest for the second series. I first spoke to them two years ago when I was just starting out with the Queers & Co. project and I interviewed them to find out about their relationship with their body. And since then we have crossed paths multiple times and I just think they...

In this episode, I’m joined by Spiritual Healer, Body Positivity Advocate, poet and artist, Jade Elouise (Bodiposipoet). Her activism, creative outlets and spiritual work all centre around advocating for social justice, equality and equity for marginalised bodies on a systemic level, while also promoting self-healing and self-acceptance on a personal one.We chat about Jade’s work to reclaim the co-opted body positivity movement, how spirituality and activism can work so well together, speaking out about spiritual bypassing, queering psychology, the power of creativity for self-expression and lots more!If you haven't already, be sure to join our Facebook community to connect with other like-minded queer folks and allies. Find out more about Gem Kennedy and Queers & Co. Podcast Artwork by Gemma D’SouzaResourcesYou can find out more about Jade’s work by following these accounts on Instagram: @bodiposipoet, @reclaimingbopo and @asafespacetogrow Head to Jade’s Etsy shop to buy some beautiful art!Full TranscriptionGem: Welcome to Queers & Co., the podcast on self-empowerment, body liberation and activism for queer folx and allies. I'm your host, Gem Kennedy, my pronouns are they/them and I'm a transformational practitioner and coach living in the UK. Gem: Hi, everyone. Welcome to Episode 2. I hope you've all had a good week despite lockdown. I'm currently snuggled in my dressing gown, because it's absolutely freezing here and I don't want to go outside and get wood so I can light a fire so I thought I'd record the intro instead. And something keeping me nice and warm at the moment, this sounds like such a segue, are the feelings that I got from having this interview with my guest today. I'm sure that you're going to get a lot out of our conversation. I know I definitely did. And yeah, without further ado, I'll introduce her to you. So her name is Jade: Elouise, also known as bodiposipoet. She is a spiritual healer, body positivity advocate, poet and artist. Her activism, creative outlets and spiritual work all centre around advocating for social justice, equality and equity for marginalised bodies on a systemic level, while also promoting self-healing and self-acceptance on a personal one. I hope you enjoy the episode. And I'd love to hear your thoughts afterwards so do head over to the Facebook group to join in the conversation. So now over to the wonderful Jade Elouise. Gem: Hi Jade. How are you?Jade: Good thank you. How are you? Gem: I'm good, thank you. Thanks so much for joining me, I'm really excited to talk to you.Jade: Oh, thank you for having me.Gem: Not at all. It would be great if you're happy to just introduce yourself for anyone who hasn't come across your work before.Jade: Yeah,

I’m joined again by researcher and former professor Dr. Lindo Bacon (they/them). In this very special follow up recording, Lindo and I reflect on our experience of recording part one. We talk about the power of letting go of perfectionism, connecting with each other from a place of vulnerability and the gift of feeling into our bodies during conversation.About Lindo: For nearly two decades Lindo has taught courses in social justice, health, weight and nutrition. They are also the author of Health at Every Size: The Surprising Truth About Your Weight, and co-authored Body Respect: What Conventional Health Books Get Wrong, Leave Out, or Just Plain Fail to Understand About Weight. Their newly released book, Radical Belonging: How to Survive and Thrive in an Unjust World (While Transforming it for the Better) , takes their inspiring message beyond size, to shaping a culture of empathy, equity, and true belonging.If you haven't already, be sure to join our Facebook community to connect with other like-minded queer folks and allies. Find out more about Gem Kennedy and Queers & Co. Podcast Artwork by Gemma D’SouzaResourcesFind out more about Lindo’s work and books on their websiteLindo’s new book Radical Belonging: How to Survive and Thrive in an Unjust World (While Transforming It For the Better)Follow Lindo on Instagram or Twitter or Facebookadrienne maree brown’s new book, We Will Not Cancel UsFull TranscriptionGem: Welcome to Queers & Co., the podcast and self-empowerment, body liberation and activism for queer folx and allies. I'm your host, Gem Kennedy, my pronouns are they/them and I'm a transformational practitioner and coach living in the UK. Gem: Hi, everyone. Welcome to Part 2 of the episode with Dr. Linda Bacon. If you haven't listened to Part 1 yet, I'd highly recommend that you head there first and hear that. Otherwise, this may not make much sense. If you've already listened to Part 1, then I won't keep you any longer and I'll let you get straight to listening to Part 2. Gem: Hi Lindo! Thanks so much for joining me again.Lindo: Oh, it's great to see you again, Gem.Gem: Yeah, and it's really nice to actually see you as well, rather than just to hear you because before we both said that was a bit disconnecting.Lindo: Right, right. Definitely, I think it's gonna be... it's so much easier to feel present when you can actually see somebody.Gem: Yeah, absolutely. And what we were talking about in between when we recorded the first episode, which was towards the end of December - I think was the 22nd of December actually - and this is kind of like a reflection part, I guess, where we had this experience...

