In 1993 Jonathan Harvey’s ‘Beautiful Thing’ was performed for the first time In 1993 Jonathan Harvey’s play Beautiful Thing was performed for the first time. Telling the story of two teenage boys, living on a council estate, who fall in love. The original production opened at the Bush Theatre in London and was directed by Hettie MacDonald. […]
The acronym AIDS is first proposed in 1982 On this day in 1982 the acronym AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) is first proposed at a meeting in Washington. The meeting brought together leaders of the LGBT+ communities, health experts and people from the US Centre for Disease Control who agreed that the term GRID (Gay […]
For over 50 years Merce Cunningham was at the forefront on modern dance Innovative choreographer Merce Cunningham died on this day in 2009. He was 90 years old at the time of his passing and had forged a remarkable career in the world of dance. Cunningham often collaborated with artists from other disciplines, forging links […]
Only after his death colleagues discovered Dr Barry had been assigned female at birth Dr James Mirandus Steuart Barry died on this day in 1865. His career saw him travel across the British Empire in his role as a military doctor, and he is credited with improving the lives of wounded soldiers alongside the health […]
Film director Gus Van Sant was born in 1952 Gus Van Sant has been behind many memorable and conversation-sparking films including My Own Private Idaho, Elephant, Good Will Hunting and Milk, the bio-pic of groundbreaking gay politician Harvey Milk. Van Sant is one of the most prominent directors of the New Queer cinema movement of the late 1980’s […]
Legandary DJ Larry Levan was born on this day in 1954 DJ Larry Levan was born on this day in 1954. He left this world too early – aged just 38 years old in 1992. The NYC DJ is synonyms with the Paradise Garage, the legendary club venue where Levan was the resident DJ for […]
On September 8th, in 1975, US airman and Vietnam veteran Leonard Matlovich became the first serving member of the US military to purposefully ‘out’ himself. Matlovich also became the first openly gay person to appear on the cover of a major weekly magazine in the USA. The groundbreaking issue of TIME magazine revealed Matlovich as […]
Marriage Equality was passed by the House of Lords in England Marriage equality in England and Wales reached a milestone on this day ion 2013 when the House of Lords passed the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill. The Queen gave the bill it’s royal ascent two days later, and the first same-sex weddings were allowed to […]
In 1982 France removed homosexuality from the list of mental disorders On this day in 1982 France removed homosexuality from the official list of mental disorders, and equalised the age of consent. The World Health Organisation would not remove the mental health classification until 1990. Homosexuality had generally been legal in France since the French […]
The UK parliament voted to end Section 28 In 2003 Britain’s House of Lords voted in favour of repealing a controversial law ‘Section 28’ which had been introduced in 1988 by the Thatcher government. The additional laws added to the Local Government Act stated that local government authorities “shall not intentionally promote homosexuality or publish […]