I’m joined by researcher and former professor Dr. Lindo Bacon (they/them) for a special two part episode. For nearly two decades they have taught courses in social justice, health, weight and nutrition. They are also the author of Health at Every Size: The Surprising Truth About Your Weight, and co-authored Body Respect: What Conventional Health Books Get Wrong, Leave Out, or Just Plain Fail to Understand About Weight. Their newly released book, Radical Belonging: How to Survive and Thrive in an Unjust World (While Transforming it for the Better) , takes their inspiring message beyond size, to shaping a culture of empathy, equity, and true belonging.We talk about radical belonging, how hearing Audre Lorde speak changed their life, identifying as trans and taking up space, how coping methods serve us and lots more. Be sure to listen to Part 2 after this!If you haven't already, be sure to join our Facebook community to connect with other like-minded queer folks and allies. Find out more about Gem Kennedy and Queers & Co. Podcast Artwork by Gemma D’SouzaResourcesFind out more about Lindo’s work and books on their websiteLindo’s new book Radical Belonging: How to Survive and Thrive in an Unjust World (While Transforming It For the Better)Follow Lindo on Instagram or Twitter or Facebookadrienne maree brown’s new book, We Will Not Cancel Us Full TranscriptionGem: Welcome to Queers & Co. - the podcast on self-empowerment, body liberation and activism for queer folx and allies. I'm your host, Gem: Kennedy. My pronouns are they/them and I'm a transformational practitioner and coach living in the UK.Gem: Hey folx! Welcome to Episode 3. There are two parts to this week's episode. So we're doing things a little bit differently and it will all become clear why. First of all, let me introduce who my guest is. It's someone who I was incredibly excited to talk to and someone whose books I've really enjoyed over the years. They're a researcher and former professor and for nearly two decades have taught courses in social justice, health, weight and nutrition. If you're involved in fat activism or body liberation of any kind, then you will have heard of their books Health at Every Size and also Body Respect and their newly released book, Radical Belonging: How to Survive and Thrive in an Unjust World, While Transforming It for the Better takes their inspiring message beyond size to shaping a culture of empathy, equity and true belonging. Gem: If you haven't already read Radical Belonging, I'd highly recommend that you do. It's a brilliant book and it brings together so many important ideas and lots of different research. So my guest is, if you haven't...

This week, I’m joined by Katy Lees (they/them), a queer writer and psychotherapist from the North East of England. They can be found writing therapy tips, poetry, anti-oppression rants, short stories, and more. They are currently writing a good mental health guide for trans and non-binary people, to be published soon by Jessica Kingsley Publishers.Join us as we talk about the oppression different sized fat folx experience, trans and non-binary mental health and self-care, Katy’s experience navigating and recovering from burnout, stepping away from the constant pressure to ‘level up’ in life, the challenges of dressing as a fat, trans, non-binary person and lots more.If you haven't already, be sure to join our Facebook community to connect with other like-minded queer folks and allies. Find out more about Gem Kennedy and Queers & Co. Podcast Artwork by Gemma D’SouzaResourcesFind out more about Katy’s work on their website.Support Katy’s work on their PatreonFollow Katy on InstagramFull TranscriptionGem: Welcome to Queers & Co., the podcast on self-empowerment, body liberation and activism for queer folx and allies. I'm your host, Gem Kennedy. My pronouns are they/them and I'm a transformational practitioner and coach living in the UK.Gem:  Hey folx! Welcome to Episode 4. I hope you were able to get some relaxing time during integration week. I know that it was really helpful for me to practice some of what I talk to my clients about around working sustainably and actually give myself some space to not be furiously editing and producing all the time. So with that in mind, I'm very excited and energised to be back for Episode 4. And this one is a short and sweet episode. They're an incredible guest and they also happen to be an incredible client of mine. And I'm just really happy that they agreed to record an episode with me. We had quite a few technical difficulties unfortunately during the recording, which meant that we tried two different platforms and then by the time we'd had that all sorted, then time was up. So we have just over half an hour together. And I hope that you'll find it as interesting as I did. And just to introduce my guest... They are a queer writer and psychotherapist from the northeast of England. They can be found writing therapy tips, poetry, anti-oppression rants, short stories, and more on their website iamkatylees.com, and that will be in the show notes. They're currently writing a good mental health guide for trans and non-binary people, which is going to be published hopefully this year (I'm keeping my fingers crossed) by Jessica Kingsley publishers, and I'll share all of the relevant links so you can go and follow their work after the episode today. I've already asked them about recording another episode together so look out for that, hopefully around the same time as the book launches. And so without further ado, allow me to introduce my wonderful guest, Katy Lees. Gem: Hi Katy! Thanks so much for joining me. Katy:...

This week, I’m joined by Adele Jarrett-Kerr; a mother, writer, home educator and breastfeeding counsellor, originally from Trinidad and Tobago, now living in Cornwall. Adele also works with her family’s small, regenerative farm near Falmouth and hosts a podcast about human connection called Revillaging.Join us as we talk about the importance of developing critical thinking, what our children teach us, experiencing colonial dismissal, deprogramming from the dominant culture, different ways of accessing knowledge and the problematic nature of academia, partnering with nature in farming and so much more!If you haven't already, be sure to join our Facebook community to connect with other like-minded queer folks and allies. Find out more about Gem Kennedy and Queers & Co. Podcast Artwork by Gemma D’SouzaResourcesFind out more about Adele’s work on her websiteListen to the Revillaging podcastCheck out Soul FarmFollow Adele on Instagram, Facebook and TwitterListen to Adele’s podcast for the Freedom to Learn Forum, Address the Harm: Self-Directed Learning for DecolonisationFull TranscriptionGem: Welcome to Queers & Co., the podcast on self-empowerment, body liberation and activism for queer folx. I'm your host, Gem Kennedy. I'm a transformational coach, as well as creator of the Queers & Co. community. Gem: Hey folx, welcome to another episode of Queers & Co. I don't know about you, but lockdown fatigue has really set in in the last week or so. It gave me a lot of hope, actually imagining people listening to this in like six months or a year, and hopefully lockdown being a thing of the past, or at least things being easier. So yeah, if you're listening in the future, well done you. For everyone who's listening now, in February 2021, I hope you're all keeping safe and managing to look after yourself. I wonder if there's anything that you could do today that would help your day feel a little bit easier, maybe help you feel a little bit more supported. I'm really conscious of that at the moment, because as I said, locked down in our household is really becoming tiresome. The children just want to see their friends, and we just want to be outside seeing all the people we love. So it's feeling really frustrating. Gem: Luckily, I have a really great guest for you today. And it's someone that I spoke to back in December and oh it was so good. When I listened back just now when I was editing and transcribing the episode, I just had so many thoughts, there are so many things that we touch on. And I'm really hoping that she's going to come back and talk to us about some other...

This week, I’m joined by artist, photographer and documenter Holly Revell, who has a keen eye for preserving and collaborating with other queer artists, making images and portraits which explore performance and transforming identities. Holly’s work is archived at Bishopsgate Institute.Join us as we chat about being a groupie in the 90’s, becoming a professional photographer working in the queer underground, her beautiful new zine from her People Like Us project, not fitting into the art world, hanging out with queer icons and a whole lot more!If you haven't already, be sure to join our Facebook community to connect with other like-minded queer folks and allies. Find out more about Gem Kennedy and Queers & Co. Podcast Artwork by Gemma D’SouzaResourcesFind out more about Holly’s work on her websiteHolly's new zine People Like Us (a work in progress), which features a series of 12 images and participants quotes from the wider project, is available to buy hereFollow Holly on Instagram, Facebook and TwitterTravis Alabanza’s new play, OverflowZanele Muholi’s exhibition at the Tate Modern, which runs until 31st May 2021Harry Clayton-Wright’s new zine, You Otter KnowTranscription to follow

This week, I’m joined by Lindsay McGlone aka The Fierce Fat Feminist; an activist, public speaker, producer, stage manager, Instagram coach and teacher. Lindsay is a force to be reckoned with, running numerous successful campaigns highlighting fatphobia, most recently targeting Airbnb. She was also named Young Changemaker of the Year in the IWC Igniting Inspiration Awards 2020.Joining me whilst recovering from surgery, hear us talk about how wearing slogan t-shirts changed Lindsay’s life, fatphobia in healthcare and the media, the incredible support she receives from her family, experiencing a skin condition called HS, becoming the subject of a fake news story in The Sun, balancing activism with influencing and so much more!If you haven't already, be sure to join our Facebook community to connect with other like-minded queer folks and allies. Find out more about Gem Kennedy and Queers & Co. Podcast Artwork by Gemma D’SouzaResourcesFollow Lindsay on InstagramGrab a ticket to Lindsay’s Big Fat Burlesque Online Show on Saturday 13th March 2021 at 8.30pm UK timeFind about more about Lindsay on her websiteFull Transcription to follow

This week, I’m joined by queer witch, illustrator and author, Cedar McCloud (they/them). Cedar started reading tarot in 2003, going on to found Numinous Spirit Press and create beautiful, radical decks with a social justice lens, such as The Numinous Tarot and The Threadbound Oracle. They believe storytelling is a beautiful tool for healing from trauma and enjoy archaic crafts, nature walks and fashion.Join us as we chat about exploring ourselves through art, the importance of acknowledging our pain for healing, thinking about gender as a colour wheel, their work as a tool for activists to affect change, how tarot tells us what we already know deeply, getting engaged and so much more!If you haven't already, be sure to join our Facebook community to connect with other like-minded queer folks and allies. Find out more about Gem Kennedy and Queers & Co. Podcast Artwork by Gemma D’SouzaResourcesFollow Cedar on InstagramSupport Cedar’s KickstarterVisit Cedar’s website and shopBecome a supporter of Cedar’s work on their PatreonFull Transcription to follow